Side – Global Dine In

Cilantro Chutney

Cilantro chutney or bhorta is one of my favorite condiments to serve with Bengali dishes. It’s easy, fast, and packs a delicious punch.

Pico de gallo is a type of salsa. While it may seem similar to regular salsa, they both have their share of differences! Pico de gallo contains less liquid and it’s much more chunky. It’s commonly used in tacos and fajitas. I like to put pico de gallo on lots of things like omelettes, quesadillas, and rice bowls.

My Favorite Cornbread

I did not grow up with cornbread and did not inherit a legacy of making it. My family, however, really loves cornbread, especially when it is a bit sweet and rich. I have been making cornbread off and on for over 20 years, and have settled on the following recipe as my favorite way to make it.

Begun Bhaji (Fried Eggplant)

I love eggplant for its delicious taste and smooth and velvety texture. It doesn’t hurt that it’s healthy too. Growing up, my Mom used eggplant in many dishes. She would either deep fry it in a chick pea flour batter, stir fry it, or pan fry it in a skillet. The pan-fried version of this dish is called Begun bhaji, which is what I make in this recipe.

Saag Bhaji (Spinach fry)

Saag bhaji is a spinach dish widely eaten all over Bangladesh. This is probably the easiest Bengali dish you’ll ever make. If you don’t have any spinach, you can substitute in other greens like mustard, swiss chard, beet greens. The taste may differ from regular spinach, as spinach has a very mild flavor. I like to use radish greens because they give the dish a spicy kick.

Bangladeshi-Style Aoo Bhorta (spicy mashed potatoes)

During my youth, I ate potato dishes every day in my Bangladeshi household. Potatoes were super cheap and easy for my family to get ahold of.

My love for potatoes came from my Mom. She made fried potatoes with spices to eat with rotis (homemade flour tortilla) for breakfast. She also made bhortas to go along with lentil dishes. Aloo bhorta was our comfort food.

Vegan Fried Rice

Fried rice is one of those dishes that you can make in no time if you have some leftover rice in your refrigerator. You can make it as simple or as elaborate as you want. I don’t know about you but I like to eat rice pretty much every day, maybe because I grew up in Asia.

Potato Gratin with Caramelized Onion

If you are looking for something different to put on your dinner table, make my potato gratin. It doesn’t take that much time to put together, but is a great potato dish to enjoy. The thing about this gratin is that you can customize it to your liking by adding your own favorite types of cheese, potatoes, and herbs.

Parmesan Thyme Popovers

Last Thursday was Thanksgiving and I hope you had a good holiday if you celebrated. This year there were just three of us but I kept very busy in the kitchen like usual. I made a lot of traditional American dishes like baked ham, stuffing, potato gratin, and pies. Like usual I also served bread. Normally I buy dinner rolls from the store but this year I made something new: popovers to go with my ham feast.

Korean Pancake

I have been enjoying making lunch with my son. He has been showing interest in eating healthy and cooking with me. I like his input on what to post on this blog and what dishes my readers will like.

Category: Side