It was spring break for kids last week so we had planned a short trip of 3 days to the neighboring state, but then something important came in the way and it had to be postponed. This is life, things sometimes don’t work out as we expect them to be.

But few local trips along with friends & family to the “Cherry Blossom Festival” that was going on for a week now, and tulip farm that certainly gave the feel of Yashraj movies, altogether brought a perfect end to what we call a relaxing vacation. But how could a vacation be complete without a delicious spread, so to make most of the holiday, a gastronome Bengali/Bihari me decided to whip up some delicacies from both states that I grew up largely on, that haven’t yet appeared on the blog and kids haven’t been introduced to.

Though a born Bengali, being raised in that small town (Bhagalpur, often known as silk city) of Bihar was ecstatic nonetheless. The historic city located on the bank of the Holy Ganges has so much to offer, the glorious history, rich heritage, its unpretentious culture & food and I always feel blessed to have that experience firsthand.

And while it was the customary Bengali cuisine with little or no deviation on our everyday menu, we had our fair share of Bihari cuisine as well. Bengali cuisine, on one hand, comes with subtle flavors, limited usage of spices and sophisticated desserts, whereas on the other hand Bihari cuisine can be said to have a mixture of North & East Indian flavor, is uncomplicated, rustic yet appetizing.   

So when a friend brought home some freshly cut mutton from a farm, I immediately decided it has to be kosha mangsho for lunch, definitely with SCD twist in it.

Kosha mangsho - a legendary mutton curry without which any celebration is incomplete in Bengal. It goes well with mishti pulao (slightly sweetened rice), steamed rice, chapatti, or puri but to make it a complete SCD meal I serve it with red lentil dosa.