Christmas is one of Kolkata’s largest festivals and like all things in the city, most of the celebration is about food. We drew up a list of christmas goodies in Kolkata that you must try if you’re in the city. Here it goes:
1. Coconut Macaroons and Christmas Cake from Saldanha’s Bakery
An 80-year-old home-run bakery, Saldanha’s is known to be the best in town for these two christmas goodies. It’s not a fancy shop, and patrons who usually pre-order just come pick up the confectionery. Unique to Saldanha’s, the recipe of the Coconut Macaroon is a secret, but the key, the family says, is to be generous with ingredients and pack in oodles of love!
2. Rose Cookies
While the best place to try these would be your Anglo-Indian friend’s kitchen, you can also head over to Mullick’s in New Market to get a taste of this scrumptious wonder. Made by heating an iron mould in oil, dipping it in batter and then frying it, rose cookies are sweet, crunchy and delicious. Christmas in Kolkata would be incomplete without them.
3. Pork Sausages from Chaman’s
Tucked away in an unassuming corner of the Park Circus (Beckbagan) Market, Chaman’s has been running for over 50 years. They source the best meat from Odisha, which is then mixed with their unique home-ground spices, coriander and parsley. The ingredients can be tweaked to your taste and you can add as much fat as you want. Just slow cook them with some mustard oil and dry chillies and your Christmas morning is sorted.
4. Rum Balls from Nahoum’s
Over a 100 years old, Nahoum’s in New Market is the oldest Jewish bakery in Kolkata. It is synonymous with Christmas in the minds of Calcuttans because of their special plum cakes and delectable rum balls. Dipped in oodles of chocolate and marinated in a generous amount of rum, the rum balls are to die for. The recipe has always been a secret, but the joy it gives to people? Well, that’s not a secret at all!
5. Home-Made Wine from The Barracks
If you are looking for something to wash down all of the above, then consider ditching the retail and buying a few bottles of home-made wine from the women at the Barracks. The wine is made months in advance by fermenting the grapes for a month and then straining and storing them in glass jars for another month. We hope you’ve ordered your bottle, because they run out before December begins!
Hope this sorts out your Christmas food scene in Kolkata. Merry Christmas!
(This story was first published on 25 December 2017. It has been reposted from The Quint’s archives on Christmas Day)
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