Bori ( bn, বড়ি) is a form of dried lentil dumplings popular in
Bengali cuisine
Bengali cuisine ( bn, বাঙ্গালী রন্ধনপ্রণালী) is the culinary style of Bengal, a region in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent encompassing Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, ...
. It is made from a paste of
urad dal
''Vigna mungo'', also known as black gram, urad bean, urid bean, mash kalai, uzhunnu parippu, ulundu paruppu, minapa pappu, uddu, or black matpe, is a bean grown in South Asia. Like its relative, the mung bean, it has been reclassified from the ...
and
winter melon
''Benincasa hispida'', the wax gourd, also called ash gourd, white gourd, winter gourd, winter melon, tallow gourd, ash pumpkin, Chinese preserving melon is a vine grown for its very large fruit, eaten as a vegetable when mature. It is the o ...
which is sun-dried for 3–5 days. Once fully dried, it can easily last for about a year.
Recipe
The paste is laid out by hand on a mat in the sunlight. It sticks to the mat while wet but when the bori dries completely it can easily come off. In its simplest form bori takes the conical shape naturally occurring due to the way the paste is laid out.
Intricate artistic designs can also made with the paste when squeezed out through a piping bag. This is called ''naksha bori''. It is also called ''
gohona bori
''Gohona Bori'' ( bn, গহনা বড়ি) is a dried dal dumpling. It is popular in Bengali cuisine. It is a well known food item in Purba Medinipur. It is also known as ''Naksha Bori''. It is made with black lentil, Poppy seed and variou ...
'' or ''gayna bori'' because the designs often look like those of jewellery (gahana or gayna is Bengali for jewellery). To avoid breaking ''naksha bori'' when removing from the mat, a layer of poppy seeds is spread before laying the paste. The district of
Purba Medinipur
Purba Medinipur (English: ''East Medinipur'', alternative spelling ''Midnapore'') district is an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the southernmost district of Medinipur division – one of the five administrative d ...
is famous for its ''naksha bori''.
Preparing bori is almost exclusively done by women of the household, sometimes assisted by children. Contrary to the common notion, it is not grown on trees.
Consumption
Bori can be fried and eaten as a snack or can be added to fish or vegetable dishes to enhance taste and to add variety.
See also
* ''
Masaura
''Masaura'' or ''Masyaura'' () is a fermented sun-dried vegetable balls made with a combination of various or single minced vegetables with black lentils. It originated in Nepal and is made by Nepali diaspora throughout the world. The choice of ...
''
*
Soya chunks
References
External links
Recipe for boriShort article on bori, including gahona bori
{{Culture of West Bengal
Bengali cuisine
Plant-based fermented foods