West Bengal cuisine, Indian food, has been developed and embellished through lots of sources as Bengal had different rulers through the ages. The ancient inhabitants of Bengal were the Dravidians and later Aryans located in Bengal during the Gupta era. Bengal had experienced the jurisdiction of the Muslim rulers and the British rulers and later on, the inhabitation of Jews, Afghans and Chinese fortified the Bengal cuisine culture. During the time of British dictatorship, the Dutch and the French had established colonies in west Bengal and they had a great impact on Bengal`s culinary habits as well as that of the Anglo Indians and the Christian Community. The process of baking which is now extensively used was unknown before the British period. West Bengal has included Chops and Cutlets, which are originated from the British, in the Bengali food list.

West Bengal cuisine involves the use of huge variety of spices like "Pachforon", " tej pata"(bay leaf), "jeera", "mouri"(snafu), "kala jeera", "jayfol", "joyitri", "shorshe" (mustard seed),"jafran"(saffron), "groom moshla" which is a mixture of "elaichi"(cardamom), "darchini"(cinnamon) and "long"(clove) , "posto"(poppy seeds).

The cuisine of West Bengal has its wide ramification which enlists "bhaja", "bora", "dal", "pora", " shukto"," "torkari" , "labra", "ghonto", "chanchra", "chochhori" , " bhapa", "bhate", " bhorta", "bhuna", "chechki", "dalna", "kalia", "kofta", "kasha", "korma", "polau", "jhal" ,"jhol", "curry", "biriyani", "chutni" etc. Bhaja and Bora : Bhaja comprises anything fried like alu bhaja (fried potato) etc and Bora is a kind of food which needs to dip into batter and then it is fried. Dal in West Bengal cuisine includes different types of cereals like mung dal, arhar dal,mushur dal, matar dal etc. Pora is a preparation which needs to be roasted over wood, charcoal, coal fire or sometimes directly on the flame. The pora is mixed with oil, chopped onion, chopped chilli, coriander leaves and salt to taste. This special dish dominates the West Bengal cuisine.

Shukto is another most sought after food in West Bengal. It`s a bittersweet dish eaten in summer in West Bengal. It`s a balance of bitter and sweet taste and is a soupy mixture of various vegetables. Torkari in West Bengal cuisine is a general preparation, which is made in West Bengal and is generally with "ruti" and "luchi". Torkari is originated from Persia . In Persia it means "uncooked vegetables", but in West Bengal it is a dish of cooked vegetables. Labra in West Bengal cuisine has gained importance. It`s a preparation of mixed vegetables with "Panch foron".

Ghonto is prepared with different kind of finely grated vegetables like potatoes, banana, coconut, cabbage, pumpkin, green peas etc and is cooked with "foron" and ginger. Then ghee and bori are added to make it more tasty. Some non-veg ghontos are cooked with the fish head among them "murighonto "is famous for its taste in Bengal. Apart from these dishes like Chanchra, a dish which needs the ingredients like different vegetables, fish oil and fish portions, Chochori,( a combination of varieties of vegetables and leefy green stalks. These are cut into stripes and foron , mustard oil and poppy seeds are added for flavour ), also offers quite a distinct dimension to West Bengal cuisine.

Spicy and zesty, tasty and nutritious West Bengal cuisine has indeed a lot to offer to the epicure. Whether it is the taste of the Bhape (a cooking process which involves steaming fish with oil and spices like paste of poppy seeds, chilli, paste of mustard seeds, salt etc and is wrapped in banana leaf), or the tang of the Bhate (It literally means "steamed with rice". Any kind of vegetable or even dal is first boiled with rice and then mashed and mixed with chopped onion, chillies , salt and mustard oil) or be it the very tang of Bhorta .

(a dish which involves boiling of any kind of vegetable and mashing it and then adding onion, spices and mustard oil) or the flavour of Bhuna (Originated from Urdu, Bhuna involves the slowly cooking of meat in oil with rich and aromatic spices, without water) West Bengal cuisine is there to pamper almost every palate. Apart from the above mentioned main courses the following dishes are also popular in West Bengal.

Chechki: Chechki is food in which vegetables and sometimes the peels of vegetables are used. It`s cooked with panch foron or kala jeera ; chopped onion and garlic are added to enhance its flavour and taste.

Dalna: This is a preparation of vegetables or egg. The touches of garam masala and ghee give the gravy an awesome taste.

Kalia: Its gravy, mainly the preparation of fish, cooked with lots of mustard oil, onion paste, garlic paste and a sprinkle of garam masala.

Kofta: Ground meat or vegetable croquettes bound together by spices and sometimes eggs, served alone or in savory gravy.

Kasha: Kasha comprises the cooking of mutton or chicken with rich spices like paste of onion, ginger and garlic, turmeric, jeera paste, dhaniya paste and salt to taste. Then garam masala is added to the gravy to make it aromatic.

Korma: Korma is an Urdu term which means "braised with onion". Meat or chicken is cooked in a mild onion and yoghurt sauce with ghee.

Polau: Polau is cooked with fine aromatic rice. Kaju , kismish, ghee, jayfol, jayitri, choti elaichi, bari elaichi are mixed and fried before boiling. It`s a sort of rich and scented dish of rice.

Jhal: Jhal suggests the meaning "spicy and hot". This is one of the favourites of the Bengali people. It is a preparation which needs to be cooked with light sauce and chilli along with several spices.

Jhol: It`s a stew of fish or vegetable. It`s lightly cooked with ginger, jeera, dhania powder, chilli powder and sometime coriander leaves are added for extra taste.

West Bengal cuisine remains incomplete without the mention of chutney. Chutney styles are strikingly different in various parts of West Bengal, each standing out with their innovativeness.

West Bengal is well known for their affection for sweets and a large variety of sweets. No meal in West Bengal is complete without the sweets. In a word West Bengal cuisine is somewhat incomplete without the sweetness of Rosogolla, Pantua, different types and flavours of Sandesh, Chomchom, Misti doi, Dorbesh, Raghabshai, Chhanar Jilepi, Kalo jam and Shor bhaja.

West Bengal is also famous for its various occasions and tradition of making "pithas" which are made from rice or wheat flour, mixed with sugar and coconut. Bhapa Pitha, Pakan Pitha, Puli Pitha, Chandra Puli, Gokul, Pati Sapta , Chitai Pitha, Muger Puli and Dudh Puli are some of the cherished pithas of West Bengal.