As the year ends, winter chill welcomes the new year. In Bengal, the end of December and the beginning of January is special for foodies. This is the time for ‘nolen gur’ (liquid jaggery made from date palm) and sweets made from it
Images by Soumyajit DeyIn Kolkata, one can find small shops and seasonal (winter) stalls selling various kinds of fresh ‘gur’, from ‘patali’ solid to liquid ‘jhola’. My Kolkata went on tour in Garia and Baghajatin area to check the hot sellers
The shops have an array of sweets made of ‘chhena’ (cottage cheese) and ‘gur’ like rosogolla, sandesh, patishyapta and Joynagar-er moa
Joynagar-er Moa is another delicacy that is a winter favourite in Bengal. These ‘laddoo’-like sweets are made from popped Kanakchur (variety) rice known as ‘khoi’. The sweetener is usually sugar or fresh ‘gur’
The shops have different variants and sizes of ‘moa’. Apart from ‘khoi’, the ‘moas’ are also made with kheer (milk solids). The ‘moas’ come in single pieces or boxes. The price for a single ‘moa’ begins from Rs 7
Besides the ‘khoi’, the ‘moas’ have cashews and raisins in them and sometimes, pistachios
The makeshift stalls are usually around for a month till the end of January. One can also get their hands on other jaggery treats like ‘murir moa’ made of puffed rice, Til er Naru (little balls made of white sesame and jaggery), Narkel Naru (coconut and jaggery) and more