Panta Bhaat

Panta Bhaat is a delicacy every Bengali appreciates. Here\’s how to make it:

1. Leftover, cooked rice needs to be soaked in water overnight at room temperature to ferment. This rice should be ready the next day, soft and mushy.
2. It needs to be squeezed and mashed a little.
3. You can add a small ball of tamarind or squeeze half a lemon and a pinch of salt.
4. This `Panta Bhaat\’ is now ready to eat; it can be accompanied by a whole lot of food items, almost anything of your choice.
5. Accessories that go very well with this food are:- A piece of onion, chili peppers, Alu Bhate (mashed potato with onion, chili, salt and some mustard oil), or Alu Bhaja (fried potatoes). Do not throw away
   the water.
6. Squeeze the rice in the water and drink the water as you come to the end of your feast. It is usually eaten by fingers as this brings out the actual maza\'(fun) of eating `Panta Bhaat\’.

Source: Sonali Ghosh