Fun is our middle name and we are always looking out for positive stories in the days of the pandemic. If you search for “Bengali home chefs in Delhi”, the first listing is of Moushumi Moitra. She serves homemade food in Delhi NCR. She was earlier having guests at home. That is not an option now so she has started a new service – home-cooked food delivery, Delhi with extra precaution to avoid undue exposure. If you are looking for authentic regional cuisine such as Bengali food in Delhi, or for that matter any special dish, this food story is for you.

In the last couple of months, the space we have discovered like never before is the home. And the passion we have stoked with all gusto is food. The humble homemade food in Delhi is now having its tryst with destiny.

Some of the best home chefs in Delhi have already been at it for some time though and they have been running homemade food delivery services as well. The time could not be better for them. By way of corona precaution, many of us are avoiding restaurants and are not even ordering in from industrial kitchens. The one with the knack for cooking is calling mother, scouring YouTube and pulling out old recipe books. Lesser mortals like us are struggling. With very frugal and uncertain domestic help, we are exhausted trying to figure out easy recipes for lunch, dinner, and yes, breakfast as well. For many of us it is a frantic question – is there any tiffin service near me? What we are looking for precisely is homemade food in Delhi. In addition, the Easterner among us is desperately missing his machher jhol, mangsho, fish fry, and chatni (not chutney if you please). He is crying out loud for Bengali food in Delhi. In fact, what he is exactly looking for is Bengali food home delivery in Delhi.

For all in his tribe, we came across a surprise breakthrough!

Moushumi Moitra in Vasant Kunj has been organizing tables for some time now where she has been serving her guests authentic Bengali home food in Delhi.

Her approach is unique. Once a guest books a table with her, they are invited to her beautiful home and eat at her place. How is the home table different from a restaurant? Well, for one it is cooked in the truest form and style, sans any fancy trappings you find in restaurant fare. The serving style is also based on regional traditions. She keeps chatting you up while treating you to welcome drinks and appetizers, an elaborate main course and dessert. Given that this is a home food experience, it is a virtual culture trip. You get to learn so much about the beliefs and lifestyles of folks from a region.

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When we dined at Moushumi’s, we learnt a thing or two about Bengali food habits and eating style. For one, Bengali food is eaten by hand, no cutlery thank you. Also, a sweet and sour relish – chatni is served after the main course as a digestive as well as a palate cleanser to invigorate your appetite for dessert. We also learnt that post-meal, a guest is not supposed to clear any droppings around their plate, let alone remove the plate. If a guest does so, it is considered ominous that the guest would never have another opportunity in the future to dine in that household. That is scary, especially in terms of the delectable food, or more so, the beautiful food stories told by Moushumi.

We recently came to know that Moushumi has spread the food narrative beyond her dining room. Given the prevalent social distancing norms, she had to suspend her home table evenings. However, her patrons were enquiring about when she was planning to resume. Now was not the time to have unknown people sharing a table, more so, in an enclosed home. So she figured out another way to keep her passion for cooking and feeding alive. On popular demand, she has started her own little homemade food delivery service! We have already had the good fortune of experiencing Moushumi’s delights and the pictures on social media got us drooling even more. Her spontaneity was fun and totally Delhi-fun-dos. So much so, we got in touch with her and decided that we should put up this post in ode to Moushumi; Sneha Saikia, another home chef in CR Park, and all the food artists like them. So this piece is dedicated to those innovative people out there with a subtle but indomitable spirit to win over this whatever spell the world is going through currently.

Moushumi has started preparing small batches of her goodies in her kitchen at home and has these delivered in her personal vehicle. She cooks full meals; party bites; Bengali snacks like vegetarian and non-vegetarian chops and cutlets; lost delicacies such as pataler dorma, that is, paneer or minced meat stuffed pointed gourd or parwal and desserts; and special items for those nagging cravings. How is her food safer than ordering from a restaurant? For one, she cooks in her home kitchen which already has a clean and sanitized environment for the sake of her family’s health and well-being. Not too many people are involved in the cooking process since she makes everything from scratch single-handedly, or with the help of her assistant, Shankar. Once the food item is prepared, Moushumi ensures that it is suitably packed with the minimal human touch. Then the food order is delivered to the customer, in Moushumi’s personal vehicle. Avoiding public transport also minimises undue exposure. So when you get her food packet, you do not feel any doubt about the safety of the food.

Since safety is the order of the day, Moushumi’s food orders are blazing guns. But there is a flipside too. Since Moushumi cooks from her home, with skeletal support, it is not like you can call and expect a delivery in a jiffy. You have to call in and discuss what you want at least a day ahead. She is flexible and can provide not only Bengali food but also many dishes from other Indian cuisines and also some Continental-style baked stuff. All her food is not only tasty but also balanced in flavours and no undesirable flavouring agents or preservatives. She caters to a minimum order of 5 diners till a maximum of 20. So, if you are thinking of a cosy get-together, you can approach Moushumi for the spread.

A way to a person’s heart is through their stomach they say. In these trying times, good food, like good fuel, keeps us going. Hence this is another pandemic-positive story that we wanted to share with all of you. If you want to try Moushumi’s stuff, as step 1 you can get in touch with her on social media. She is logged in as “moushumimoitra” on Instagram and Facebook. You can thank us later.

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