Nolen Gur, The Ulitmate Bengali Winter Foodgasm

By itself, nolen gur is a delight. Bengalis, however, are enamoured with using it to make a variety of traditional sweetmeats and desserts. Nolen gur rosogolla, nolen gur sandesh, nolen gur kancha golla, nolen gur payesh, Joynagarer moa, and a variety of pithe, or rice-based crepes or sweet dumplings, are just a few examples.

Using the sap from the date palm tree Phoenix sylvestris, also known as silver date palm or Indian date, nolen gur, a variety of jaggery, is prepared. The tree's charm is that it only produces sap when temperatures begin to fall. It means that the best period to collect jaggery is between the months of December and end of January.

Hours are spent reducing the sap over a fire to produce it in liquid, granular, and solid forms. The thick, sticky stuff becomes a viscous fluid as the heat increases. The result is jhola gur, a thick liquid syrup that is created by stopping the process just before crystallisation. The sap is converted to patali, a solid deep brown form, with continued heating.

From Krishnagar in Nadia, the best nolen gur is produced. Today, a few locations in Basirhat also make high-quality new jaggery. Several sweet outlets also source it from Agradeep in Burdwan. However, many regret that the quality is not as good as it once was. Reason- The date palm trees don't get the necessary rest between tappings.

Hours are spent reducing the sap over a fire to produce it in liquid, granular, and solid forms. The thick, sticky stuff becomes a viscous fluid as the heat increases. The result is jhola gur, a thick liquid syrup that is created by stopping the process just before crystallisation. The sap is converted to patali, a solid deep brown form, with continued heating.

Quality gur yields quality sweets. One has to identify the authentic nolen gur. Many people today use artificial flavouring. A good one will dissolve in your mouth. Unlike sugar, which leaves a mildly sour aftertaste in your throat, there won't be any. Nolen gur tainted with sugar is significantly denser than the genuine product.