Shutki

Mention shutki to any brown person and you will receive one of the following reactions: 1) a sympathetic head shake as the person mourns with you the creation of this pungent, horrid dried fish or 2) an enthusiastic and hungry look as the person assumes that you will now feed them this delicious treat.

The mixed reactions is one of the more interesting parts of Bengali culture, at least in my mind. It's the greatest example of the shift in generations as ever. Older Bengalis love this food because it reminds them of home, of the war and their survival of it. They are proud to have their own smell.

Younger Bengalis hate it because...well it smells like dried fish. It's also a reminder of Bangladesh, something associated with restrictions. No matter which way they look at shutki, it doesn't have the deeper meaning it has for older Bengalis.

These morsels or terrible packets of awful can be found at your local shady brown store. Just ask the creepy manager and he'll lead to the treasure/terror with a smile on his wrinkled face.

Remember, you can enjoy these whenever, but preferabbly near brown people spot, like Brick Lane, so you can enjoy the compliments of many.

The Ubiquitous Toast Biscuit

Have you had one of these recently? Chances are you probably are wondering what "it" is. This, my benighted friend, is a toast-biscuit. Toast biscuits are essentially really really hard toast, with a bit of fat added in to make them taste better. No, not a crouton. Just...toast, in biscuit form. While I've yet to see people of any other nationality make and or eat these, brown people go crazy for them. Just the other day, my parents bought about 12 packs.

Why, you ask? I think this stems from the time the British ruled over Bangladesh (this may or may not be a developing trend). The English have a habit of consuming biscuits with their tea. As a completely amateur historian, I will make the conjecture that the Bengalis wanted to emulate the English. Since they couldn't afford the expensive biscuits from Belgium and the like, they simply decided to make their own using inexpensive toast.

Today, these biscuits are almost ubiquitous, found in nearly any Bengali supermarket. Their popularity remains a threat to real biscuits everywhere. (Note: If you want to make friends with a Bengali, serve them milk tea with toast biscuits. If you want to impress a Bengali, serve milk tea with real biscuits.)

Personal Note: These are excellent with any kind of honey on top. Or Nutella. Then again, what doesn't taste good with Nutella?

Intro

Hey,

So many of you may or may not have read Christian Lander's hilarious novel, Stuff White People Like. It kind of inspired me to note the differences between the so called "brown" people of the world.

First of all, let's define a brown person. In this blog, they will be referred as anyone with brown skin, or from South Asia, typically India or Bangladesh, although it could be expanded to include Pakistan.

And even then, there are several different sorts of brown, each with their own special weaknesses and strengths. Let's define the four main types:

1. Fresh off the boat (FOB): These are brown people who just moved out of Bangladesh, or live in areas richly populated with brown people from Bangladesh like Brick Lane or Brooklyn.

2. American Bengalis: These are people who are usually second- or third-generation immigrants. These will often be patriotic about America, and despise anything FOBs do.

3. European Bengalis: These are often like American Bengalis, yet they seem more appealing because they are more sophisticated. Like American Bengalis, they despise FOBs.

4. Other: These are the rare Bengalis who live in other continents, such as Australia, Africa or other parts of Asia.

5. Bengali-Bengalis: People who are actually from Bangladesh.

Of course, since I've only lived in Ireland and America, I'd be a wee bit prejudiced. Also keep in mind that this only meant to be a joke. There's no seriousness whatsoever implied in these posts.