Begun Misty Kumra Labra is quite a name. There are two vegetables just in the name, and the last part “Labra” is the type of dish it is. There are a bunch of dishes whose names are not representative of what the dish actually is. But fortunately, Begun Misty Kumra Labra is exactly what it says it is.

There are a bunch of recipes focusing on Begun (eggplant/brinjal) in Moni Dadi’s diary. I have not counted but Begun might be the most appearing vegetable in the diary. I am not certain but at this point I am getting a tingling feeling that Moni Dadi might have had a soft spot for eggplant. I mean I can’t blame her, especially since all of the dishes taste so good. My personal favorite of all the eggplant dishes is Begun Niramish. It is a really simple dish but it was just so delicious. And if you are looking at Begun Misty Kumra Labra, the chances are you already have eggplant in your kitchen. So just put away two slices of eggplant to make Begun Niramish.

The next vegetable in the name is Misty Kumra or sweet pumpkin. And let me tell you something, I have always been a little envious of western cultures’ relationship with pumpkin. Because here is what Bengali culture does with pumpkin: eat. Yes, sweet pumpkin is delicious and I have no problem eating it as fry, curry, labra, pakora. Sweet pumpkin is one of my favorite vegetables and having it as a side with daal-bhaat (lentil soup and boiled rice). But that’s everything we do with pumpkins, cook it and eat it in different delicious ways. Yet growing up I consumed mostly western media and there I saw everyone carving pumpkins, making cool (and spooky) heads. Then there’s the holiday itself. You’re telling me you got to dress up as whatever you want and then went from house to house to collect candies! Scratch the “little envious”, i was fuming with jealousy for halloween as a kid. Halloween seemed so fun and nothing like anything we have in Bengali culture. Bengali culture, especially Hindu culture, has countless bring and colorful celebrations but none of them give candies to kids so what is even the point?

But there is no point in crying over never being able to celebrate halloween. What I should clarify is that the pumpkin used for cooking is not the same as the one used for carving. Sweet pumpkin is smaller and sweeter than your regular carving pumpkin. Sweet pumpkin also has a thinner and greener skin. These are the visual and more obvious differences. Both can be used for cooking and baking but sweet pumpkin is generally the better choice for culinary art. Whereas craving pumpkin is better for all other sorts of art.

Now onto Labra. I could not find any exact translation for the word labra, which is a sort of Bengali mixed vegetable dish. What makes it stand apart from regular vegetable curry is the exclusion of onion and garlic. And this is why labra is served in Hindu temples. Onion and garlic are not considered veg in Hinduism, I do not know why. So anything cooked in temples as “proshaad” or offering cannot have any onion or garlic in them. Thus labra is the best choice to serve in temples alongside Khuchuri or Luchi.

I guess it is obvious that labra is more popular in Hindu households. And I have grown up eating labra in various forms. My friends love the labra my mother makes. One of my friends is gonna leave the city and they asked to have labra and luchi made by my mother one last time.

But the labra my mother usually makes is different from Begun Misty Kumra Labra. My mother’s recipe has more curry and the vegetables are more mixed with the curry. I don’t know her recipe so I can’t give any pointers on how to make it. But Moni Dadi’s recipe for Begun Misty Kumra Labra is still a goodie and you won’t go wrong with it.