Korai Kitchen Keeps Racking up Love
Congratulations to the mother-daughter duo behind Jersey City’s own Bangladeshi restaurant Korai Kitchen. Head Chef Amma (Mother) has been nominated for a James Beard Award, adding to an impressive list of accolades and accomplishments.
Located on Summit Ave., Korai is currently open for take-out and pick-up only. In fact it is one of the only places that Bread and Salt’s Rick Eason will order from, as he explained to New York Magazine’s Grub Street in an interview last year; “For dinner, I get Korai Kitchen … I think the food [there] is really, really good. It’s a Bangladeshi place run by a mother and daughter. And the food tastes like somebody’s mom made it. And, of course, somebody’s mom did.”
The food is all Halal – Halal goat, chicken and fish dishes all cooked over time with Amma’s own blend of spices. Just last month, she shared her recipe for her Chingri Dopiaza (Shrimp with Tomato, Onion, Chile and Turmeric) with The New York Times. This was especially big for her many foodie fans as she is known to keep her culinary tricks a secret, as many gifted home chefs do!
Many of the most popular dishes involve Hilsa, the imported Bangladeshi fish. Just ask Lisa Ling, who included Korai Kitchen in her HBO program “Take Out with Lisa Ling”, which explores different Asian cultures and cuisines throughout America. In an interview with CNN, Ling waxed rhapsodically about her Hilsa meal at Korai; “So having that meal at the Korai Kitchen, oh my God, it was so delicious, and so different from Indian food. And I’ve been fantasizing about that fish… and that shrimp paste that they were so afraid of me eating because it’s so strong and pungent, it was so memorable. I can’t wait to have that again”.
If you are feeling inspired by Amma and want to try your hand at Bangladeshi cooking at home, you can purchase Hilsa and other Halal animal products (pre-cut Goat pieces, anyone?) at Hilsa Grocery on Newark.
Korai is planning to reopen soon for in-person dining so stay tuned and just order away in the meantime from this amazing family that is blazing an exciting and nourishing trail for Bangladeshi food!
576 Summit Ave. 201-727-6566 @koraikitchen
822 Newark Ave., @hilsagrocery