The minister and everyone present were wide-eyed with amazement: could so many dishes really be cooked with poultry chicken? The minister asked with interest what chicken achari was, and whether it had been cooked with pickle. A smart chef standing nearby stepped forward to explain, saying that the tasty dishes laid out there, under many names and with many flavours, ranged from those of the kings and emperors of the Mughal and Sultanate eras to famous dishes from different regions of the country.

He then began naming the dishes made from poultry chicken for the minister. They included Mughal chicken curry, Sultani chicken, chicken achari, hill bamboo chicken, chicken kala bhuna, chicken dahi curry, chicken butter masala, chicken rogan josh, chicken malai curry, chicken satkara, chicken dum durust, chicken chui jhal, chicken tikka, chicken roast, chicken shorua, chicken jhal fry, chicken coconut curry, chicken hariyali curry and chicken aloor dum. Poultry businesspeople and several senior media figures standing beside the minister began photographing the dishes on their mobile phones.

The scene unfolded at midday on Sunday (21 March) when Fisheries and Livestock Minister SM Rezaul Karim, at the hosts' request, went to see the dishes made from poultry chicken after the Poultry Media Award ceremony at the CIRDAP auditorium in the capital.

Earlier, at the Poultry Media Award-2019 ceremony, 19 reporters were given awards: nine from national and local newspapers, six from television and four from online outlets and magazines. The Bangladesh Poultry Industries Central Council (BPICC) organised the award for the fourth time, with the support of ACI Animal Health.

After the speech of the chief guest, SM Rezaul Karim, the presenter invited everyone to the third floor of the CIRDAP auditorium to see the exhibition of dishes cooked with poultry chicken and then have lunch.

When the minister, the secretary and the others reached the third floor, they were somewhat stunned to see so many dishes. They did not just look at them; they tasted a little of each one.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.