Norom Paak And Kora Paak: Which Sondesh Would You Pick?

Bengalis are forever bound to engage in friendly rivalries. Mohun Bagan or East Bengal? Digha or Darjeeling? Ilish or Chingri? It is only fair that it’ll get handed down to our love for sweets as well. Norom paak or Kora paak sondesh is a tough one to choose between. On the one hand we have our favoured kalakand which is good to have in your fridge or without, is nice to have at any time of day, month or week, and can be served up as offerings in our year-round festivities. But then again, we have our kanchagolla, taalshaash and jolbhora which is beyond comparison, and every winter it is almost customary to have these sondesh once it hits the sweet shops. So, which one would it be? Is there even a clear winner here? Let’s have a look at the fundamental differences, how they’re both made, what are the different varieties of sondesh that come under the two umbrellas and ultimately, it’ll be upto you to decide which is the best sondesh that’ll suit your taste buds.

From the outset, let’s clear out the obvious differences, kora paak is the more solid, harder mould of sondesh and it comes packed with a heavier, sweeter taste whereas, the norom paak er sondesh is lighter, more subtle and not too sweet, but it can go bad relatively quicker compared to its counterpart.

would. Then the cheese mixture is either shaped by hand or put in various moulds to give them their unique shapes, the way we’ve seen them displayed in sweet shops.

In weddings or other celebratory events, the norom paak er sondesh is preferred for its luxurious decadence, but in our day-to-day, the kora paak er sondesh is more sustainable because it doesn’t expire that easily. So, for offering the sweets up as prasad to deities, or just to have some in the refrigerator for when guests come unannounced, or to satisfy the sudden sugar-pangs of a Bengali, kora paak er sondesh is hands down the answer to all of those scenarios. Regardless of their viability, both kinds of sondesh will always have a special place in a Bengali’s heart and neither of the two could topple the other out of the picture completely. Nothing can be too sweet for a Bengali, and if you’d make us choose between the two, we’d happily choose both.