Food trail in the narrow lanes of Bohri Mohallah

Every city has their own food specialty to show off, a signature dish that is a must-have-when-you-visit and one must know what to taste and where to find it. Therefore it is wise to follow the food trail with an expert who knows the local people and is able to tell some history behind the food.

I experienced one such food trail this week, my first ever of this kind.

Invitation to foodtrail was hard to resist, it promised and delivered:

Live demos of how tava fries are made come up next – bheja (brains), gurda (kidneys) – ideas on how to cook these at home. Then chicken rolls…Karachi not Kolkata style. And then ‘Burma’ roti. What we call Moghlai Paratha in Kolkata. Martabak in Singapore and Malaysia. From the kitchen we would move down to benches for a ‘sit down’ meal. Plates and pieces of bread will be shared…that’s what community eating is all about The vegetarian option here is fried potatoes… the tava is common though

We then head to the kebab corner and stand by the coals and photograph as our kebabs are barbequed. My favourite, and that of all the folks I connect with, is the khiri (udder) kebabs. We could also try some beef koftas. If you really must then you could ask me to order a fried chicken. Chances are those that love the khiri won’t ask for it. I think they serve some paneer tikkas too. 

Appetisers and anitpastis done we head for the mains. Baara Handis. Slow cooked meat. Cuts of beef and goat.  Alchemised here over a century of cooking perfection. Served with a mix of daal broths cooked over six hours in the simmering handis. Topped with ‘josh’ or the fat that the meat gave out when cooked. They plate it with nihari…the soft marrow…and bits of coriander to give the textural and visual contrast. Many of us feel that this is one of the best meat experiences that we have had in absolute terms with no qualifiers. For cutlery you get huge, freshly tandoored rotis, which once fed armies…today it feeds what Soumik call’ food commandos’. 

To cool down we head for ice creams. Ice creams that are made in the manner it has been for 120 years. A formula which ensures that the cream is omnipresent in this ice cream at least unlike the modern pretenders. If you are a health nut, and if fruits are your thing, then you will be happy to find that not a single bite is not packed with fresh fruits here.

Kalyan Kamarkar has started a food trail and he hopes to do many more, exploring different zones of Mumbai.

His maiden food trail was started through the narrow lanes of Bohri Mohallah and I was only too happy to join his group of eleven persons. He walked so comfortably down the street, as if it were his second home, knowing exactly what to eat and which stall specialized in what kind of food. Over three hours, we walked on cobbled streets, chatting with the owner, stopping at some places for cooking demonstration, and tasting street food at every station, not realizing that we were eating beyond our capacity, so much so that it left us with very little space to squeeze in the last dish of the day…..a delicious ice-cream.

Kababs on fire

the kiri kababs just melted in the mouth, gone in flash

sweet rice

channa wallah made non-veg chana chaat, mixing chana with potatoes, liver, kidney, tamarind and dry masala, a dish to die for if u are hard core non-vegetarian.

The naan cooking in the clay oven (Tandoor), The best way retain its freshness is to fold it twice, this was so crispy that when dung in the gravy, it just melts in the mouth.

Farshan

 Feroz-Farshan guy educated us on the interesting things that he sells in his store. Whoever heard about a biryani without rice? well, he makes Biryani from patra.

Patra bhajiya, I bought some home

so this is the Patrani Biryani

Shabbir chacha who graciously let folks taste all his achars dropping spoonful of achar on our palm. 

chicken rolls fried on Tava

Tava Kidney

Tasted yum with bread

This bakery had egg coated toasts

The food price in this street is low but the taste is very exceptional

The chef coats the skewer with kababs

The kabad roasted on an open flame

Fresh garlic, that I brought it home, stir fried with chillies, added salt and lime and the family enjoyed it.

Mutton biryani, its grain separated, full of flavor of mixed spices and meat and with less oil 

Liver masala

Meat is doused in a mix of daal harisas, which were bubbling for more than 6 hours. He plated with sensuous marrow and meat and served it with the fresh roti taken out from tandoor, folded twice to maintain its crispness.

Chacha says he is the last of his clan who will do this food business like this, the younger generation will not continue, since they are educated and have different goals in life.

Finally at ice-cream hub where we went behind the shop to get little gyan on ice-cream making and then had a lovely chat with other companions over the cups of different flavors of natural ice-creams while Kalyan updated us on all the info behind the walks. It was nice meeting all the interesting people and specially kainaz (Kalyan's spouse) who made sure that everybody was comfortable and was having a good time.

Best International Street Food - part 1

I am participating in selecting the best street food that I have tasted during my travels.

There are Eight eastern dishes on displayed here http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/10/international-street-food_n_1870623.html

I have not tasted all unfortunately, okay I shall make that in y wish-list.

But the street food that I have tasted are

Arepera...a street food from Mexico, which is a crusty bread made of corn flour and milk and is deep fried, then slit and stuffed with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, cheese and assorted meat or veg patties.

Falafel... , a street food from middle east, on Cairo streets, a sandwich of pita bread stuffed with lettuce, tomatoes, Tahini and deep fried Chickpea and Fava beans balls and served with salad and pickle.

Hotdogs... a street food of America, bread sandwich stuff with sausages, mustard sauce, tomato sauce, fried onions, grated cheese and crispy potato chips

Dosa.. street food of India, wafer thin crape made of rice and lentil and stuffed with cooked vegetable of potato and onion and served with coconut chutney.

I do like all of these but on round one I vote for Arepera.

Misal and Usal- The Favorite Street Food in my City

Misal and Usal are the favorite street food of Maharashtra, and anyone who has not tried this dish on their visit to our city, is really missing something. You are likely to find at every street corner and in every local hotel, the smaller the restaurant, tastier is the dish.

First and foremost, let me tell you the difference between Misal and Usal, or else, you might end up ordering the wrong dish.

You see, both Misal and Usal can be eaten with Indian bread rolls called Pav, to prepare Misal first make 'Usal' which is a water based curried preparation of cooked sprouted lentils and then, when topped with pohay, Chivda, farsaan, raw chopped onions and tomato it is called Misal. This is a healthy food made from tiny dried dark-green beans call matki (Moth beans). Some use the combination of 3-4 different kinds of beans.

Now beware!

Misal Pav is not for people with elite stomach, who are so delicate that even a small innocent chilli can scratch the lining of their intestine and they end up vomiting the whole day and might even need bed rest for a week or two, till their stomach learns to behave itself. 

No,Hello Mister NRI, this is not for you too.  

Many of my NRI friends get vaccinated before coming to India and still risk all that street food only on their last day of their visit.

How sad!

It is the food for rough and tough people who can eat almost everything, not caring about its hygienic values. It is for people who live in Maharashtra and who don’t use wet tissue papers before and after every meal. It is for people who enjoy spicy food that drifts them to nirvana.

The main ingredient that is used in Usal is ‘Goda’ masala.

Now you will ask me how do I make Goda masala? Ask! Ask!

Well...This is a paste which can be made and stored in air-tight bottles to be used as required. 

Okay, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

150gms small coriander seeds

50gms cumin seeds

50gms dried red chilies

25gms white sesame seeds

25gms dried coconut

25gms cloves

10gms cinnamon sticks

10gms peppercorns

15gms bay leaves

10gms cardamom

1/2 tsp asafetida

I inch turmeric stick

Method:

• 1.     Roast coriander seeds, dried red chilies and cumin seeds
• 2.     Roast white sesame seeds and dried coconut separately
• 3.     Roast rest of the spices separately
• 4.     Mix all the roasted ingredients and grind it together
• 5.     Spread it for some time to bring it to room temperature, then bottle it and store it in air tight container.

This Goda masala is what gives that authentic taste to the Maharashtrian dishes.

But if you are in hurry and don’t have a prepared ‘Goda masala’, you could take a cup of grated coconut and one big onion sliced length-wise, fry with garlic(one pod) and ginger(small slice) and grind it with dry garam masala.

Now let us concentrate on preparing Misal Pav

Step 1

In Matki, dried lentils are used. 1 cup of beans are soaked for 7-8 hours, and then wrapped in moist towel for another 7-8 hours till you see the beans sprout.

Step 2

Take marble-size tamarind and soak it in one cup of water, boil it and extract the pulp.

Step 3

Grind the following ingredients into smooth paste: 1/2tsp cumin seeds, ½ tsp peppercorns. ½ tsp fennel seeds, 2 cloves, 1tbsp coriander powder, pinch of asafetida, 5 red chilies, 1inch ginger, 2 medium onions, 2cloves garlic, 3tbsp fresh grated coconut.

Step 4

In a pressure cooker, steam-cook the sprout beans and thinly sliced potatoes. Mash the potatoes when soft.

Step 5

In a separate pan, heat 2tbsp oil and splutter 1tsp mustard, add 1tsp sugar and one finely chopped onion, sauté till light brown.

Step 6

Add red chili powder and the ground paste that you made in step 3, fry till oil leaves the sides.

Step 7

Add the cooked sprouts and potatoes that you made in step 4,

Step 8

Add the ‘goda’ masala, garam masala, salt and the 1 cup tamarind extract pulp that you made in step2

Step 9

Keep it on medium flame and cook it till the gravy becomes thick but liquidy.

Your Usal is ready, you can have it with Indian bread(pav)

For those who want to eat Misal, wait, there is more.You must follow the next step

Step 10

Take a large bowl, just enough for one serving. Serve the Usal and top it with farsan, chiwda, red chili powder, finely chopped onions, green chillies, tomatoes, and coriander leaves, squeeze few drops of lime juice on it.

Serve it with bread.

Ps: For those who live out of India, the Sev and the Farshan packet you can find it at Indian grocery stores.

Okay I am drooling now………

Street Food in Mumbai

Dahi Puri

Puri stuffed with boiled chana and boiled potatoes, curd, sev and coriander leaves also add salt, mango powder and red chili powder