“So tempting so hot! Looks so nice!
add a little masala and then some spice!
hunger pangs before and after you eat!
Street food is still a gastronomic treat!”
Our excitement for street is very obvious!
We of course feel ‘street’ means cheap!
All said and done; some street things like the food will always be more tasty than the biggest spread in a five star hotel!
read on!
The word street reminds me of street dogs! I used to think they are the same as stray dogs and they are more or less the same with some mild difference.
The Stray dogs, were once owned dogs and may have been intentionally bred by humans. Then they have become lost or were abandoned.
While street dogs go by various names, including village dogs, free-range dogs, unowned dogs, and other names and they were never adopted of ‘Homed’ officially! That is the major difference!
Every street had these collection of dogs and they usually used to allow the ‘regulars’ to visit!
Another street we used to love or still love is the street food!
Just outside our schools we used to have these small shops who used to suddenly appear in the lunch break or even at the end of the day!
The stalls would be full of junk foods and candies and what not!
Sometimes it would be the cut fruits with their special chutneys so green and thick or the special powder which was red and white!
The cut mangoes and the guavas and even the cucumber used to taste so nice with that powder! Since I was never a foodie, it was not a big draw for me but once in while I used to grab a bite!
The biggest draws were the chilli bajji or pakoras and the samosas! There were rare times when mom would not be able to make tiffin then we would get around 5 to 10 rupees to buy food! We could use them immediately or keep some for a sunny day!
To decide on what to buy was the biggest challenge though with so many options!
Of course now you do not see those stalls especially in front of schools because of the hygiene police! If my kids had seen the stalls we used to eat food from they would surely puke!
Even now I remember the blackish sugar cane juice coming from the old contraption with a hundred flies buzzing all over! A dollop of that dirty ice and the juice was the tastiest one I have ever had in my life!
Then the fried pakoras or samosas packed in dirty old newspapers with a hint of green chutney on the side! We used to rub and lick that paper! But that snack was so tasty! Just a bite of that spicy tangy and hot stuff would give you the thrill! So much so that you can never stop in a bite!
The stomach pain and some frequent visit to the toilet was worth it and forgotten soon enough!
The most dirtiest would of course be the ice cream! The wooden cart which they used to put it in was black on the sides! The ice creams were actually popsicles! And they were not covered! The seller would put salt in the middle of ice so that it does not melt soon and some of it would leak on to the ice cream! Even now the tastiest popsicles were the one which were a little salty! For a rupee more you could get the popsicle which is sealed in thick plastic cover which you have to bite and suck! But hey that is one rupee more!
Even in my college days the best food was the street food appam and the peas masala! and the Upma! Hot, tasty and dirt cheap! I used to even take parcel and eat for lunch! The reason why I do not like both peas and Upma now!
Last year we went to India, my wife and I went to a walk and had a street dosa! Of course it was not like what I used to have! The street cart vendor had plastic gloves and the plates were also cleaned and had food plastic over it! It was so hot and tasty! But it was not as tasty as the ones I used to have! Some dirt adds flavour to the food I think!
But why is street food so tasty!? It could be the fact that you see them making it and your initial phase of digestion gets stimulated! The same reason why you have open kitchen or live counters in big hotels which are always busy and the food from that counter is always more tasty!
Another major issue is how the food is prepared to be eaten then and there! There is no storage option! The food is fresh and hot! Cooked and eaten! Not cooked then stored then reheated and then eaten! Which is why you can never like a food served in a flight more than the ones served on the street!
My yoga teacher used to tell us that the Refrigerator is the first thing you must throw out of your house! There must not be an option to store any old food! Once the food is made you must either eat it or throw it! The freezing only slows the decay which has already started the moment you make it!
A cold food can never be tasty unless it is meant to be eaten cold! The hot food is always better!
Food must be good to look and be pleasant to your senses and that is when it tastes good! The whole blog made me feel like going to India and have a plate of bhel puri with aloo tikki chaat! Maybe a couple of samosas and jalebi for closure!
For now of course we would settle to watch the food reels and salivate! Now better not be an idiot and make junk food at home! Speaking of idiot or rather three idiots, reminds me of celebrity Boman Irani!
Now do not be an Idiot and sleep early!
SHubh Ratri!
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