Pav Bhaji

Yesterday was Ganesh Chaturthi, or Ganesh’s Birthday, when just about every Hindu in the world gathers at the Ganesh temple a few blocks away from my home in Jaipur (or at least every Hindu in the area… the queue for the temple stretched far and wide on every side of the temple, all day and all night.) Makeshift shops selling Laddoos (sweets made out of flour and sugar, cooked in ghee and rolled into balls) lined the streets near the temple for an offering to Ganesha and to share with friends and family.

Today, a huge procession of elephants, trucks, dancers, horses, and floats displaying the various Hindu gods and goddesses made an annual trek from the Ganesh temple by the Moti Doongri fort in Jaipur to another temple in the surrounding hills 30 miles away. 

I celebrated Ganesha Chathurti by finally diving into some street food. I went with Pav Bhaji, easily my new favorite food.

Pav Bhaji, a Maharashtra dish, originated in Mumbai in the 1850s. Mill workers used to have too short of a lunch break for a full meal, so the vendors concocted a spicy blend of various items on the menu into one potato-based blended vegetable curry, aka the Bhaji. Pav, a fluffy roll that is coated with butter and fried, replaced the customary roti or rice to eat with the curry. This was quicker to eat and lighter than the average meal, necessary considering the workers had to jump back into hard labor. After its initial introduction into the mill scene, Pav Bhaji caught on throughout Mumbai and eventually made its way into the hearts and stomachs of city-dwellers around India, becoming a popular street food meal.

So now that you know this heavenly feast exists, you can be jealous that I will definitely be eating this every day (a perfect mid-afternoon snack… especially since dinner isn’t served until 8:30 or 9.) Stay tuned for the recipe, my host mom makes a mean Pav Bhaji and I am determined to bring this part of India home with me. 

 

Chai

Living in India has me already adjusting to certain daily rituals, such as actively trying not to be struck by vehicles on the street as I walk to school and eating only with my right hand (do not ask me about the left hand, trust me you don’t want to know.) One of the most satisfying staples is chai, which continuously runs through my veins at the rate I consume it. Chai in the morning, a chai break after our first class (our schedule actually says “chai break” from 11:00 am – 11:15 am), chai after lunch, chai in the evening, chai all day long. You can’t walk into someone’s house without them pushing a cup of chai into your hand.

Chai serves an important social role in Indian culture, but pre-British colonialism tea leaves mainly functioned as an herbal medicine. It wasn’t until the East India Company started providing its factory and textile workers with black tea that chai became popular and widespread. Much to the Company’s distress (and much to my enjoyment) chai wallahs and vendors started spicing up the tea and adding more milk and sugar, decreasing the amount of tea leaves they had to buy from the Company. So a double win.

A triple win is the fact that my host mom Rekha ji makes without a doubt the best chai I have ever had. I will fight anyone to the death who says otherwise. And lucky for you I have the recipe.

Start by boiling one and a half tea cups of water, then add three heaping teaspoons of sugar. Next toss in nearly two teaspoons of black tea (any standard kind… Red Label, whatever.) Now comes the key ingredient, a delightful mixture of spices Rekha ji has prepared. It consists of dried ginger, cinnamon, cardamom, and black pepper. Add a large pinch of this to the boiling tea. Finally pour in about one and a half teacups of milk… continue to boil this for a few more minutes, about five to ten mins in all. Strain into an adorable chai cup. Now drink and be amazed. 

Nothing says tourist like...

So either my brain is trying to process everything my eyes are taking in too fast, or their isn't enough blood circulating through my head because it's in my stomach trying to digest all the food I've been eating. Either way, day 2 in India has been long. The treats above are Jalebi, a funnel cake-like fried dessert we munched on after the restaurant we went to didn't have any Gulab Jamun (wait, I thought this was an Indian restaurant? I think they just wanted us to leave...)

Before our adventures in khana our group had adventures in driving from Delhi to Jaipur, a 5 hour trip which grew into 9 when we met with the extreme traffic on the highway. The detour through rural Haryana and Rajasthan crashed us into the chaos of rural living mixed with the thrill-ride that is driving in India (lanes, speed, stop lights, and all other "rules" of driving are mere suggestions... the horns are the only real consistent weapon in a driver's repertoire).Throw in the ox-carts, the wandering cows, and the brightly-clad  women carrying gigantic bags on their heads, and you've got the picture of India I expected.  Of course a traveling group of 13 Americans not only drew every Indian eye in the vicinity, but also was bound to draw in some bad luck too. Below is a picture of one of our group's vans wedged over a concrete block, a team of problem solvers on the job to dislodge it. Nothing says tourist like a huge sign on the top of the windshield that reads "TOURIST".

The first day in India was an interesting combination of wild elation at the idea of finally being in India and a concerted effort to convince myself I was immune to jet lag. We all know it’s a mental game, ok, and I’m out to win it. The chapattis, egg omelet, and aloo soup on the porch of the YWCA hostel made for a delightful start to the day, and if the consistent deliciousness of the food is any indication of how this adventure is going to go, then I am in for a major treat. If my battle against impending exhaustion is, well, let’s just stay positive.

Khanewala, in Hindi, can mean “the one who eats” or that I’m just about to eat. Khana means food, to eat, and can also mean to consume. I’m out to consume all that I can from India… the culture, music, clothes, knowledge, beauty, dancing, chaos, festivals, and yes, a whole lot of hot and tasty Indian food.