Welcome To Vadodara's 8 Top Street Foods
Welcome To Vadodara's 8 Top Street Foods
Ordinary streets of a city are the best places to find its true essence. True tastes too. I visited Vadodara recently and came back S-A-T-I-S-F-I-E-D. Hitesh Harisinghani/Rediff.com takes us on a food voyage to Baroda in search of garam nashta. Fasten your seatbelts, keep salivary glands in check. All aboard, folks.
Dhoklas
How can a trip to Gujarat not begin with dhoklas :). Baroda streets has some of the softest, tastiest pillows of dhoklas. Don't miss the tadka of loads of green chillies and mustard seeds!
Fafda
Can you hear the crackle of these flaky, buttery besan (chickpea flour) ribbons in the pic? Crisp, deep-fried fafda had with raw pineapple chutney is a morning ritual around here.
Jalebis
After a bunch of namkeen fafda, you gotta wrap it up with hot Vadodara jalebis. It's one of those classic peanut-butter-and-jelly variety pairings.
Samosas And Kadhi
Samosas with sweet besan kadhi is a first timer for me. Hmm. It's different... But I missed my green mint chutney like a true Bombaywallah.
Mixed Bhajiya
The streets abound with hole-in-the-wall stalls selling various species of pakodas or chickpea flour fritters -- onion, potato and mung dal bhajiyas are served with sweet chutney. It's Gujarat after all, where sweet and salty always go about hand in hand.
Poha
How many are too many? Name it and they have have it! Dahi Poha. Indori Poha. Jain Poha. Etc etc. Indori Poha=Plates of poha garnished with sev, usal, sliced onions, fennel seeds & jalebis on the side. Dahi Poha=poha, yoghurt, rai-curry leaves tadka, sometimes sprinkled with peanuts, anar dana (pomegranate arils) & cilantro.
Chikki
Tonnes of it. Evidently the Indian variety of peanut brittle candy is rather popular in Baroda.
Malaidar Rabdi
Creamiest rabdi, with chunks of milky thickness that you practically cut with a knife, post dinner, made for a great Baroda sayonara.