Author: aparna gosavi

Mumbai Foods you cant live Without!
Mumbai, the financial capital of country has always been the home to many immigrants, who brought with them their culinary treasure. This city has emerged and grown from a fishing village to a metropolis, giving rise to its unique food culture. It is a perfect blend of all the Indian customs and traditions; Muslim, Gujarati,South Indian, Goan, Maharashtrian and also its own Mumbai style! Here are a few meals that will everyone residing in and visiting the city must have!

1. Street food:

Mumbai street food is the most unavoidable and essential food for every Mumbaikar. Found in every nook-and-cranny of the city, it is totally different from the other versions of chaat found in other parts of the country. It includes bhel, pani puri, ragda pattice, wada-pav, samosa chaat, dabeli, frankie and much more. There are stalls on the Mumbai streets and every bhel wala his own fan following. Famous among them include,the chaat stalls at Juhu Chowpatty, Girgaum chowpatty and stalls at the beaches. There also are juice centers and sandwich centers that contribute to the street food. Wada pav is the most liked and a staple food of all the Mumbaikars. Very much suitable for this fast-paced city, people can eat wada-pav at any meal time of the day. We also serve Indian version of Chinese food at Chinese food stalls. Bade-Miyaan (it now has a restaurant) at Colaba causeway, Ayubs at Kalaghoda and other non vegetarian food joints serve the best kebabs, mutton rolls and non-vegetarian delicacies in Mumbai. Pav-Bhaji is another specialty on the by-lanes of Mumbai. People from all over India come to Mumbai to eat Pav-Bhaji.

2. Coastal Meal:

Situated by the konkani coast, the city has a coastal food tradition of both: Malvani cuisine as well as Gomatak (Goan) cuisine. It includes fish, mainly; prawns, pomphret, Bombay duck, surmai and much more. It tastes best when it is served as fish curry. The taste of these cuisines is spicy, coconut-y, tangy and is served with rice. There are particular restaurants in the city that serve amazing coastal food. You will never have enough of it and will have you coming back everytime you leave having one. Goa house in Juhu, Satkar in Goregaon, Highway Gomantak are few restaurants that are very popular on the charts for serving the best sea-food!

3. Maharashtrian cuisine:

Come to Mumbai, and not have the Maharashtrian cuisine is impossible. When we talk of Maharashtrian cuisine it includes; a proper traditional Maharashtrian thali having varan-bhat (dal made up of cooked lentils in ghee, served with rice), vegetables made using special Maharashtrian masala and chapati. The other dishes include
- Zhunka bhakar: A very traditional dish, the zhunka is made using chopped onions tempered with mustard seeds and kadipatta leaves mixed with chickpea flour and is dry. It is eaten with jowar bhakri or roti). There are many midnight stalls open that serve it.
- Puran-poli: A traditional festive dish made by the Maharashtrians on holi and dusshera; made using yellow gram along with jaggery or sugar. after drying, Palm sized balls of this paste are stuffed into wheat flour dough and rolled out to be roasted on a tawa frying pan with a little ghee or butter.
- Misal-pav: Having its origin in , this dish is made as a curry of sprouted lentils, topped with potato, poha (rice flakes), chivda, farsan, raw chopped onions and tomato and is eaten with bread. Maharashtrian cuisine is said to be truly soul-satisfying and tasty. There are many more dishes and recipes that contribute to the it, one will have to visit Mumbai to try all of them out. But then, all of it will be irresistable. (Aaswad and Prakash eateries in Dadar are the highly recommended ones for having Maharashtrian food).
4. South-Indian Cuisine:

There is authentic udupi served in many udupi restaurants in Mumbai. Many of them serve in their authentic style: on leaves. Mumbai is the only place where you will find plenty of versions of South Indian cuisine. Must-have’s among them include Chinese dosa, Spring dosa, Schezwan dosa, Masala Idli and many such dishes mainly on restaurants and on street-stalls. The most recommended restaurants around the city are Ramanayaka’s Udupi(it is the most famous one), Udupi Idli house, Cafe Madras and Manis lunch home(famous for its thalis). This image is from the south Indian food cooking classes in Andheri.

5. The Mangalorean meal:

Mangaolrean dishes tend to be slightly meaty. They have adequate proportion of seafood and meat in their diet. The neer dosa, chicken roti, Kori roti from the Mangalorean cuisine is among the hot favourites of Mumbai people. There are few recommendations of restaurants like Mahesh Lunch home, apoorva lunch home, Pratap lunch home are few of the oldest restaurants that are highly popular for this treat.

6. The Iranian treat:

South Bombay is the home to the Parsi community who with them have brought their amazing culture. The town side of Mumbai also is a place of many old and popular bakeries and Irani cafe houses. Irani cafes today, offer simple signature Parsi dishes like Salli boti, Kheema ghotala, freshly baked bread with scrambled eggs, khaaris, cakes,sweet milk tea and much more. It is one of the tasty and essential-to-have treat in the city. The most popular cafe houses today are Kyani, Yazdani, Ideal corner, Jimmy boy.

7. International servings:

Mumbai food list would be incomplete if we do not include the American, continental cuisine. There are restaurants like Indigo deli that serve a slightly upmarket standards. today, many such restaurants are found in every mall. Poptates/Jugheads for Italian cravings, Mainland China for having Chinese treat. The coffee houses like Starbucks and Cafe Coffee Day also suit the same standard.

8. Old Bars:

There are age old bars in the city that attract many tourists as well as the city dwellers. They have a notified ambiance and food. Leopold cafe, Cafe Churchill, Cafe Mondegar are few of the city’s interest.

Mumbai is a city that is home to people of all cast and creed, it is the city of dreams where everyone coming here brings with him his own culture. And the diverse food culture is the result of the same fact. 🙂
December 27, 2014
Safe and Tasty Winter!!

Winters in India are cold, heavy and damp. It brings with it an ironic feeling, where with one heart winter is welcomed after the scratching October heat, with the other heart it is cursed for bringing with it the viral fever. But the most important thing-to-do in this winter season is have a proper winter diet. All of us need some winter hacks because the only eatable winter foods otherwise is Spinach, dry fruits and green tea! Here are few of the winter food hacks, both important as well as delicious ones that would lead you to a warm, happy and safe winter. Food that is not only tasty, but also safe to be eaten in this season, simply because you cannot afford to fall sick every time. This is a time, when we need to follow certain rules to prevent ourselves from being sick and also go against the rules(sometimes) to enjoy the cold weather with a hot and spicy way. But there is a routine that should be followed every day to stay fit so that you can have a taste of delicacies as well.

Here goes the routine:

1. Have a glass of warm water the first thing you wake up in the morning, to stimulate a healthy bowel movement.

2. If you have tea, it should comprise of ginger, clove and cinnamon and herbs to keep you away from sore throat.

3. Lunch must include Steamed vegetables, warm soup with ghee and whole wheat unyeasted bread.

4. And the dinner should be done early to ensure proper metabolism.

Your daily diet must include leafy vegetables, cut them, eat them raw, fry them or make a delicious recipe. But one leafy vegetable every day is the must-have in winters. Also, eat lot of dry-fruits; it will keep the body warm, against the cold weather outside.

To make a Winter-special tea at home:

Ingredients:

• 6 cups water • 2 cinnamon sticks • 4 whole cloves • 5 tea bags of green, black, or ginger tea • ¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice • ¼ cup fresh lemon juice • Honey to taste

Recipe:

Boil the cinnamon sticks and cloves in water for few minutes. Remove from heat. Add tea bags. Cover and let it steep for 10 minutes. Discard tea bags. Add orange and lemon juices to tea mixture. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Serve hot.(Source: http://www.drsinatra.com/spiced-winter-tea-recipe/)

These are the daily must-follow hacks for the season. But the body craves for tasty and zesty food. The street food and sweets and all the lip-smacking dishes are the most desired.

This is something, from around the country, the most appealing dishes to binge on in this season! One would go against the above mentioned rules for fulfilling their craving:

1. The Kebab’s at Bade Miyan (Mumbai): On the coast of the sea, in every heart of the city lies this delicious eatery. Bade Miyaan is famous for its Biryaani’s and Kebabs. When you are cold, experience the mutton-roll of this roadside eatery near Colaba Causeway.

2. Chole Bhature in Delhi: The best place to have street-food is the capital of the country! Chole-bhature along with rajma-chawal and parathe are the most eaten breakfast and lunch dishes here, which makes it very famous in the other urban cities of India as well. Drool in when you are cold and enjoy this steaming and spicy treat in the city!

3. Ram Ladoos in Alkanand Market in Delhi: Crunchy, tasty, fluffy laddoos in the market served with tasty green chutney is a great treat to beat the coolness. Enjoy it with the spicy chutney in Delhi.

4. Pav Bhaji in Mumbai: Come to Mumbai and not have the street Pav Bhaji is a very bad decision. This spiced dish along with the zesty tawa pulav will evaporate the cold off anyone.

5. Idli-Sambhar-Dosa in Bangalore: Bangalore has always been famous for its cool weather. The days are cold and the nights even colder. Taking a walk on Bangalore streets in the nights would almost freeze you, but there is one aspect that never goes missing, the amazing dosa stalls on Bangalore streets that are open in the night and serve hot food to blow away the cold.

6. Dabeli in Ahmedabad: A fabulous roadside chat, very famous in Mumbai and Pune, originated in the Kutch, Gujarat.

7. Gajar ka Halwa with Dry fruits: Mostly made in Rajasthan, as their winter delicacy. Easy-to-make, mouth-watering sweet. Add it up with dry fruits, isn’t it a tasty and healthy way to beat the winter?

8. Hot Gulab Jamuns: Hot gulab jamuns with ice cream is a treat on wintry nights.

9. Mirchi Bhaji and Ragda Pattice: The favourite chat in almost all the cities- Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, etc. that has its origin in Hyderabad.

10. Chai Pakora: Think of Cold, think of rain and one thing you would always picturize is having a hot cup of tea with onion and potato pakoras! A treat to self if you have a good book to go with it.

11. Masala Khichdi : A traditional, light weighted meal to keep you healthy. Winters are enjoyable when you take care of yourself, follow a proper diet. Cheating the diet once in a while is always permissible. Make lot of use of fruits, vegetables, ginger, cinnamon, leafy vegetables, sesame oil and dry fruits in your diet to keep you active and going fit throughout the season.

Winters are enjoyable when you take care of yourself, follow a proper diet. Cheating the diet once in a while is always permissible. Make lot of use of fruits, vegetables, ginger, cinnamon, leafy vegetables, sesame oil and dry fruits in your diet to keep you active and going fit throughout the season. Stay safe. Stay blessed 🙂

December 24, 2014