THE STREET FOOD TRAIL

CHILLIES WALK THE TOWN

When the first war of Indian Independence was spreading throughout the country, a rich food tradition had begun to take root in a small corner shop in Jaipur. A present-day shop owner’s great-grandfather was granted the title deed of the shop by the then king Sawai Ram Singh II. The great grandson still uses moong ki daal, ghee, mawa, and sugar syrup to create a mouthful of heaven for his guests and regulars.

This walk is for the brave hearts. You march past and into glorious old traditions that make up the grain and texture of the city of Jaipur. A refugee family from Lahore, Pakistan moved to Jaipur in 1950 to set up a bakery that continues to use biscuit recipes from three generations ago. You encounter baked goodness in traditional wheat and semolina, combined with saffron and cardamom, almonds and cashews in crisp, sweet and savoury biscuits. Walking into a narrow lane past the Rajasthan School of Arts takes you into another old tradition of seasonal goodness – jaggery, sesame, and peanuts are made into gajak for cold winter mornings. Another Rajasthani hand-me-down from one generation to the next, they melt and knead, string and pound, to create piquant sweetness with peanuts and sesame.

You march on, tracking down history in the manner in which it absorbs travelling cultures. Sindhi refugees from the partition settled in Jaipur brought to fruition and cemented here the concept of daal pakwaan as a traditional breakfast. Here, you become a part of one of the oldest breakfast hubs of the city.

Milk that is cooked for hours on a slow fire for hours thickens into sweet rabdi, a typical Rajasthani sweetmeat. You sample this alongside a mixed-flour flatbread that is served with a spicy potato-and-onion preparation, the poster image for Rajasthani food. Asafoetida is used rampantly in our cooking. Kachoris stuffed with lentils and spices, high on asafoetida, are eaten with curd. Wash this down with a refreshing glass of neera – water from the bark of a date tree.

We end this hectic food tryst with history and a cup of hot sweet milky tea by the roadside. It’s brewing process will leave you surprised! Come and live the taste of our unmissable food culture with us, you will never regret it!

Interested?

Would you like to be a part of this experience? Just fill out the form below and we will be in touch with more information on the next time the Street Food experience is conducted.

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