A La Cart – street foods of India

Now You Can Experience ALL the Street Foods of India!

[dropcap]I[/dropcap]f there’s only one thing you do today to make yourself happy, watch this excellent video! For all those who love the street foods of India this is the ultimate experience, traveling state by state and eating the delicious eats right on the road. The tears sting your eyes, your nose runs, your tongue burns – and you’re in foodie heaven!

It is amazing how everything is available in the open – be it spicy chat papri, ragra patice, alu tikki, chole bature or seekh kebab. I also have great memories of corn on the cob, roasted on hot coals with a dash of lemon and red chilli.  These street vendors are true entrepreneurs, creating magic out of very little. Their skilled hands knead and roll, deftly shape and turn as an audience of hungry gourmands gather.  I loved the dance of sizzling alu tikkis on hot oil on the black tawa, swishing and sliding till they acquired the fabulous golden brown exterior. The vendor would then expertly split the tikki to reveal the interior of daal and smother it with tamarind chutney and a dash of green chutney. Heaven!

[dropcap]S[/dropcap]treet vendors are getting more and more enterprising with everything from Tibetan momos to Chinese food to sandwiches in this great mix of Indian street food. As they say in the video, street food is often the result of happy accidents and dreams seized. A fascinating video which brings actor Victor Banerjee into this colorful mix and shows the differences between the street foods of  the cities of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.

We are lucky to be getting all these treats now in the Indian restaurants in the US, but is there really any substitute to standing in the heat and dust of Delhi or Mumbai or Kolkata, sniffling and eating our favorite street foods, surrounded by family? It brings back childhood, a piece of the past…

Enjoy this visit to India without an air ticket, courtesy of the Ministry of External Affairs, India. We will be able to replicate it in real time in happier days!