Feasting At Bhendi Bazaar: Experiences During A Ramadan Food Walk In Mumbai

As a toddler, I had heard a number of tales about Bhendi Baazar from family and friends. I had heard of individuals from all corners of the town thronging to the locality to take pleasure in food and drinks that you’d solely get throughout Ramadan. However I had by no means actually discovered the appropriate alternative to go to. The bazaar was additionally recognized to be somewhat cramped and crowded, particularly a decade or so in the past. Lodging had been often primarily based on the chawl system, and far of the infrastructure had not aged nicely. Nevertheless, this integral a part of outdated Bombay remained as vibrant as ever, and I regarded ahead to discovering it for myself. Seems, a lot has modified through the years, and luckily, for the higher.

The Feast Begins at Shabbir’s Tawakkal Sweets

The climate was unusually cool for the start of April. Because it was Ramadan, your entire road was illuminated with hanging lights over store awnings and throughout alleys. It was round 7 pm, and devotees had been simply starting to interrupt their quick. We seated ourselves on tables in a small courtyard located a number of toes away from our first cease, Shabbir’s Tawakkal Sweets – an outlet that dates all the way in which again to 1953. Their unique store needed to be given up for redevelopment, however their new deal with didn’t appear any much less abuzz. It was time to let the feasting begin. I made a decision to begin with a favorite.

_{Baida roti is an all-time favorite that by no means disappoints. Photograph Credit score: Toshita Sahni}

I had all the time been a fan of baida roti and could not assist being interested by how they made it right here. The roti arrived reduce into six items, and I might already spy the scrumptious stuffing inside. I dipped a chunk into the refreshing mint chutney served on the facet and took a chew. How had I ever preferred every other model? The skin was completely crisp, and the egg didn’t have an overwhelming flavour. Inside, there was juicy rooster mince, spices, onion, and, in fact, items of inexperienced chillies whose presence you might not miss. We additionally tried the cheese baida roti, which regarded straight out of a foodie’s dream, with bubbly cheese oozing out. To me, the cheese felt somewhat misplaced on this beloved conventional dish. Nevertheless, these round me had been left enchanted by it.
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Mouth-Watering Appetisers

Among the many appetisers, we additionally tasted the rooster seekh kebab and mutton seekh kebab. Moayyad Mithaiwala, the proprietor, defined that a few of the delicacies had been ready solely for iftar. Nevertheless, there have been many treats – candy and savoury – obtainable year-round too. The kebabs had been one such dish, and after tasting them, I used to be glad of the very fact. I already started planning my subsequent go to and mentally making an inventory of people that needed to strive these kebabs. They had been cooked to perfection (I used to be too busy savouring them to provide you with extra poetic descriptions).
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Delectable Most important Course: Nalli Nihari, Khichda, and Sheermal

_{We feasted on mutton Nihari and Bohra Khichda for the primary course. Photograph Credit score: Toshita Sahni}

For the primary course, we had the chance to strive Nalli Nihari – a slow-cooked mutton stew that must be the definition of fragrant. This stew is without doubt one of the delicacies which might be ready solely for iftar at this specific restaurant. Nalli Nihari was initially eaten within the mornings. In actual fact, the phrase Nihari is claimed to return from the Arabic phrase Nahar, which means early morning. The stew is usually cooked for round 4-5 hours, leading to splendidly tender items of meat and a curry bursting with flavour. We scooped the Nihari with some tender sheermal, a kind of flatbread. We additionally relished khichda, a mutton preparation of rice and lentils. It was attention-grabbing to notice that the gravy was white in color. Earlier than this, khichda to me had been synonymous with a thick dal-like preparation that contained turmeric and was yellowish in color – I had by no means tried every other. The Bohra-style khichda was equally, if no more, scrumptious.
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Preserving the Essence of Outdated Bombay

Our hosts ushered us via a road flanked by contrasting constructions. On one facet, an aesthetically designed skyscraper loomed excessive above our heads. Reverse, we noticed buildings nonetheless beneath development – all part of the huge redevelopment mission undertaken by Saifee Burhani Upliftment Belief (SBUT). The newer constructions mirrored sure conventional aesthetics and architectural kinds. This was intentional, defined Murtaza Sadriwala, an official from SBUT. They believed it was vital to retain a few of the essence of the unique buildings in addition to the spirit of the communities that thrived there – all whereas enhancing the general look of the neighbourhood. This didn’t simply apply to residences but in addition to the numerous retailers, eating places, and different retailers that had been an integral a part of the material of the bazaar.

Bara Handi – A Should-Strive for Meat Lovers

_{Patra biryani is an attention-grabbing native delicacy – questioning the place’s the rice? Photograph Credit score: Toshita Sahni}

Our subsequent cease was Fakhri’s Farsan Mart, the place we sampled patra biryani, an area delicacy made utilizing arbi leaves and items of mutton. Though referred to as “biryani,” we had been amused to search out that this dish contained no rice. We additionally tasted “Dubai combine,” an eclectic mixture of chivda and farsan, together with cornflakes, groundnuts, ghatiya, moong, and far more. We had been pleasantly shocked at its yumminess. Subsequent, we peeked into the making of Bara Handi proper reverse. The title refers to 12 vessels containing various kinds of slow-cooked meat gravies, eaten individually or blended collectively in several methods. Sadly, we had been too stuffed to do it a lot justice. All of us needed to avoid wasting house for dessert – which turned out to be a terrific choice.

Candy Endings at Taj Ice Cream

_{Taj Ice Cream has been round for ages and their yummy choices entice Mumbaikars from close to and much. Photograph Credit score: Toshita Sahni}

We made our option to Taj Ice Cream down the highway, a store specializing in sancha or hand-churned ice cream. It’s stated to have been round since 1887! To make their signature ice cream, milk is added to a copper sancha together with the fruits or flavourings of selection after which churned for round 3 hours. We tasted the sitaphal (custard apple) flavour, which retained many items of the fleshy fruit – a lot to our delight. We additionally loved the blended fruit flavour, which was pink in color and a bit tart in style. Different favourites among the many group had been guava and mango. Among the best components was that the ice cream was chilly, however not so chilly as to provide you a mind freeze. It was additionally not overly candy, a welcome change in right this moment’s world of sugar-loaded desserts.

Imam Sharbatwala: A Refreshing Deal with for the Style Buds

In any case this indulgence, we solely had house left for some refreshing sharbat. So, we headed to Imam Sharbatwala to strive their well-known choices. We had been served a candy and yellowish milk-based drink with items of watermelon. I might detect a nutty flavour, however the different substances gave the impression to be one thing of a secret. On asking, the seller diplomatically evaded our query. It felt solely proper that some treats retain their thriller!
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A Promise to Return for Extra Delicacies

As we headed again to the place we began, we seen that crowds of devotees had certainly descended in full drive for iftar. Many had been wearing items of conventional clothes, implying that they belonged to the Dawoodi Bohra community. However we might additionally spot individuals from different communities who had come to easily benefit from the delicacies on supply. To me, it was nearly as good an instance of multicultural concord as any. I had all the time believed within the uniting energy of meals and this appeared like proof sufficient. I stay up for returning to this fascinating nook of a metropolis I really like a lot. As I walked to my cab, I additionally eyed the malpuas, kunafas, kulfis, and faloodas that I didn’t have the house to strive. Subsequent time, I promised myself.