Carrying forward, a legacy of delight

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Preparing delicious laddoos, kulchas that satiate tastebuds, ensuring that the pakwan is crispy and chivda savory... generations of food aficionados are keeping alive India’s culinary heritage

Khursheed Dinshaw

In Jaisalmer, near the fort in Bhatia market is a sweet meat shop called Dhanraj Ranmal Bhatia, which specialises in two varieties of laddoos-ghotua and panchdhari, which arean intrinsic part of the local culture. Ghotua is traditionally prepared by pounding gram flour, sugar, desi ghee or clarified butter, saffron and cardamom with a wooden hammer. This ensures that the resulting laddoos are smooth and very soft. “The wooden hammer weighs 18 kg and the stone vessel in which the pounding is done weighs 200 kg. The word ghotua means pounding in Rajasthani,” explains Pranay, who is the 11th generation of the Bhatia family selling sweets. In an age when doing your own thing and chalking your own path is the norm, he is among the breed of food lovers, who have chosen to carry forward their culinary legacy, not out of compulsion but by choice. These aficionados happily prepare and sell some of the iconic mouth-watering treats of their cities, which would otherwise have been lost in time.

This wholesome and filling laddoo is eaten on auspicious events like pooja, weddings, birthdays or anniversary celebrations. Panchdhari is named so because panch or five ingredients are used to make it namely wheat flour, sugar, desi ghee, saffron and ground cardamom. While most laddoos need to be consumed within a few days, the shelf life of both these laddoos is a month and, that too, without refrigeration.

“Our laddoos are relished by all — be it Bollywood stars, ministers or the common man. My elder son is a chartered accountant and the younger one is pursuing M.Com. Both of them voluntarily help me in the factory and running our family business. They realise that it is not just business. It is a way of ensuring that the legacy of our ancestors is shared with everyone. We have customers coming in from far off places. Many drop in by because their grandfather would like to eat our laddoos,” says Viney, the 10th generation of Bhatia family, proudly. A dental surgeon, he enjoys sitting at his family shop.

While the Bhatia family continues their sweet meat tradition, Daulat Raj Khatri is the savoury expert of the city with his delicious dal pakwan. Serving pakwan, a crispy thin roti made of wheat flour on top of which is served dal, chilli chutney, salt, chopped onions and lemon juice, the veteran was even asked to prepare it for Sonam Kapoor Ahuja’s wedding. For the dal, moong dal is slow cooked with cumin, turmeric and salt.

“We prepare 5 kg of dal and 250 pakwan daily. Our stall starts at 8 am, and we are sold out by 12 noon,” says Khusboo, who mans the stall along with her father Daulat.

Kanchan Shree Ice Cream, also in Jaisalmer, is known for its makhaniya lassi prepared from pure cow’s milk, sugar and cardamom. The yellow colour comes from adding saffron. It is similar in taste to shrikhand. The lassi gets its name from makhan, which is the white sweet tasting garnish on the lassi.

Makhan is prepared by mixing cottage cheese and sugar. “We wrap yoghurt in a muslin cloth and let the water drain out for six hours before adding sugar. The result is makhan,” adds Rishabh Jain, who took over the shop from his father Gajendra Jain.

Closer home is the very popular Ishar Sweets in Kalka. En route Shimla and Kasauli, the sweet shop is a favourite with the locals as well as tourists, who stop by to grab their delicious danedar kalakand and kulfi, besides the freshly made milk cake and dry fruit laddoo. The sweet shop was started in 1956 by Ishar Das. The third generation of Kamal and Nikhil Dhupar is carrying forward the legacy.

Then, there is Amritsar’s Ashok Kulche Wala, which has been dishing out the city’s famous kulchas for the past few decades. “My father Ashok started the shop and I have been managing it for the past eight years. I feel this is my calling and I am passionate about it. The satisfaction of a customer after eating a kulcha is unparalleled, and that is my driving force,” says Vinay.

Besides a variety of kulchas, his another speciality is kandhari naan prepared with a stuffing of khoya or sweetened milk that is thickened, pomegranate seeds and dry fruits. Served with chole or chickpeas and onion chutney, thisnaan has satiated numerous hunger pangs. Ashok Kulche Wala also offers chur churna which is a desi version of a flaky pastry with a filling of potatoes, onion and cauliflower. It is prepared on a tandoor.

In Ludhiana, tucked in Chaura Bazaar is the famous Khushi Ram and Sons. Father-son duo of Rakesh and Akshat Gupta are the third and fourth generation jointly running the shop whose motichoor laddoos and malpua are irresistibly good. In Ambala Cantt, the third generation manages Puran Singh Ka Purana Punjabi Dhaba, which was started in 1950. People throng this eatery for its mutton, keema and chicken dishes, along with dal makhni and shahi paneer.

PT. Gaya Prashad Shiv Charan in Paranthe Wali Gali in Delhi was started in 1872. Today its sixth generation manages the shop and one tasty bite of their mirchi paratha, rabri or kalakand parantha will have you screen their 35 paranthas menu for more.

Munching onward, in Jamnagar, every child is fond of baccha no mesub, the sweet meat that was specially invented for children by the king of Jamnagar. According to folklore, almost two centuries ago, the king relied on his sweet maker Trikam Bechar to create a sweet meat that had to be soft, tasty and provide nourishment to kids, the future of Jamnagar.

He wanted them to be strong — both in body and mind. That is how ‘Baccha no Mesub’ or Mesub for kids was invented. Trikam Bechar turned besan or gram flour, ghee and sugar syrup into smooth, yellow coloured, tasty baccha no mesub. At Kandoi Trikam Bechar Mesubwala in Berthon Chowk, the legacy is being carried forward by the sixth generation of the family.

In neighbouring Maharashtra, Nashik’s chivda has earned epic popularity. Ashirwad More is the third generation of his family to sell this crunchy snack at his well-known shop called Madhavjika Badhiya Chivda. Recounting how the business commenced in 1925, he says, “My grandfather and his two brothers sold two varieties of chivda in front of the Shani Mandir. Today, we have 12 varieties and our products are also exported.”

The traditional versions include spicy kanda or onion chivda, Vijay bhel, made from puffed rice, and makai chivda, whose base ingredient is cornflakes. Makhmali chivda contains cashew nuts and raisins, and it is prepared from thin rice flakes. Keeping with the times, Ashirwad has introduced diet chivda and sugar free chivda.

Parsi flavours

In Pune, if you want to relish a good Parsi meal, then the eatery to head to is Dorabjee and Sons. This restaurant has been gastronomically satiating palettes since 1878. Presently run by Darius Dorabjee, the fourth generation of Dorabjee Sorabjee Chindy, who started the eatery, Dorabjee and Sons offers chicken farcha, which is the community’s answer to KFC. Farcha is deep-fried chicken that is mildly spiced and coated with beaten eggs. Crunchy outside and soft inside, chicken farcha goes well with the mutton and chicken biryani that is served here. Try the lagan nu custard or custard that is served at weddings prepared with butter, milk and eggs garnished with nuts. While in Nashik, don’t miss the epic breakfast and snack option called misal. It is prepared with poha, chivda, sev, moth bean, rasa or gravy and is garnished with chopped onions and coriander. The accompaniments include bread called pav and cut lemon whose juice is squeezed on top. Paresh Kukkar runs Ambika Misal, which was started by his grandfather Tulsiram Kukkar. Their specialty is the gravy that is prepared using black masala or spices like black pepper. “Our black masala is a generation based recipe that is prepared at home,” adds Paresh Kukkar

Sweets at your doorstep

In today’s tech savvy era, you don’t have to physically visit shops to enjoy their iconic offerings. Online ordering has made food items available at the click of a button. Dhanraj Ranmal Bhatia’s laddoos and Madhavjika Badhiya chivda can be ordered from their site while sites like placeoforigin.in, flavorsofmycity.com, tastebells.com and delightfoods.com deliver at your doorstep. Placeoforigin.in delivers Pune’s Shrewsbury biscuits, Mysore’s famous Mysore pak and Kolkata rossogolla. Flavorsofmycity.com offers Belgaum’s delicious kunda, Gwalior’s gud gajak and Nagpur’s orange katli. Tastebells.com sells Agra’s petha, Lonavala’s chikki and Kerala’s halwa. Delightfoods.com offers Dharwad’s and Mathura’s peda, Jaipur’s ghewar and Kolkata’s nolen gur sandesh.