Bakers dish out special varieties this Ramzan

Rifat Mohidin

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Srinagar, June 22

Traditional Kashmiri bakery continues to tickle the taste buds of the locals as bakers have some special varieties to offer to the people during the ongoing month of Ramzan.During the festive month of Ramzan, bakers in Kashmir have shifted their hours of working.

On usual days, they make ‘rotis’ in the morning and afternoon, but during the fasting month, they sell tandoor fresh varieties during afternoon and evening.“During this month, we expect good sales. We sell special varieties of ‘choat’ (bread) to people so that they can relish the best. We also change our working hours as most of the people fast during this month here, so we don’t sell anything during the morning hours,” said Mushtaq Ahmad, a baker in Srinagar.

Bakers said some of the specialties for Ramzan are “sheermal choat”, which is a flat bread sprinkled with poppy seeds. This bread is usually eaten by people with salt tea after the long night prayers during Ramzan.Lavaas, a lighter version of white bread, is also taken with salt tea.Katlam, a crispy, flaky flat bread containing some quantities of vegetable fat, is also one of the most sought after bread specially made for this occasion.The people in the Valley following the traditional practices take salt tea twice a day during Ramzan.

“Mostly flat bread is in demand during Ramzan which is mixed with ghee. The rates range from Rs 5 to Rs 10,” said Ghulam Muhammad, a baker.For every occasion there are specific varieties of breads, which people say no modern bakery can replace. “Kashmiri bread is something which the modern bakery can’t replace. This tradition is not impacted by the modern bakery. These delicacies hold their own importance for every occasion,” said Abdul Rashid, a resident of the old city.

“Before Iftar, long queues can be seen waiting outside bakery shops known as “kandur”. We can find nearly 2-3 bakers in every locality of the Valley. These are the most visited shops in Kashmir every day. People leave their baskets in advance in our shop so that they can get bread before Iftar,” said Muhammad.” The other famous bread is “tchvoar”, which is sprinkled with sesame seeds. But we don’t make tchvoar during this month because people don’t prefer it these days. It is mostly taken with afternoon salt tea,” a baker said.