Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Delights for a veggie!
|
Vegetarians shouldn’t despair for the world isn’t a delight for the carnivores alone! There’s Gopal’s too, serving delicious kachoris and heavenly bedmis, says RAHUL VERMA
|
I have a friend who is a bit of a finicky eater. He doesn’t like anything Continental, or regional cuisine from India either. Something like aloo-posto, that wonderful dish from East India of poppy seeds and potatoes, leaves him cold. A good Br
ahmin from Uttar Pradesh, he is a vegetarian who doesn’t even eat garlic and onion. So you can’t serve him steamed spinach with garlic – a dish that otherwise always works out well when I invite friends home for a meal. What he does like is a plate of hot kachoris. And that is why, when I heard that he was coming over for dinner the other evening, I hotfooted it to Kamla Nagar in search of some khasta-kachoris.
For a friend
I have noticed that those who like their kachoris are pretty much focused on them. I know that, for I am a card-holding kachori lover myself. Whenever somebody goes to Rajasthan, I ask them to get me some Jodhpuri kachoris. These come in two types – the mawa kachori, and the onion kachori. The first is sweet, and stuffed with khoya. The second is a savoury, with fried masala-soaked onions as its filling. Of course, you get some wonderful kachoris in Delhi as well. I think the best of the lot comes from the Old Delhi area, and Jain Sa’ab of Darya Ganj makes the most delicious kachoris. And Kamla Nagar in the University area has some good kachori makers, too. I went to Gopal Snacks Corner, for this used to be an old haunt of mine during my University days more than two decades ago. Lately, though, I had been hearing a lot about Gopal from a friend who lives in the University. So I thought it was time I renewed my old friendship with Gopal.
The great thing about this place is that while most halwais make bedmis for breakfast and start frying kachoris in the afternoon, the two savouries are available at Gopal’s through the day. They focus their attention on four items – apart from kachoris and bedmis, they have a bread pakora stuffed with cottage cheese and hot gulab jamuns. Take the road that has Ramjas College on your left and Daulat Ram on the right, and keep going straight. The road leads to the Shakti Nagar crossing. Just before the crossing, you will find Gopal on the main road, on your left.
You’ll know you have reached your destination when you see the huge crowd in front of the shop. I asked for 12 plates of kachoris. Each plate (for Rs.10) consists of two kachoris, served with two dishes – a spicy potato curry and chholey. Gopal tops the veggies with a methi ki chutney, and adds a dollop of raita on the curry. The kachori is nicely khasta, and you alternately lather a piece with chholey and aloo, and then pop it into your mouth. It’s delicious. So, to come back to the friend, I served him the kachoris for dinner. He ignored everything else that was on the table, and concentrated only on the kachoris. And then, after eating quite a few, he confessed – even as his mouth was full – that he preferred bedmis to kachoris. Well, there is always another day.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
|
