It rained after what seemed like a long dry spell earlier this week, and my heart began to sing. Just then, quite possibly in reaction to all that singing, my stomach started to growl. I wanted the heart to continue with its music, and the stomach to stop its carping — so I went straight to Nauroji Nagar.
What’s the connection, you’ll ask. Well, the rain is just another word for a crisp pakora. And for me, pakoras mean a shop in a market in this South Delhi residential area which has been selling mixed pakoras for many years.
Khandani Pakorewalla is located on a busy lane in New Delhi known as Rajmata Vijaye Raje Scindia Marg. If you are on Ring Road, moving from Bhikaji Cama Place towards Safdarjung Hospital, take the first turn left after the Bhikaji flyover. You’ll find a large crowd standing there. That’s the shop — at the corner, on the left.
I have been going there for years. But even when I first went there in the late ’70s, the shop was famous for its pakoras. Over the years, it hasn’t changed much, though there has been some expansion. Now there is a separate counter for payments, and big boards that tell you the rates of the pakoras. Of course, the prices have gone up — paneer pakoras that cost Rs.8 apiece four years ago now sell for Rs.12.
The gentleman who used to run it is no more. I saw a portrait at the back, with a garland around it, and paid my quiet obeisance to the man who gave us such brilliant pakoras (in season, you get everything from cauliflower to bitter gourd, spinach and green chilli pakoras). The place is now run by a young man called Vijay.
I bought three kinds of pakoras — paneer, aloo seekh (Rs.10) and onion pakoras (Rs.10). The pakoras are different from the usual fritters that you get elsewhere. Take the onion pakora — it’s not sliced and then mixed in batter and fried. It’s a whole onion stuffed with masalas, then dipped in a thick besan batter and deep fried. The paneer pakora is again stuffed with some tangy masalas. And the seekh is an old favourite — it consists of mashed potatoes and peas, shaped like a seekh, and then fried. The pakoras are served with a tart onion chutney.
The pakoras are still good — crunchy and spicy as they used to be. But there is a difference between the pakoras of my past and those I ate this week. The new lot is hotter — in terms of red chillies, I mean. Or it can be that I am not as accustomed to chilli powder as I was some years ago.
But the pakoras are still nice — at once crunchy and soft. The outer layer is crisp, and the stuffing — like the onion — is nice and mushy. The paneer was fresh, and the seekh was spicy.
I had the pakoras with my lunch, and my stomach at once stopped growling. And the heart, I am happy to say, continued to hum.
Rahul Verma is a seasoned street food connoisseur.
