From being the birthplace of the First War Of Independence, the city of Meerut in Western Uttar Pradesh has evolved into a major trade center in the region. Just like any other cities of Uttar Pradesh, the lanes of Meerut too boasts of a vibrant street food scenario dominated by traditional dishes. Let's take you on a veg street food tour across this historic city that revolves around some old and iconic eateries.
It was a chilly day so we started the tour with some masala chai from Beeru tea stall on Hanuman Chowk. The strongly brewed fragrant tea was accompanied by a fan or puff pastry like snack. This is one of the timeless combos for many of us. It is dipped in hot tea and eaten. The delicately thin layers of the fan soaks up the beverage and instantly becomes soggy so one shouldn't dip it for long. Here these were kept in a box with a bulb glowing inside it. The tea that came in an earthen cup was quite invigorating.
After this we headed to Kansal Shudh Mishthan Bhandar for some classic breakfast. Like most parts of Western Uttar Pradesh, here too the most favourite breakfast combo is kachori and sabzi. The kachori are basically urad dal stuffed big size poori. At Kansal they serve the kachori with non onion garlic potato curry, pumpkin curry and chickpea curry. The generous owner also had some carrot halwa, moong halwa and jalebi. Everything was made in ghee and the flavors were very balanced. Their sweets are popular too.
Next we reached Delhi Special Chole Bhature for a hot plate of chole bhature. Just like in Delhi, people in Meerut too are very fond of this big sized leavened poori and chickpea curry combo. Here they stuff the poori with a mixed lentil paste that adds a different layer to its yummy taste. The bhature was nice and fluffy. Chola was mildly spiced. All in all it wasn't at all disappointing.
After this we went to Chunnilal Halwai shop for their delicious gajar ka halwa but on reaching we found that a fresh batch was underway so we decided to come back and taste it when it is done. The quick conversation with the owner revealed that their halwa is made with just carrots, milk and sugar.
Next was the turn of kanji vada at Sohan Lal Rathore cart. They also serve two types of dahi vada but kanji vada is their best seller. Unlike the one that we are familiar with, Sohan Lal's kanji or the fermented water was green in colour which came from the addition of mint paste. Here you can choose between the classic moong dal fritter or the spicy palak moong dal fritter. They also add sweet chutney and spice mix to the kanji vada although the base is the same mustard seed powder flavoured fermented water. This one tastes like the sweet and tangy golgappa water. It was zesty and refreshing.
We then reached Jogi Chaat Bhandar to dig into their famous Muradabadi Dal and Matar chaat. This humble place is run by Jogi ji and his family. Muradabadi dal is a unique lentil dish from the city of Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh. It is boiled split yellow gram lentil garnished with some roasted spice powder, chutney, chopped ginger, green chillies, butter etc. with all these contrasting elements, it was turned out to be a hearty and delish dish. The matar chaat had a simple white pea curry as base instead of moong dal. It too was absolutely amazing. Here they serve it in clay bowls which adds a earthy note to the taste.
The last stop of this tour was Ramo Sweets whose samosa and kachori are famous all over Meerut and even beyond. The look of the samosa itself implied how brilliant ir was going to be.
17 окт 2024
