Cullinary Depression
It's been a year now since I moved to the North of India.. of the many peculiarities exhibited by North Indians, the strangest is their un-explainable fascination with "Paneer"..
I used to like Paneer when I was in Gujarat. Used to eat it 2-3 times a month in restaurants. But all of it changed the moment I landed in Delhi.. Paneer is like a staple diet here.. U got to eat it atleast 5-6 times (oops sorry, make that as many times as possible) a week. The mess serves Paneer 3-4 times a week. The restaurants take it to an altogether new level. Here are some of the delicacies I ate in restaurants here,
1. Hakka Noodles - I ordered it expecting to eat some Chinese food. But the thing which I got was a bowl full of Paneer with some noodles and vegetables added to taste. When I asked the waiter whether it was the wrong order, pat came the reply "Yeh to standard Hakka Noodles hi hai, Pehchaana nahi kya sir?" Now i start wondering, in which part of China, were such Noodles a standard?
2. Masala Dosa - South Indians coming to Delhi, Gurgaon may be surprised to find the liberal dosages of Paneer that are sprinkled inside the Dosas..
There's this restaurant near my college.. It appears as if they have a Paneer factory and are using the restaurant as a means to dispose of whateve extra Paneer they have. I have eaten there many times, but am yet to find a dish which hasn't some Paneer in it. Chole Bhature with 2-3 cubes of Paneer, Mix vegetable has equal quantities of Paneer and vegetables, Fried rice should be renamed as Paneer rice. The day you don't get some Paneer in your dish, the chef would have been really hungry and he himself would have eaten the Paneer assigned for your dish
And the people here - Going to restaurants with North Indian friends, the first thing that comes to their mind for ordering "Ek Paneer Butter Masala to Hona hi chahiye!!!"
All this has really made me really terrified of Paneer. I keep having these dreams where even the famous Fish Curry from Kerala is being served to me with a generous sprinkling of Paneer.. Only God can save me from this Cullinary Depression.
Till Next Time
Sarath
I used to like Paneer when I was in Gujarat. Used to eat it 2-3 times a month in restaurants. But all of it changed the moment I landed in Delhi.. Paneer is like a staple diet here.. U got to eat it atleast 5-6 times (oops sorry, make that as many times as possible) a week. The mess serves Paneer 3-4 times a week. The restaurants take it to an altogether new level. Here are some of the delicacies I ate in restaurants here,
1. Hakka Noodles - I ordered it expecting to eat some Chinese food. But the thing which I got was a bowl full of Paneer with some noodles and vegetables added to taste. When I asked the waiter whether it was the wrong order, pat came the reply "Yeh to standard Hakka Noodles hi hai, Pehchaana nahi kya sir?" Now i start wondering, in which part of China, were such Noodles a standard?
2. Masala Dosa - South Indians coming to Delhi, Gurgaon may be surprised to find the liberal dosages of Paneer that are sprinkled inside the Dosas..
There's this restaurant near my college.. It appears as if they have a Paneer factory and are using the restaurant as a means to dispose of whateve extra Paneer they have. I have eaten there many times, but am yet to find a dish which hasn't some Paneer in it. Chole Bhature with 2-3 cubes of Paneer, Mix vegetable has equal quantities of Paneer and vegetables, Fried rice should be renamed as Paneer rice. The day you don't get some Paneer in your dish, the chef would have been really hungry and he himself would have eaten the Paneer assigned for your dish
And the people here - Going to restaurants with North Indian friends, the first thing that comes to their mind for ordering "Ek Paneer Butter Masala to Hona hi chahiye!!!"
All this has really made me really terrified of Paneer. I keep having these dreams where even the famous Fish Curry from Kerala is being served to me with a generous sprinkling of Paneer.. Only God can save me from this Cullinary Depression.
Till Next Time
Sarath
posted by Sarath | Saturday, June 06, 2009
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