I regret not clicking the pitla Suhas Deo made
(conjured rather, because it was magical) on Saturday at the Indus Paragliding
Base Camp at Kamshet. But then, I'm glad I don't have a picture because the
picture could never have done justice to the deliciousness the pitla was. I
will now try to describe it with all its juiciness intact.
For the uninitiated, pitla is nothing fancy. It's just a paste of gram flour, some onions, tomatoes and salt for taste. The contents of pitla might differ according to the ingredients you use. For example, Mr. Deo surprised the mixture by squeezing half a lemon into it. Rahul Sharma diced the onions and tomatoes and the garlic that I peeled by the thousands.
I must have been sitting outside and staring lovingly at Indrayani when a fragrance beckoned me to the kitchen. I saw Suhas at the stove, stirring a thick yellow paste thicker on medium flame. I could compare it to a lot of yellow things but that would be a misfit when I'm trying to appeal to your appetite here. Food wasn’t off the stove yet so I went back to what I was doing.
After what seemed like a thousand light years, our vegetarian meal of rice, dal makhni, dudhi-dal and pitla was ready for consumption.But Mr. Sharma was yet to add his finishing touches. Deciding that the pitla needed to be greener and creamier, he scooped the creamy top layer off a milk container and hit the pitla with it. For the greens, he grabbed a bunch of struggling coriander, wrung their necks and threw their heads into the kadhai as well.
He was stirring it when I entered and grabbed a plate. I took as much rice as I could and draped it with the dal makhni. On the side, I took the dudhi-dal and then a few blobs of the thick pitla.
My mother says hunger is the best tastemaker. Old wisdom but it wasn’t just the hunger that had made the food so delectable. The two men just knew what they were doing. Maybe their wives make them practice at home, I don't know. The dal makhni was better than what you have at an average restaurant. It wasn’t overcooked or underdone but I thought it would taste better with some more salt and it did. (Note to self: Tu high BP se marega beta.) The dudhi, cooked with its skin, was crunchy and the dal kicked many a protein shake in the perineum.
Fine, i'll tell you about the best part, look at you holding on to every word waiting for me to describe the pitla! It was simply delicious! I had spooned a brave spoonful of it into my mouth and just when it touched my tongue; my eyes closed involuntarily and let my taste buds soak in the taste. The creamy consistency, the sweet bite of the onions, the tiny pricks of green chilies and the fight for soury supremacy between the diced tomatoes and squeezed lemon juice...I know Mr. Deo would want to describe it as 'Sex on Toast' but let me tell you...it was way better. All I can add more is that if you popped some mint right after having this pitla, you would be destroying the amazing aftertaste.
I have had Sindhi kadhi before and it was nice. But many thanks to Suhas and Rahul for the pleasure of pitla. I don't know if Barney Stinson will like Pitla but if he did, he would say it was legen...wait for it...dary!
For the uninitiated, pitla is nothing fancy. It's just a paste of gram flour, some onions, tomatoes and salt for taste. The contents of pitla might differ according to the ingredients you use. For example, Mr. Deo surprised the mixture by squeezing half a lemon into it. Rahul Sharma diced the onions and tomatoes and the garlic that I peeled by the thousands.
I must have been sitting outside and staring lovingly at Indrayani when a fragrance beckoned me to the kitchen. I saw Suhas at the stove, stirring a thick yellow paste thicker on medium flame. I could compare it to a lot of yellow things but that would be a misfit when I'm trying to appeal to your appetite here. Food wasn’t off the stove yet so I went back to what I was doing.
After what seemed like a thousand light years, our vegetarian meal of rice, dal makhni, dudhi-dal and pitla was ready for consumption.But Mr. Sharma was yet to add his finishing touches. Deciding that the pitla needed to be greener and creamier, he scooped the creamy top layer off a milk container and hit the pitla with it. For the greens, he grabbed a bunch of struggling coriander, wrung their necks and threw their heads into the kadhai as well.
He was stirring it when I entered and grabbed a plate. I took as much rice as I could and draped it with the dal makhni. On the side, I took the dudhi-dal and then a few blobs of the thick pitla.
My mother says hunger is the best tastemaker. Old wisdom but it wasn’t just the hunger that had made the food so delectable. The two men just knew what they were doing. Maybe their wives make them practice at home, I don't know. The dal makhni was better than what you have at an average restaurant. It wasn’t overcooked or underdone but I thought it would taste better with some more salt and it did. (Note to self: Tu high BP se marega beta.) The dudhi, cooked with its skin, was crunchy and the dal kicked many a protein shake in the perineum.
Fine, i'll tell you about the best part, look at you holding on to every word waiting for me to describe the pitla! It was simply delicious! I had spooned a brave spoonful of it into my mouth and just when it touched my tongue; my eyes closed involuntarily and let my taste buds soak in the taste. The creamy consistency, the sweet bite of the onions, the tiny pricks of green chilies and the fight for soury supremacy between the diced tomatoes and squeezed lemon juice...I know Mr. Deo would want to describe it as 'Sex on Toast' but let me tell you...it was way better. All I can add more is that if you popped some mint right after having this pitla, you would be destroying the amazing aftertaste.
I have had Sindhi kadhi before and it was nice. But many thanks to Suhas and Rahul for the pleasure of pitla. I don't know if Barney Stinson will like Pitla but if he did, he would say it was legen...wait for it...dary!
1 comment:
One bouquet.
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