One very happening chat show of late, has a smart young lady quizzing a celebrity (actors, cricketers, netas) over breakfast about their favorite cuisines and predictably the Mumbaikar’s pledge their undying allegiance to the quintessential ‘Vada Pav’ (and it’s variations), Delhiwalas swear by ‘Old Delhi’s Chole Bature’ and Bongs love ‘Phuchkas’ and ‘Maacher Fry’etc. We don’t qualify as celebrities and no one interviews us but we foodies are survivors through generations. Ministry of kitchen and home affairs is sharp being very familiar with old ‘palate’ weaknesses. All required restrictions are put in all homes on ‘Senior’ gents. Culinary delights are reserved for guests & celebratory events !
Like everything one gets attached to but can’t always have in life, the poignant part of nostalgia for our home-town Lucknow will remain the crispy, yummy ‘samosas’ that have their distinct flavour & crunchiness ! They even come in different sizes and fillings and can easily claim to be the most popular snack in the City of Nawabs ! In India and abroad, cosmopolitan cities have their ‘samosa’ versions but for people like us who are reasonably biased for all things Lucknowi, none can curl, fry a samosa like they do there since times immemorial, but the history of the great samosa is fascinating as its taste !
Research reveals that the snack SAMOSA probably travelled to India along ancient trade routes from Central Asia. Small, crisp mince-filled triangles that were easy to make around the campfire during night halts, then conveniently packed into saddlebags as snacks for next day’s journey. By the early 14th Century, it was not only a part of Indian cuisine but also food fit for a king. The samosa obtained a royal stamp with its inclusion in the Ain-i-Akbari which declared that among dishes cooked with wheat there is qutab, “which people of Hind called the sanbusa“.
Indian samosas are usually vegetarian, and often accompanied by a mint sauce (raita) or chutney and originated in Uttar Pradesh.The current day samosas are small, crispy, flaky pastries that are usually deep-fried. They are stuffed with an assortment of fillings ranging from minced meat with herbs and spices to vegetables such as cauliflower and potatoes. The Bengali type samosas have flavour different from the North – they are filled with sweetened reduced milk that go straight from the frying pan to a syrup wash.
It is very rare that one finds a good samosa-maker in the family (not having married into ‘halwais’ ) but I have been distinctly fortunate that forty four years ago I came across a lady with samosa magic in her hands ! Despite being away from Lucknow, I have not felt samosa-deprived because my octogenarian Mother-in-law, Mrs. Roma Basu, can create yummy samosas even today, albeit with the capable assistance and support from her daughter. When the fun days come, we have our own show – ‘Samosas on My Plate’ !
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