The best part is when the panipuri explodes in your mouth and you taste all the sour and spicy flavors soaking into the chip and vegetables.
Though momos and panipuri are delicious, daal bhaat is the dish I’ve eaten the most during my two weeks here. It’s very filling and I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of the way my aamaa makes it. When I first tried daal bhaat, I felt very comforted. Even though I was in a new place, the dish reminded me of the food I’d eat back home at my best friend’s house.
I asked my aamaa how she typically makes the daal bhaat. She started by saying she steams the rice based on how many people she’s serving. For the daal, she soaks raato daal (red lentils) and kaalo daal (black lentils) in water and turmeric. Then, she cooks the daal in the pressure cooker and adds bay leaf, cumin, garlic, cloves and other seasonings.
For the spinach, my aamaa cooks chopped onion and garlic in the oil with cumin, methi (fenugreek), chili and salt. After the ingredients are browned, she adds the spinach and lets it wilt. Finally, she adds grated ginger and tomato at the end.
To cook the gravy chicken, my aamaa sears chopped onion in oil and then adds the chicken and salt. She covers the pot for six minutes before adding the seasonings: garam masala, ginger, garlic, cinnamon, bay leaves, cloves and chili.
My favorite side to eat with daal bhaat is the mula ko achar, which is a type of pickle. To make it, my aamaa dries freshly cut radish in the sun for three hours.
