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Hira Lal Chaat Corner

From past 100 years, this little joint is serving variety of delicacies.  This place claims to invent a chaat. Surprisingly its neither deep fried nor oily. It is rather refreshing and healthy, as it’s all fruit. Don’t confuse this with any normal fruit chaat, Kulliya Chaat is no ordinary chaat.

Asking about the idea of kulliya chaat, the owner said, One day I was experimenting by hollowing out the potato and filling it with spices and lemon juice, it tasted nice and I started selling it along with our other items.

The word Kulliya is suppose to have been named after the “Kullhad”. Kuliya or Kulle is fruit and vegetable cups that are scooped out of its flesh and then filled with flavored stuffing. The Kulliya Chaat is a quintessential street food sold in Old Delhi.

This wonderful edition of Fruit Chaat is great in taste and has an impeccable flavor. The fruits induces freshness, while tangy Chaat Masala gives it a marvelous flavor.

Not to forget, the lemon juice balances the overall sweetness and makes it more delicious. They add boiled Chickepeas and fresh Pomegranate seeds. The crunchiness of Pomegranate contrasts with the softness of fruit cups and gives it a zesty tang.  As more and more customers appreciated this Kulliya Chaat, they experimented it further and added a whole new range of fruits and other ingredients to make the Chaat more flavorful.

Today, boiled potato can be substituted with sweet-potato, watermelon, apple, orange, banana or cucumber. The Chaat can be customized further and can be made extra spicy, tangy or a bit sour.

They serve various items which include pav bhaji, aloo chaat which is yet another popular item in their menu. Cube shaped potatos are fried twice for the crunchy texture and wonderful taste. Also they serve, burger but there’s a catch the tikki’s are made with sabudana which increases the health element as well as the taste.

So when are you going to chawri bazar, for the lip smacking and healthy kulliya chaat?

 

Location : 3636, Gali Lohe Wali, Chawri Bazar, New Delhi

Cost for two – Rs 100 (Approx)

 

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Poori Sabzi at Rewari Wale and Jindal Refreshment Corner

Poori Sabzi at Rewari Wale and Jindal Refreshment Corner

By Anubhav Sapra

Once upon a time, my friend, Ayush, and I met for a get together. Being great foodies, the discussion soon swung to the direction of food. Starting from Fateh ki Kachori in Civil Lines (that Ayush is quite fond of), we discussed food items with enthusiasm. Then slowly we moved to the quintessential breakfast dishes- poori and bhatura, whereupon he mentioned a poori shop in Shakti Nagar, that makes kofte, but only on Sundays. As the clouds gathered in the sky last Sunday, I gave him a call and in a few minutes, we were inside the shop savouring the pooris.

The name of the shop is Rewari Wale ki Poori Sabzi. Located in Shakti Nagar, it is quite accessible- if you are coming from Roop Nagar, take the first right turn towards Gurudwara Nanak Sahib. After taking the right turn, take the first left turn; keep walking straight and the shop Rewari Lal will be on the left side. The complete address is 24/27, Shakti Nagar, Delhi- 07 ( Mobile- 9999935023). A big cauldron of oil where Halwais are frying the pooris can be spotted easily.

Poori Sabzi
Poori Sabzi with Aloo kofta at Rewari Wale

The pooris at Rewari Wale, were simply made of maida. The sabzi was mix of chole, aloo and methi ki chutney. A spoon of dahi is added over it to mellow down the spices, giving it a tangy taste. Gopal Sweets in Kamla Nagar also do the same. What sets it apart from other poori sabzi walas of delhi are the aloo besan ke kofte. The small balls similar to the size of badi are made only on Sundays. Being a bit spicy, it served as the perfect combination with the poori.

The shop was started 50 years back, by Sees Ram Saini, and is presently managed by father-son, Dharam Singh Saini and Vikram Saini. The shop is open till 3 pm and a plate of poori sabzi is priced at Rs 40. Very close to poori sabzi shop, the Sainis own another shop, which is famous for its khoya burfi and gajar pak.

bedmi poori
Bedmi Poori at Jindal Refreshment Corner

Ayush also introduced me to another popular breakfast joint- Jindal Refreshment Corner, on roshanara road. The shop is right opposite Kunji Lal Jagdish Prasad shop, and is famous for pure milk and lassi. The address is 8438, Roshanara Road, Delhi-07 (Mobile. 9953901089).  Jindal refreshment corner is owned by Brajesh Jindal, Kunji Lal’s brother. Established 40 years ago, they specialize in bedmi poori and kachoris.

Unfortunately, by the time we reached Kunji Lal, the lassis were over. The small size bedmi poori is priced at Rs 20 a plate. I found the sabzi to be better than what we get in other places. The sabzi is, again, a mix of aloo, chole, methi ki chutney, kachalu, and kofta, which keeps changing everyday- palak, urad dal, mooli. The distinctive strong taste of heeng in the sabzi makes it simply delicious.

In the evening, they make samosas. Remembering the old days, Ayush recited the story of how he used to eat Jindal’s samosas on his way back home from school days, not in plates but straight from his hands. Long live his love for kachoris and samosas!

 

Anubhav Sapra
Anubhav Sapra is an avid foodie! He is a Founder but proudly calls himself a Foodie-in-chief at Delhi Food Walks. He is also a street-food and Indian regional cuisine connoisseur and loves to write about street-food.