16 August,2010 06:54 AM IST | | Amrita Bose
Forget all fine dining etiquettes and head straight to break bread at the Iftar feast for some lip smacking traditional offerings, as you soak up the carnival-like atmosphere
The holy month of Ramadan is upon us. While for some it means fasting throughout the month, for others, especially the foodie tribe, it brings in a month-long binging session.
The Chandni Chowk area in Shivaji Nagar is perhaps the best place to dig into a sumptuous Iftar meal.
The festival-like air, the smell of freshly grilled kebabs and the general atmosphere of bonhomie after a long day of fasting, makes it even more worthwhile.
The Guide takes you on a culinary journey to sample the best of Iftar offerings.
Kheema Samosa
Before you hit the main course for Iftar, biting into a crunchy kheema samosa is a must.
These samosas are made from thin rectangular sheets of flour dough much like a pastry shell, filled with a spicy mutton mince cooked together with slivers of onions, green chillies, peas, curry and dill leaves and spices and deep fried to a golden brown.
The outer shell is thin and the juices of the meat inside soak up through it. So when you bite into it, a whole lot of interesting flavours hit your palate, the dill leaves being the most unusual of the lot.
Best had: at street stalls on the left of Russell Square, Shivajinagar
For: Rs 6 per samosa
Haleem
The best time to have haleem is perhaps to hit the small eateries off Russel Square just after the fast for the day breaks. The air is expectant when you enter any restaurant serving haleem.
The seats have filled up, plates have been laid out and huge containers filled with haleem is put on heat as a warming-up session. At the signal of the waiter to begin, orders are shouted out by the hungry mouths, the most popular being that of haleem.
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Haleem, which is one of the most popular meals to break the day's fast during Ramadan, originally hails from Hyderabad. Wheat and usually beef (you can get mutton and chicken variations too) are cooked on slow heat with spices for more than seven or eight hours until the dish achieves a sticky, gooey paste- like consistency.
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Our beef haleem arrived garnished with fresh coriander, fried onions and a dollop of ghee. Adding a dash of lime is a must before you start eating. One bite of this soul food like dish creates a warm fuzzy feeling in your stomach, even though we were just feasting and not fasting.
The beef is tender and cooked to a gooey mess with the wheat and topped with lime and coriander, leaving a delish aftertaste. A must-try here is the tangy shorba-like musoor dal flavoured with diced radish, fresh coriander and lots of tomatoes that is served along with the haleem.u00a0
Best had: at North India and other shops that have Hyderabadi Haleem signage put on their shops, Off Russell Square For: Rs 30
Seekh Kebabs
As you walk towards Russell Market in search of an Iftar feast, your nostrils will be guided by the warm and meaty smell of seekh kebabs roasting on warm coal pits.
Available all over, you can see stall owners' hands going up and down in a frenzy fanning the coal that give these kebabs their unique, smoky flavour.
These kebabs are best had with coarse, freshly baked bread or wrapped in thick rotis. Just add a dash of lime before you take a bite and you are good to go.
Best had: at street-side stalls
For: Rs 15 onwards per plate
Kheema Parathas
If you are looking for something different to sink your teeth into, you could try Kheema Parathas. Flattened, square parathas made out of flour are rolled out and stuffed with a spicy kheema filling and then fried on a hot sizzling tawa.
What makes the parathas even more delicious is the fact that an egg is broken onto it and fried till it becomes crisp and flaky.
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And while you are breaking off pieces of the hot parathas don't forget to try the Khari Ghosth, where large chunks of chicken or mutton are flattened and strung through thin sticks and dipped into an egg batter before frying to a crisp.
The egg coating gives the cutlet a crumbly, bubbly texture and the meat inside is tender and cooked with spices.
Best had: at Rahamaniya Hotel, Off Russell Square
For: Rs 20 onwards
Biryani
How can an Iftar meal be complete without digging into some delicious biryani. Huge pots full of this fragrant rice and meat dish will greet you at almost every eatery on this stretch. Forget the usual chicken or mutton versions, go straight for the beef, we say.
Chunks of beef (lots of it) almost falling off the bone come in rice flavoured with ghee, spices and strangely tomatoes. The dish is neither too dry nor too messy with lots of spicy masala.
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Although served along with a tangy tomato based dal we have spoken about before, this dish is best had on its own.
Best had: at North India Hotel
For: Rs 30 per plate
Dessert
If all that meat is making you a wee bit queasy, just hold it steady for some more time, because, you cannot leave without having dessert.
Apart from street carts selling fresh curd sweetened with sugar, saffron and cardamom and thick creamy lassis, head to Hotel Hilal for their traditional Iftar desserts.
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Here you will find desserts made with carrots, semolina and gourd that are cooked with milk, sugar, ghee, nuts, cardamom and thickened.
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But the piece de resistance here is the Shahi Tukra. One day old bread is fried to a golden brown and soaked in sugar syrup after which it is served with a creamy, rabri-like concoction flavoured with cardamom.
The Shahi Tukra we ate was flavoured with saffron and the bread had soaked up the flavours of the rabri. It is soft yet crunchy and is probably the perfect end to your feast.
Best had: at Hilal Hotel, off Russell Square
For Rs 15
