Skip to main content

The Lost Traditions

Challi Aboo je.... a loud voice rings out in front of my house in Amritsar. And then this man rolls in with a cart. On top of the cart, a beige box filled with sand. And packed in this sand is that wonder called aboo challi, or roasted corn on the cob. Yet, it's not what you think of when you first hear corn on the cob.

Let me explain. Aboo challi is a rare breed. Unlike the charred, grilled corn on the cob, there is no open fire. The cart guy fills the beige wood box with red hot sand and then buries raw corn cobs deep into the hot pit. Several hours later, the corn slowly cooks into a flavor that's quite unlike the boiled or the roasted versions. The sand is still smoldering when the cart rolls into our neighborhood in the afternoon. The cart guy dips his hand in and brings out a perfectly cooked piece, brushes off the sand and then proceeds to brush rock salt and lime juice all over the corn.

Alas! aboo challi is a dying breed. My dad tells me that it takes too long to roast corn cobs the traditional way so the vendors have resorted to a shortcut. The boil the corn, then put it in lukewarm sand to create the same atmosphere but not the same flavor. No wonder the aboo challi I bought on the trip home last week did not bring back any memories.

And then I realized, Punjab (like indeed, any other place) is full of food traditions no google search will bring up. Food traditions that my parents and uncles and aunts grew up with, but traditions that are now just memories. So I'm going to sit these people down, get their stories and write them here. Just so someone remembers!
Labels:

Comments

notyet100 said…
So u r in Punjab :) will be waiting for ur posts
August 17, 2011 at 4:32 PM
Unknown said…
wow, that sand roasted/cooked corn sounds awesome and I would love to give it a try :)
August 18, 2011 at 12:26 AM
Anonymous said…
What a great idea! Nice way to capture traditions. :)
August 18, 2011 at 2:34 AM
Anonymous said…
Even i love roasted corn but have never tried the version u have mentioned......maybe need to visit punjab for a tasting.....but it is so good to relieve old memories but alas everywhere u see new techniques are replacing them
August 18, 2011 at 9:38 AM
Archana said…
I love Corn and had tried many times challi served on roads. I always wondered how they made it. I tried cooking them on gas as well as boil in water, but never got the same taste. From your post seems I had same challi roasted in sand. It seems the same way sweet-potato is cooked and served. Thanks for the post. Will gonna try this method at home.
October 31, 2014 at 1:34 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

I've found my perfect cookie

It's a bite sized cookie, with flavors of a pie, shape of a croissant and a pretty, pretty name. It's Rugelach. I first heard of this cookie when it became the baking pick for Tuesdays with Dorrie a couple of months back. The looks, the concept - everything was fascinating. And I've dreamed of making this cookie ever since. I ditched hundreds of recipes floating around and went straight to the master. It's Dorie Greenspan's recipe that I used, and ain't I glad I got it so perfect the very first time. So what's rugelach? It's cream-cheese pastry dough, rolled then cut into wedges, spread with jam and sugar and fillings of choice, rolled into crescents and baked. First the dough. Dorie did it in her processor, but I just went and did it by hand. Put 100 gms cream cheese and 100 gms butter out of the fridge until they were soft but still cold. Added both to a cup of plain flour (I omitted the salt because I use salted butter). Rubbed the flour and but...
10 comments
Read more

Mystery Fruit

This only happened a few times every year, just when the rainy season kicked in. A street hawker will come by, straw basket on head. He will yell "kaul chapni" and I will run out to buy a bundle of these. Stuck together like flowers, they looked like a bouquet. Every hole contains a little fruit. You break out the package, peel the tiny fruit that pops out and eat it. Done slowly, it can take you an hour to eat an head. Or did, when I was about 12 years old. That was the last time I saw this fruit. I've never seen it again, didn't even know what it was called or where it came from. Three weeks back, Vikram Doctor wrote about a store in Khar that sells Sindhi foods. He described this fruit and I knew it came from my vivid childhood memories. And finally, I knew we were talking about lotus fruit. Now talk about coincidences. Last weekend, I was passing by a lane in Bandra and for the first time in many, many years I saw the straw basket filled with my mytery fru...
14 comments
Read more

Of Brun and Bun Maska

There is more to Bombay's breads than the pao that goes into pao bhaji and vada pao. There's Brun. and there's bun. We will get there. First, you have to get to know the city's Parsis. And Iranis, who are also Zoroastrians, but came to city a little later, in the late 19th or early 20th century. And when they came, they brought with them these little cafes that dot the city. I am no expert on Irani chai cafes. And I can't tell you whether Yazdani Bakery will provide you the best experience or Kyani's. But I can tell you a few things you need to ignore when you get there. Appearances don't matter; so ignore the fact that the marble/glass top tables and the wooden chairs look a bit dilapidated. Also ignore the rundown look the place sports. Instead, get yourself settled. And order a bun muska. This one's familiar to you as a first cousin of the soft hamburger bun. It's similar, but just a tad bit sweeter. Maska, of course, is the generous dollop o...
13 comments
Read more