Monday, March 14, 2011

The Jalebi Walla

Sweets are not really my thing, unforgettable dishes throughout the years include Roquefort and potato mousse,  my first piece of wagyu, Chinese roasted duck, fried whiting with tartare ice cream - not a sweetie in sight.

It has to be pretty exceptional to attract me and I've had Jalebi's before. But amongst the throng of humanity that is Old Delhi, sitting cross-legged behind a huge vat of sweltering ghee is a man known as the Jalebi Walla (man). Day long he creates, (I'm going to defer to the words from a gem of a food guide to Delhi) 'crunchy, sweet and juicy food porn at its best. Golden rings of deep fried maida (finely milled wheat flour) batter, soaked in pure sugar syrup, fill the mouth with a warm liquid of such excessive sweetness that modesty blushes in shame'. the delhi walla food + drink by Mayank Austen Soofi.
 

So sticky, so crispy, so sweet. OMG! What an experience. No wonder there is a little frenzied jostling going on when one approaches as the next batch is scooped from the syrup. In a flash they are all sold, and no doubt consumed, for this is something that definitely needs to be eaten on the spot - no taking these little beauties home and stashing them for latter! Luckily we had already been to the paratha walla around the corner to sample his wares, so limited our Jalebi intake to only one! But then they are the biggest Jalebi's I've seen!


This famous Delhi Jalebi establishment in Chandi Chowk, reportedly founded in 1884, will certainly be on my list of stops next time I visit Delhi.

1 comment:

  1. I have not seen or heard of this before. Soo awesome that you got to try it!

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