Kadhi chawal

We recall having relished the greasy finger-licking Nagpal chhole for Sunday breakfast as cars had lined up with people waiting to take home their parcels. The massive handis sat on stoves with low flames, slowly cooking the chickpeas for hours, and flooding the street with aroma. The version served at this 25-year-old outlet is a cross between Amritsari and Rawalpindi versions, with a thick gravy, but a milder play on the masala. The tangy anardana hits the palate loud and clear.

Poll

Who will win the Punjab Elections?

BJP 32.76%

AAP 43.10%

INC 24.14%

Submit

View All In Poll

Pasricha and we are early birds. This allows us to be privy to how the cook makes the bhatura. For the paneer bhatura, they stuff a roundel of maida with paneer and roll it flat before frying. The hot oil welcomes it into the kadhai and turns it golden brown. The sizzle is music to the ears.

We first dig into the special chhole bhature paneer wale (Rs 110), which is served with an awla achar, mirchi, a pudina chutney. Aloo pieces have soaked in all the masalas. It’s nostalgia for her. She says, “It comes very close to the Dilli style, but it’s still not 100 per cent there. I liked the bhatura that came stuffed with paneer. It was fluffy and not too thick.”

Delhi-based travel and food writer Pallavi Pasricha came along for a taste test to Delhi’s famous Nagpal’s chhole’s franchise in Khar 

The chawal chhole palak paneer (half: Rs 80) comes on a bed of rice. The rajma chawal (half: Rs 80) is light on the stomach but doesn’t end up making a very lasting impression. But the letdown, says Pasricha, is the kadhi chawal (half: Rs 70). The pakodis are tough, and the kadhi is too thick, which doesn’t allow the pakodis. We decide to make up for it with a glass of sweet lassi (Rs 50). Pasricha points out that the masala that was sprinkled on top of the chole and all the other dishes should have been in the gravy. 

Her fondest memory of a chhole meal is going to Haldiram’s or Roshan di Kulfi in Karol Bagh. “Whenever I was there for a shopping spree, I never left without eating a plate: with college friends, I’d go to Bengal Sweet House. The chhole in Delhi is on the tangier and spicier side, which is what I missed here.”

What: Nagpal’s Chole Bhature
At: Nagpal’s Shop No. 6, Mishra House, Lot No. 41/42, junction of 1st and 4th road corner, Khar
When: 10 am to 11 pm
Call: 9920393369 
Rating : OKAY

Nagpal’s Chole Bhature didn’t know we were there. Sunday Mid-day reviews anonymously and pays for meals.