Guest dada_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Litti-chokha now likely to be available on running trains http://bihartimes.com/news07/Sep/1197.html Patna, (BiharTimes): Perked up by the success of litti-chokha experience in the railway canteens the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation is now planning to provide this unique Bihari delicacies in the running trains too. This fast food-item has not only proved successful in all the stations of the East Central Railway but has been equally appreciated in Delhi. According to the regional manager of the IRCTC, Rajesh Rana, the Corporation has been studying the feasibility of providing them in trains as they have been much sought after dish in the ECR. Ways are being explored to serve them hot to passengers. A final decision in this regard will soon be taken. The IRCTC had planned to introduce a new system to create a uniformity in its catering service across the country. Now only 21 approved food items will be served on trains instead of 121 in the menu in the past. Certain south Indian delicacies like idli and dosa have been removed from the menu––initially for three months. Noodles, vegetable burgers and pakodas have now been included in it. ( This better be just for north indian territory) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I say it better be for South Indian territory. How come Northies are so keen adapters of South Indian delicacies but not vice versa??? Some of the best dosas and idlis I have had has been in Calcutta, Jamshedpur, Delhi etc. Some of the worst North Indian delicacies I have had has been at Trivandrum, Chennai and Bangalore. Coincidence?? Perhaps not. x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dada_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Lurker gving the option is fine but giving the option at the cost of southy dish is kind of shock-wave.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ram Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I say it better be for South Indian territory. How come Northies are so keen adapters of South Indian delicacies but not vice versa??? I dont know about some of the typical dishes you are talking about Lurks , but i can say that North Indian chaat is HUGELY popular in South India , especially in the cities. I would even as far as to say that for every single hotel having south indian dishes , there were atleast 2 joints selling chaat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I dont know about some of the typical dishes you are talking about Lurks ' date=' but i can say that North Indian [i']chaat is HUGELY popular in South India , especially in the cities. I would even as far as to say that for every single hotel having south indian dishes , there were atleast 2 joints selling chaat I am glad to hear that Sriram. Whatever I have said might come across as bit harsh(maybe it is) but if you go to any town in North India there is a good chance that a half-decent restaurant shall have dosa & idli on its menu. Now it may not always be great but it is there. The point being Northies have adopted these stuff as their own. Heck my Mom's favorite dish is idli(these days idlis are battling it out with McDonald's veggie burger though!). Compared to this South Indian scene was largely disappointing to me. Now I must say it was the case 5-6 years back so maybe things have changed. Then again maybe not. Look at it this way. If you take a North Indian friend to a proper South Indian restaurant, lets say an Udupi, he would order from a string of Dosas and Utthapa. On the other hand if a Southie goes to a proper North Indian restaurant he does have a lot more tough time wondering if he should pick Chicken Mughlai or Chicken Do Pyaaza. xxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Lurker gving the option is fine but giving the option at the cost of southy dish is kind of shock-wave.. Maybe just what we need :tounge_smile::tounge_smile: (Anything to make litti-chokha popular DR *sinister laugh*!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kumble_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I never had Litti Cokha even though I was in Jamshedpur . What is it ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I never had Litti Cokha even though I was in Jamshedpur . What is it ? It is heaven KR :yay: Seriously though it is like a potato-bonda. Only that the outer layer, which is made of besan for Bonda is made by wheat flour, and the stuffing is from gram flour instead of potato. This is called litti. Chokha is mashed eggplant(brinjal) with some tomatoes, onions etc. xx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kumble_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 It is heaven KR :yay: Seriously though it is like a potato-bonda. Only that the outer layer, which is made of besan for Bonda is made by wheat flour, and the stuffing is from gram flour instead of potato. This is called litti. Chokha is mashed eggplant(brinjal) with some tomatoes, onions etc. xx Boy , sounds delicious . How did I miss it. Even , in mumbai or bangalore , I have never come across this dish. Will ask my wife to check out the recipe ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ram Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 I am glad to hear that Sriram. Whatever I have said might come across as bit harsh(maybe it is) but if you go to any town in North India there is a good chance that a half-decent restaurant shall have dosa & idli on its menu. Now it may not always be great but it is there. The point being Northies have adopted these stuff as their own. Heck my Mom's favorite dish is idli(these days idlis are battling it out with McDonald's veggie burger though!). Lurks , dont you think the popularity of dosas/idlis is also partly due the fact that they are very easy to make ? As in , there isnt a recipe as such and also the fact that they are very suited for restaurant style business. The batter can prepared in large amounts, used when required and refrigerated when the business day is over. That might not necessarily be the case with all North Indian dishes. That could probably explain why north indian dishes havent caught on that much in south Indian restaurants , as much as dosas and idlis have , in north India. Compared to this South Indian scene was largely disappointing to me. Now I must say it was the case 5-6 years back so maybe things have changed. xxx Chaat is ridiculosuly popular in the cities Lurks.. I guess this can also be explained by the fact that , it is easy to make. Heck , i used to eat Bhel puri/Pani puri/Channa samosa/Pav Bhajji once every two days.. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Boy , Sounds delicious . How did I miss it. Even , in mumbai or bangalore , I have never come across this dish. Will ask my wife to check out the recipe ! You may find it in Mumbai but not so much in Bangalore. And even in Mumbai you would be able to find it in small hotels mostly around Kandivali Borivali Thakur Complex area(unless Sandtest has opened one in Oshiwara!). It is rather simple to make and greatly nutritious. One of the most popular dishes from Bihar really. You would find it easier to get in Delhi though. xxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ram Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 It is heaven KR :yay: Seriously though it is like a potato-bonda. Only that the outer layer, which is made of besan for Bonda is made by wheat flour, and the stuffing is from gram flour instead of potato. This is called litti. Chokha is mashed eggplant(brinjal) with some tomatoes, onions etc. xx Yuuuuuuuuummmmmmmmmmmmm ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Lurks , dont you think the popularity of dosas/idlis is also partly due the fact that they are very easy to make ? As in , there isnt a recipe as such and also the fact that they are very suited for restaurant style business. The batter can prepared in large amounts, used when required and refrigerated when the business day is over. That might not necessarily be the case with all North Indian dishes. That could probably explain why north indian dishes havent caught on that much in south Indian restaurants , as much as dosas and idlis have , in north India. Fair point about easy to make. Not to mention the fact that it is also very healthy, specially idli with little oil or preservative. However when you consider that Northies(say Biharis) typically consume lot more wheat than rice(an average family has rice once a day while wheat can easily be 2-3 meals a day), it is not only a case of ease of use but also a substantial shift in eating habits. You would be surprised as to how popular idli-dosa is. Even when I was a kid(much before today's cross-culture movement) we used to have idli-dosa-uthappa-medhu vada vendors coming to home. And this is Gaya, buried deep inside Bihar. Chaat is ridiculosuly popular in the cities Lurks.. I guess this can also be explained by the fact that , it is easy to make. Heck , i used to eat Bhel puri/Pani puri/Channa samosa/Pav Bhajji once every two days.. :D I love chaat too. If you like chaat go to Delhi, best in the world..by miles :two_thumbs_up: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Its actually quite difficult to get good traditional south Indian food in B'lore ..... and south Indian food is not just about Idli / dosa. There are sooooo many Punjabi dhaba's but very few Traditional South Indian joints ... and among south Indian there is soo many more varieties .... heck even in Karnataka .... the food that you get in Northern Karnatak is just not found in Southern Karnataka ... let alone north India .... Of course South Indian food is not only idli-dosa, just like Bihari food is not only litti-choka. Every state/country will have some dish that is most popular and its USP. Just like American food is not only Burgers, or Mexican Burritos and Tacos. However if you go to an American restaurant and it has burger(veggies or non-veggie) you are set. It would be impossible to expect a Bihari restaurant carry Chicken Chettinad or Raagi Mudhe really, there simply wont be too many takers, but it is very possible to expect a Bihari restaurant carry Idli-dosa which was my point. xxxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 But you will get a million restaurants in South India which will carry Navratan Korma' date=' Mughlai Chicken, Saag Paneer, Chicken Tikka, any variety of Daal dishes ... and for that matter any popular North Indian dish ... thats the point ...[/quote'] To the same extent as North Indian restaurant carry Idli-dosas? That too even in smaller towns? Thats the point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dada_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 It is heaven KR :yay: Seriously though it is like a potato-bonda. Only that the outer layer, which is made of besan for Bonda is made by wheat flour, and the stuffing is from gram flour instead of potato. This is called litti. Chokha is mashed eggplant(brinjal) with some tomatoes, onions etc. xx It must be eaten with generous dose of melted deshi ghee of course after breaking litti open.. ummmmmmmmm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dada_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 BTW I am thankful to south india for DOSA.. whenever I have to fix my wife's mood all it takes is Dosa order from nearby restaurant everything else falls in place..:cantstop: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dada_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Its actually quite difficult to get good traditional south Indian food in B'lore ..... and south Indian food is not just about Idli / dosa. There are sooooo many Punjabi dhaba's but very few Traditional South Indian joints ... and among south Indian there is soo many more varieties .... heck even in Karnataka .... the food that you get in Northern Karnatak is just not found in Southern Karnataka ... let alone north India .... Of course not My favourite used to be pissarat .. then that thali with myriad varieties or rice this and rice that.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurker Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Absolutely Lurker ... even the Kamat restaurants offer North Indian dishes in remote places .... down south .... I can vouch for that... you go into any Bar and Restaurant and the food is almost always North Indian in variety ... Kamat's is a pretty formidable chain of restaurant. They are more global than local so I am not sure if I am going to use that as a benchmark of an average South Indian restaurant. On the other hand the restaurants that I am talking about in North India are the roadside thellawallahs, forget the half-decent ones. There is also the little thing to note that cities like Bangalore, Hyderabad will obviously have a cosmopolitan bend(specially in Karnataka). However if you go further down, take Trivandrum and Calicut for instance, you would be hard pressed to see North Indian food in restaurants. We had to figure out a North Indian restaurant in Trivandrum(while I was undergoing training) and had to travel a fair distance to get Northie food when we desired. Let me also say that there used to be a chain of shops(owned by Government of India I guess) called ICH - India Coffee House, in most major towns. This is one place where you can get food from all parts of the country(broadly), not sure if they exist today. xxx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dada_rocks Posted September 13, 2007 Share Posted September 13, 2007 Fair point about easy to make. Not to mention the fact that it is also very healthy, specially idli with little oil or preservative. However when you consider that Northies(say Biharis) typically consume lot more wheat than rice(an average family has rice once a day while wheat can easily be 2-3 meals a day), it is not only a case of ease of use but also a substantial shift in eating habits. You would be surprised as to how popular idli-dosa is. Even when I was a kid(much before today's cross-culture movement) we used to have idli-dosa-uthappa-medhu vada vendors coming to home. And this is Gaya, buried deep inside Bihar. I love chaat too. If you like chaat go to Delhi, best in the world..by miles :two_thumbs_up: Gaya to shahar hai.. In my village, I got DOSA made on last visit .. whoever tasted fell in love instantly.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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