tamatar chaat trail in Banaras and recreating the recipe of tamatar chaat

I have made tamatar chaat earlier and have been wanting to make it again and again. Tamatar chaat or tamatari is a delicious chaat from Banaras that is said to be a secret recipe. The reality is that all the chaat walas of the city have their own versions and most of them taste great, although all of them are slightly different from each other. Isn't that interesting?

I had been planning to make my own version of tamatari for ages, it is after the tamatari trail in Banaras that I came back and made it at home too.

I have also been dreaming of a chaat party as we used to have in Banaras. A chaat party is an apt alternative to high tea in Banaras. Almost all chaat walas are into catering and most people have their own favourites too.

The chaat parties of Banaras would mean a couple of chaat walas doing the catering, cooking live chaats and serving gol gappas street style. There would be counters of tamatari, chiwda matar, dahi bade, tikki chaat and gol gappas and a few unique chaats the hosts would arrange for. Tokri chaat, chhole bhatoorey, samosa chaat, kachori subzi etc used to be the usual add ons. Mung ka halwa, gajar halwa, hot gulab jamuns and jalebis would be the standard 'live' desserts being churned out.

Oh now I am seriously craving for a chaat party.

The best alternative to a chaat party is to go on a chaat trail in banaras. And if you are like me you would go trailing one type of chaat in a day, cover as many destinations as possible, take notes and conclude the one you like the best. This is what we did last time we were in Banaras.

The first Tamatari joint we raided was the Banarasi Chat Bhandar at Sankatmochan turning. Incidentally this was the place where I had first tasted the Tamatari 2 decades ago. I know how he used to make the Tamatari in those days but he has adapted the recipe now to make it quicker to serve to the waiting customers.

Earlier he use to crush some ready alu tikkis with some red tomatoes lined up around the periphery of the huge tawa and mix a few more chutneys and spices to churn out a tangy hot and sweet tamatari. Now he brings a ready mix of tomatoes and potatoes with some peas and even cubes of paneer which he pours on the griddle and bhunoes it till the tomato mixture gets nicely caramelised.

Then he adds a rich rassa to the reduced tomato mix which has makhanas and nuts, a sprinkling of chopped onions, coriander leaves etc and it is ready to be relished. But mind you, this earthen kulhad of tangy sweet and hot concoction comes to you after a good deal of waiting as by the time he makes tamatari there is a sizable crowd around his cart.

This would be my favourite tamatar chaat for 2 reasons. One the tamatar chaat has a dominant taste of tomatoes and the tomatoes are so well caramelised. There are other places where the tamatari is tasty but the tomato drowns among the other ingredients used. The second reason for liking this tamatari is that you get to stand in open air and eat the chaat, the cart is in an open space and they have a shop just behind the cart where you can sit and eat too.

Waiting for tables and sitting in claustrophobic chaat shops can be tolerated ONLY when the chaat is superlative. The good thing is that there are superlative chaats in those chaat bhandars of Banaras of course.

The next Tamatari we tasted was at Kashi Chat Bhandar and it was a bit more spicy though quite delicious. A father and son sharing table with us had two serving of tamatari there along with a variety of other chaats. The chiwda matar and alu tikki at Kashi Chaat Bhandar is great but the tamatari needs a little more balance of flavours and a little more tomatoes in it.

We found Deena Chaat Bhandar's Tamatari quite nice. It was more tangy, the kind of tangy that comes from using desi tomatoes and the flavours were really well balanced. I am told Deena used to make better Tamatari a decade ago. I can understand that as even the Banarasi at Sankatmochan turning also used to make much better tamatari when I had eaten from his cart. Deena's tamatari is still one of the best.

All these places used to crush a few alu tikkis, then caramalise a few ripe tomatoes and mix a few more things on the go to make tamatari back then. Now they have just made it more convenient for themselves as a ready mix is easy and quick to serve.

Most of them have started adding small cubes of paneer, peas, more nuts and even dry yellow peas to the tamatari to make it more attractive. All of them have their signature versions of the tamatari chaat.

I miss the version we used to get earlier and guess what? I had a leisurely chat with the original owner of the Banarasi Chaat Bhandar at Sankatmochan turning and he told he can make the original version on order. You just tell him a day in advance and the next day he will make it for you. Now that is something I am going to do next time.

But then, after having all these tamatari versions I had to make it at home too. The recipe of tamatari has been shared earlier but here it is once again. Use desi tomatoes for best taste I recommend. Or mix a few varieties of tomatoes to get the best of of them.

Ingredients, recipe and instructions of tamatari or tamatar chaat can be seen here.

The final outcome is always delicious. At home I make it less oily but the taste is great anyways.

Have it hot.

And have it for a meal. All the nuts, ghee and khoya in the tamatari chaat makes it quite heavy and when you are cooking it at home you must enjoy a large portion. So keep the Tamatar chaat for dinner menus or smaller portions for chaat parties where you serve more chaats.

the best apple pie in the land of kachori and lavanglata | at the Pizzeria Vatika Cafe

Apple pie in Banaras? I say yes. And that is the best apple pie I have ever had. A perfect cookie like crust that crumbles as you take a bite. The flavors are subtle and yet temp you to take another bite and then some more. This happens when you are not even fond of desserts. Yes I do get sated with this dessert in just 3-4 bites but I see my folks digging into the pie with utmost concentration. My brother could not have it enough using a spoon and had it with his hands and then attacked on his wife's plate and my niece finished a whole slice of pie even when she had announced she can't eat any more. This pie makes cozy family memories. We had it at Pizzeria Vatika Cafe at Assi ghat, Varanasi last week and I am still stuck somewhere in the folds of that apple pie.

Wait, I will tell you more. This apple pie is egg less and Mr. Gopal Krishna Shukla, the owner of this al fresco pizzeria by the Ganga ghat, tell passionately about how he found the perfect recipe of this apple pie. He learned almost everything form the visiting foreigners he says and one of them demonstrated this perfect recipe of apple pie when he felt someone is insulting an apple pie in the land of kachoris. Yes it happened like that and guess who is smiling all the way with an subtly aromatic apple pie? The people of Banaras have the privilege of walking to the ghat and dig into it any day.

I got a whole pie packed for myself when we returned and it is still being reheated in the oven and relished by the folks. Here is how the crust becomes even more rich when reheated at home.

At the pizzeria, you can get the pie drizzled with chocolate sauce

Or topped with vanilla ice cream, with or without chocolate sauce.

This apple pie uses Himachal and Kashmir apples for our own country and you wont feel any lack of apple goodness. The apples are sliced perfectly and layered nicely inside the pie. The sugar is light so the pie doesn't become runny in the center. Those who like it sweeter can ask for an ice cream topping.

Mr Gopal Krishna Shukla is a passionate man behind this popular pizzeria. The few things I liked about his way of running this pizzeria is, using local fresh produce and not depending on imports. He has innovated a lot and makes his own mozzarella cheese. As local as it can get.

Pizzeria serves many variants of ravioli, gnochhi and other types of pasta as well, all vegetarian stuff as non veg is not allowed around the temples and ghats. You also get Indian thali and more Indian stuff there too. Good coffee, tea and more beverages to choose from. They have an extensive menu.

You see more foreigners than Indians in this pizzeria almost any time you go, the service is slow sometimes and you experience some bugs and flies here and there, you have to bear all this in an al fresco cafe by the ghat where all sorts of life activities go on incessantly.

And it is not just the apple pie that will make you visit pizzeria repeatedly, their pizzas are great too. Baked in a wood fired oven, thin crust pizzas are made using fresh ingredients and their 'pizzeria special pizza' is actually a vegetable and pineapple loaded treat.

Read more about their pizzas here, this time I tried the aubergine and spinach pizza as well and loved it to the core. The pizza margherita, the onion and mushroom pizza and the pizzeria special were all great.

We ordered a lasagna (vegetarian) and a cream sauce pasta as well and we all liked the pasta. Rich and creamy cheesy pasta which can not not be turned down. The only grudge in the pasta was the large chunks of carrots, I wish they were chopped finely to not give a sweet bite in this perfectly cheesy pasta. I would probably do away with carrots and even green capsicums for these flavors, mushrooms and cauliflowers worked really well. I am all for local fresh produce being used in such fare.

The lasagna was insipid for most of us. The layers of aubergine between pasta sheets were not as appealing as I would have liked. I also feel pizzeria needs to jazz up the plating and service a little bit. 

I know Banaras is a city with a collective laid back attitude and everyone gets attuned to it sooner or later. I remember our initial days in the city when we relocated from Chandigarh. We hated the city first and then slowly became a part of it. More on spiritual level than otherwise I must add. 

What I wanted to convey is, a good eatery reflects a lot about the food philosophy that is followed by the people behind it. I know Pizzeria makes great efforts to churn out great food to it's patrons, a little bit of attention to detailing will makes it shine brighter. 

the famous lassi of banaras.....pehelwan ki lassi...

Banarasi lassi is very different from Punjabi lassi. While Punjabi lassi is a frothy drink with a blob of fresh white butter floating on top, banarasi lassi is more like a dessert drink.

I remember having a frothy fresh punjabi lassi served in huge metal glasses when i was a kid . That lassi used to be lightly sweetened and a little thinner too. I liked the kachhi lassi (which is actually fresh buttermilk) more as i like all things savory. In punjab villages lassi, seet or savory is always served with some fresh white butter floating on top.

Lassi of banaras is poles apart from that refreshing drink of punjab. It is more a filling meal in itself, a dessert meal in fact. Thick and sweetened with a topping of malai on top and a generous blob of rabdi over it. How much more sinful it could get? The mithai loving people of Banaras have reinterpreted the lassi for sure.

The curd for this lassi is made with reduced milk so the lassi gets a nice creamy texture . The curd is set in to wide vessels called parat as seen in the picture here so it gets a larger layer of malai on top.

Look how the shop owner is pouring lassi straight from the matka in which he jut churned the lassi using a wooden mathani (an Indian whisk) . I remeber in olden days these parats were not used to set the curds and there used to be nice earthen vessels of the same shape and size. I am not sure if the milk is boiled in the same vessels as when the milk cools down  all the fat floats on top and makes a nice and thick layer of malai . The same malai is scooped off to top the lassi when served in earthen kulhads.

Yes, these kulhads make this lassi even more special.I am so glad these kulhads and dried leaf plates and bowls are still used in some of our cities. Look at the dried leaf bowls they use to serve those syrup dripping lavag-lata . Lavang-lata is a very sweet fried pastry stuffed with clove flavored khoya( reduced milk) and dipped in a very thick sugar syrup. A bengali version of this sweet is lavang-latika which is smaller in size and delicate in folding pattern, the bengali version includes some coconut too in the stuffing. This particular place is famous for it's lavang-lata too and you can see there stock is almost over by afternoon.

And now is the time to introduce you to the special place where you can get this treat. This is pehelwan ki lassi situated at Lanka crossing. This area is close to the Banaras Hindu University and if you are coming from the university side you can spot this shop on the right side of the crossing, flanked by a hardware shop.

The lassi here is one of the best in Banaras , a few places in chowk and Ramnagar make great lassi too but it's very easy to get duped for a glass of lassi in banaras. Banaras is known for it's thugs too you must remember so you need to spot the right place to try the famous and talked about specialties of the city. Many of my friends in the past have had lassi from nondescript places and have got upset stomachs as many of the shops use synthetic milk and yogurt so beware. When something is famous from a place, there are more chances of imitations or cheaper versions available to dupe the tourists. Same goes for Banaras silk but i am not talking about that right now.

This lassi would surely make you want to come back to this shop several times during your visit i am sure. There are other nice places for good lassi too and i would share those places whenever i get an opportunity.

Oh the lassi...did i describe the taste for you?

It is actually better than any ice cream of the world. That granular looking rabdi is unsweetened to balance the intensely sweet lassi below and that piece of malai should be devoured slowly. One because it is so laden with fat that it fills your palate and two because it is so yummy you would want it to last till the lassi lasts in your kulhad....so have a spoonful of rabdi and take a sip of the lassi then take a spoonful of malai and take a sip of the lassi...and do not laugh at the way i am describing it as i have learnt it the hard way how to eat and drink this lassi at the same time....when you try to drink it straight away those edibles block your sip and you get confused what to do.... those small wooden spatulas are there for a purpose.

Some foods are served attractively but feel a little weird on how to eat or drink them....watch the way how the locals do it or invent your own way .....

Go to Banaras or recreate it ...lassi is a natural healthy drink , often a meal in a drink for me. Try the bada kulhad (a large portion) here and see what i mean. This one was a chhota kulhad ( smaller one) which cost us 15 Re each....can you believe it?

Enjoy...

pizzeria of banaras....one of the best pizzas of the world..

And I am not the only one to say that. Yummiest of pizzas , pastas and unforgettable apple pie served in the most unpretentious way. Head towards pizzeria vatika (what a nice fusion name, meaning garden of pizza :)) at Asi ghat amidst greenery and chirpy birds. You are blessed if you choose the time of sunset.

If you are fascinated by the idea of an open air eatery overlooking a beautiful river this is for you. A peaceful place to sit and relax under lush green trees of Neem and Amda , dry leaves fallen on the floor and a few flies for company. Lots of house sparrows and parrots would make an evening musical for you.

Supernatural surroundings , great ambiance , touching the soul of a city known for it's wanderer spirit. Yes I was in Banaras for almost three hectic weeks. I am glad I could squeeze some time to visit some of my favorite places around town.

This is pizzeria of Banaras offering authentic pizzas and pasta dishes . Some freshly baked cookies , challahs, cinnamon rolls, apple pies and brownies are enticingly delicious and the secret is, fresh ingredients and a wood fired oven. Can it get any better?

Displayed in a very basic looking glass window these goodies might look very ordinary but they are fresh and delicious and quite cheap when compared to big city bakeries. This pizza oven was set up by a group of enthusiastic Italian students of music who used to sit on the ghats of ganges ( assi ghat to be precise) for their musical jams.The restaurant was run by a Gopal Krishna Shukla, serving mostly to the students as assi ghat is frequented by university students all the time. So these Italian students requested this restaurant owner to let them set up a wood fired oven for a weekend and bake some pizzas for a friend's birthday party . The pizza fever caught on since then.

The owner learnt it from them and started baking pizzas on his own too and soon the pizza substituted samosas and kachoris at Asi ghat .... much before the pizza hut and dominos reached this sleepy ancient city.






This wood fired oven looks as basic as a dhaba oven , flanked by platforms on both sides and a huge pizza spatula , the inner compartment of the oven looks like a small room.

Having chosen our table, I found a bunch of these fruits dangling on the branches as I looked up to find some birds.These fruits are used to make chutneys and pickles, called amda in Hindi and probably Carribean plums in English.

While we were entertaining our niece of 2 years by making boats and rockets with pink tissue papers the pizzas arrived. We had ordered a Margarita, a Mushroom and an Onion and mushroom pizza for 4 people . These 9" thin crust pizzas were enough for 4 adults with a kid nibbling small bits too .

Well balance flavors of the toppings and a right blend of herbs . I needed a sprinkling of red chilly flakes over it but for all the others it was great as it is.

No overwhelming amount of cheese dripping and making my hands messy and tongue scalded was my point of a big plus. You can always order for extra cheese or toppings if you like it that way but for a thin crusty base with smokiness of a wood fired oven, you wouldn't like to spoil it with overwhelming cheesy flavors.

But if no amount of cheese is too much for you, go ahead and order for an extra cheese pizza. I wanted to try the aubergine pizza there but as no one else was interested in aubergine, and no way i could have finished one whole pizza by myself, so went by other's choices.

This onion and mushroom was a favorite of majority while i loved the margarita most . Unspoiled taste of a great pizza . I am actually drooling talking about it now and i know i will end up making one tomorrow or day after. Pizza dinners are very common during winters at my place (if it's not a huge bowl of soup with a home baked bread) as the oven is comforting in my tiny kitchen and the bread aroma comforts more than anything else in the world.Winters are loved for more than one reasons :)

We wanted to have a slice of apple pie too, which is also the much talked about thing there but we didn't have any scope for solids so we just had huge mugs of espresso watching the flowing Ganges beyond those palm fronds...

It's a nice place to sit if you are not bothered by a few flies here and there.
It's anyways hard to find an open air space around the lanes of any Indian city without the omnipresent houseflies , wherever there is food being served or handled i mean.

If you think beyond that, this is the place for a quite evening with friends or alone.
Many foreigners sitting alone with a book or a kulhad of chai around this place is a testimony to what i say. There are several nice book shops around this place too...a place with a good promise.
Absolutely.