PUNE: Hurda is roasted grains eaten with a chutney - sesame,
groundnut, coconut or garlic; served on the side with jaggery. The grains in
Maharashtra are jowar (sorghum). Now, in winter, the residents of Pune are also
snacking on Hurda. In fact, such is the urban demand for the rural bite that
restaurants across the city have it on the menu.
Hotels like Shreyas on Apte road and Naivedyam at Mitra Mandal
chowk now not only have a Hurda station in the kitchen, they are even holding
‘Hurda parties’, because of the demand. According to Tanaji Shelke, a farmer
from Latur, this simple dish will be found in every farmer’s home. It is very
traditional and creates warmth during the coldest months on the farm.
“These tender jowar ears (the best ones are the Gulbhendi and
a new type of Surti) are available only for three months of the year and we
often eat these roasted over coal or a wood fire, sometimes with just salt and
a wedge of lemon for the zest. Of course, then there is the chutney, which is
spicy. So we eat jaggery to cut down the spiciness. All of these ingredients
are in a farmer’s house, so it’s easy to create.”
Shelke dates the infiltration of Hurda onto the urban palette
to six years ago, when he was approached by the Empress Garden authorities to
set up a stall inside the garden. Ever since, slowly but surely, demand has
been growing. Gaurav Saxena, an IT professional living in Fatimanagar says, “I
wanted my family to enjoy the village feel and so we came to Empress Garden for
the Hurda.” Similarly, Sunanda Vakil from Kothrud travelled across the city to
Empress Garden simply because her friends told her to try out the Hurda there.
And she did. And she loved it.
Gauri Padhaye flies home to Canada in a day but not before she
relives the taste of her childhood - eating Hurda. “I have eaten it when I was
a child and wanted to try it again coincidently I was here this season,” said
Gauri.
Hotel Shreyas began its Hurda parties last year. “We were
approached by many food lovers who showed an interest in trying this snack. We
thought, why not give them a taste of the farm right here in Pune, hence, we
set up an entire village complete with shed, sugarcane juice vendor and served
roasted Hurda over the bonfire, on the terrace of the hotel,” says owner
Radhika Chitale Ingalhalikar.
This year too, they are doing the village-Hurda fest at two
different locations because of the overwhelming response. An evening spent here
costs ₹380, plus
taxes per head.
Naivedyam Hotel in the city too serves the same snack for Rs100.
Rajesh Ramanna Shetty, owner of the hotel, has several farmer friends and so he
started serving the dish. Hurda is now also being sold, raw, in stores. Jowari
Hurda can be bought at Empress Garden, Desai Bandhu Ambewale, P V Vaidya on FC
road and at Mandai.
Retail cost of Hurda ranges from Rs. 80 to Rs 100 for
200 grammes, depending upon the quality of the product. Ironically, this is not the first time “rural food” has made
it to the urban eat-out scene. A few years ago, several top restaurants and at
least one starred hotel, re-packaged the humble vada-pav (potato pattice in a
bun) as the “Indian burger” and had it on their menus.
Anjali Jaiswal, a dietitian, says tender sorghum (jowar), from
which Hurda is made, is enjoyed in winter, because it is high in starch and
fibre. “Hurda is also a good source of phosphorus and thiamine, rich in
antioxidants and is also a source of iron,” Jaiswal adds.
“As it contain starch, it takes
longer to digest and produces heat in the body which helps keep the body warm,”
says Jaiswal, adding, “In one serving of 30 grammes, which is what would fill a
small bowl or katori, you get carbs, iron and many antioxidants.”
The Mercedes-Benz A-Class is a compact car produced by the German automobile manufacturer Mercedes-Benz. The first generation (W168) was introduced in 1997, the second generation model (W169) appeared in late 2004. But this auto repair manuals free for Mercedes is available for all kinds of owners in every country.
ReplyDeletebuy youtube views An obvious solution to save repeated cost on the same game disc is to copy your original game disc, play the backup copy of your game and keep the original game disc at safe place. This way you will always have the original disc if something happens to the backup copy.
ReplyDelete