What more can be said about the great Indian love affair for chaat, that has not already been said or written about before. Chaat is not a particular Indian dish but a class of dish, renowned for its eclectic flavours. Chaats are of different kinds, they can sometimes comprise deep fried fritters or patties, like the aloo chaat, or sometimes, just a bunch of fruits and chana suffices, like in the case of Kullhad Chaat. However, the moment you think of chaat, you cannot not think about the Dahi Bhalla. For the uninitiated, Dahi Bada, is a unique Indian street food that comprises spongy balls made of lentil flour. These ‘Badas’ are served with a dash of beaten curd, sweet and spicy chutneys, sprinkling of chaat masala, coriander leaves and pomegranate seeds. Usually, the curd, chutneys and masalas are added with the help of spoons. And it is a fairly easy process to assemble the chaat together, but to make it entertaining for the customers, this Indore shop employs spins the plate of ‘Dahi Bada’ in the air quite a few times.
The Instagram reel shot by @ourcollecti0n that is going viral, features this famous Indore shop. Off late, we have witnessed many ‘flying’ foods. Remember the Flying dosa that went viral few years back. The Dosa was sent of flying before it landed straight on the plate of the hungry customers. Here, however, the bada is slathered over with curd before it is tossed high up in the air. It is surprising how nothing spills from the plate during all of this. When the plate lands in the vendors hands again, he sprinkled some masalas, and spins it again. This time, maybe to ensure that everything is mixed well. And guess what, nothing spills again.
The netizens are obviously stunned, but many of them are also asking if such a gimmick is necessary, “Ye cheeze uda ke banane se zyaada taste aa jata hai kya? (If you toss food in the air, does it become more tasty?”, wrote a user. “Koi khana uchaal raha hai koi khud naach ke uchaal ke khaana de raha hai (someone is making foods fly, while others are dancing and hopping around themselves to sell their food)”, read another comment.
What are your thoughts on the Flying Dahi Bada, do let us know. Here’s how you can make it the traditional way.