When we say that Indian food is popular, we do not just mean it is popular in the country. There are a lot of people outside of our country who love Indian food, spices and the flavors that come with the cuisine. In many places, Indian influenced food has become one of the most popular dishes. For example, chicken tikka masala is Britain’s national food! The fact about Indian food that pulls in so many people is that we use spices and correct proportions and our dishes are vastly different from the other regular stuff. But another part of it is the fact that sometimes Indian dishes are so close in flavour to the local dishes that they become just as popular as the latter. This is exactly what happened with doubles in Trinidad and Tobago.
Doubles is a very common street food that originated in Trinidad and Tobago but it is of Indian origin. It is closer in terms of flavour and texture to Indian food than it is to Trinidadian food. Made with baras and chana curry, doubles is extremely delicious and very popular. The dish is made with two baras, which are flat fried doughs and they are then filled with chickpea or chana curry. It is usually served with various types of chutneys made from Ingredients like tamarind, cucumber, coconut, green mango and spicy pepper. It is more of a comfort food to the people there because it reminds them of their identity and takes them closer to their roots.
The origin of doubles is also very interesting and worth a read because it's the story of ultimate struggle and then success. In 1936, in South Trinidad, Emamool Deen and wife Rasulan Ali what phase with extreme poverty. They sold the only family goat that they had and they did not even know where the next meal would come from. With the very minimal money that they had, Rasulan bought kabuli chana and made curry. The curry was made in typical Indian style, with spices like turmeric and jeera. They started serving the Curry with a fried flat bread made with wheat called bara. Emamool would sell the Doubles on his bicycle and soon this unique dish gained popularity with the common public. Now, it has become the national snack of Trinidad and Tobago!
This is the story behind Doubles and how Indian roots and style of cooking gave Trinidad and Tobago one of its most loved dishes and became legendary in the culinary scene.