Visakhapatnam, or Vizag, has been a tourist's favourite go-to place and Vizagites' most-beloved city that they wouldn't trade for anything. Also known as the City of Destiny, Visakhapatnam has been a place where people from different cultural milieus coexist harmoniously. And this multicultural essence imbues the local grubs. Recently, Visakhapatnam is announced as the capital of Andhra Pradesh by the honourable Chief Minister, Jagan Mohan Reddy. After this, Visakhapatnam is in the news and thronged by visitors, investors, and business houses in huge numbers. While the star hotels and fancy eateries give a taste of the decadent flavours of this place, the true soul of it can be experienced by sampling the street food of Visakhapatnam.
One has several spots across Visakhapatnam city which have been serving authentic street foods. Be it the muri or puffed rice blended with spices and herbs, mirchi bajji or chilli fritters, to the crispy punugulus, a trip to Visakhapatnam remains incomplete without eating them. Here are 8 such must-try suggestions.
Punugulu
Punugulu, or the tiny round deep-fried dumplings, are irresistible. This popular snack is prepared with pounded rice, urad dal, or split black gram batter. Crispy outside and soft inside, punugulus are served with fiery ginger and coconut chutneys. You can sample them near RTC Complex, MVP Double Roads, Beach Road and Daba gardens.
Tomato Bajji
Though there isn't any place explicitly selling only tomato baji or tomato fritters, these are often found in those bandis or push carts selling different types of fritters. Likewise, a few muri sellers at RK Beach Road also sell them. Ideally, they are cut into slices and stuffed with spicy peanuts, chopped onions and coriander mix.
Muri Mixture
Muri mixture is an iconic street food of Visakhapatnam, almost sharing the same glory like Kolkkata's jhalmuri. It also uses puffed rice, peanuts, tomatoes, chillies, spices, and chopped onions. But the preparation method varies a bit. A good amount of lemon juice water adds to its tanginess and makes it a tad mushy. A few sellers also add finely chopped raw mango and Galangal. It is often the daily ritual of locals to go to RK Beach, buy muri mixture, and enjoy the sea breeze. One can find this street food at the entire stretch of Beach Road, Rushikonda Beach, VUDA Park, and Tenneti Park.
Cheekulu
As you explore the food streets of MVP, particularly near AS Raja ground, whiffs of grilled meat are bound to hit your sensory organs. This is where you will find carts selling chicken skewers, locally referred to as cheekulu. One can find them in the LIC circle near Central Park and near The Park circle. The recipe for this street food calls for marinated supple chicken pieces pierced into bamboo skewers. They are placed on a plate of coal and cooked by swiftly and continuously fanning with a hand fan. This process adds a barbecue flavour.
Masala peas
Along the city's seaside lanes, you may also find masala batani, another delectable street dish. The snack consists of chopped onions, cooked peas, a hint of lemon juice, and tomatoes. Masala batani is best enjoyed at the iconic RK Beach. Most sellers are aged folks who have been doing it for a long time.
A food van selling street food at YMCA, RK Beach Road, Image By: Ranita Ray
Chicken 555
This is perhaps one of the unique street foods of Vizag or Visakhapatnam city with a distinct flavour. There is a particular vendor near Jasti Square Apartment in RK Beach Road that has the best recipe.
Aratikaya Bajji
Who can imagine a street food made of raw banana or aratikaya would be the must-try suggestion? This item can be best defined as slices of raw banana coated in gram flour batter, seasoned with salt and spices, and deep fried. You will get them almost with every jhal muri seller. As you order them, these are cut into slices and stuffed with fried groundnuts and chopped onion mixtures.
Mirchi Bajji
The state of Andhra Pradesh is known for its spicy foods. Thus, it is impossible for not to have a street food dedicated to its fiery flavours. But surprisingly the chillies used in this bajji or fritter are bigger, longer and mild spice levels.
Spicy Raw Mango Slices
It might be a surprise to many that one gets to sample slices of sweet and tart raw mangoes all-around-the year. You can find them in the carts of vendors selling jhal muri or muri mixture. In this preparation, the mangoes are vertically sliced and seasoned with a blend of chilli powder and salt. The spice levels can be tweaked too.
Now you have top street food of Visakhapatnam to sample! So, when are you visiting the city?