A delicious breakfast in the middle of nowhere
On the day that million of Hindus in India celebrated Diwali, the annual festival of lights, six of us piled into the Overland Expeditions India van and headed south through the state of Maharashtra to Tarkarli Beach.
Departure was around 6:15am. We had 300-plus kilometres to cover and plenty of dismally poor roads ahead. We’d get breakfast along the way.
Most of our travels have been away from India’s main highways, so our en route breakfasts and lunches have often been at roadside stalls, hole-in-the-wall eateries and government-managed rest stops.
But this morning, we were on very quiet back roads with not a paratha or chai in sight. This wasn’t because it was a holiday—just because there was a landscape of crops everywhere.
About 8:30am and just as we were about to dig into the communal bag of not-at-all-healthy snacks, we came upon a small food stall next to a field of sugar cane. We were 11 kilometres past one village and 35 from the next.
We ditched the snack bag as Anand pulled over to the side of the road.
There were other customers—some had arrived on bicycles and others on motorbikes—and they jumped up to offer us seats at the plastic table.
We ordered a round of potato cakes (the only dish she was making at the time) and a round of chai.
Each cake (vada) was served in a bun (pao) with a good sprinkling of a chilli powder mixture. It may not be to everyone’s taste, but this is my kind of savoury breakfast. Oh, and I skipped the bun. I get enough bread anyway.
The potato cakes were so good that we ordered a second round, which our hostess shaped and fried in just a few minutes.
Small cups of milky chai came next, and I have to say that it was the nicest chai I’ve had on this trip. Just the right amount of spice and sugar. That’s a huge recommendation, given that I don’t normally add milk or sugar to coffee or tea.
The food stall is called Mauli Snack Corner, but I never got the name of our hostess/chef. Mauli is a common business name in India but not a woman’s name. I did learn that she opened the stall about two months ago, selling packaged and homemade snacks. It’s her enterprise, but her husband and son help. She said that business has been pretty good. It’s not surprising with such good food, and in a remote location that has good traffic.
She was quite modest about it all, but quick to say that she was especially proud that her son was doing well in his middle form English school.
All that said, I wonder how quickly she is making a living. Each vada pao (potato cake with bun) cost 10 rupees (about 20 Australian cents) and each cup of chai cost half that. So breakfast for six was a grand total of A$2.70.
Beautiful
LikeLiked by 3 people
Thanks so much.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Before my husband and I went to India, about eight years ago, I wasn’t very fond of Indian food. I came back to the U.S. addicted to their food. I can’t get enough of it!
LikeLiked by 4 people
Come back to India again..
LikeLiked by 2 people
I completely understand the addiction. I am too. I have always wondered why Indian food doesn’t have a higher profile in the USA. It’s every bit as good as Mexican.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It’s wonderful.. Have you been to New DelhI?
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes, we’ve been to New Delhi several times. Have a dear friend there and we always like to catch up with him.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Oh that’s cool.. I am from the same city.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Next time we come to India, maybe we can meet! 🙂
LikeLike
What a wonderful way to start the day. Savory breakfasts are the best. Luck girl.
LikeLiked by 4 people
Sure am. We had another savoury breakfast today, but in the big city of Goa. Tasty, but not nearly as interesting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Gosh that was a very cheap breakfast for six. You are right, time she put her prices up. Especially if she has any other children who need school fees paid for. Maybe a daughter or do they not get go go to school in India?
dorothysstories.wordpress.com
>
LikeLiked by 3 people
I’m guessing that many of her customers are low income too, which accounts for the low prices. That said, the ingredients she uses are very economical.
As for girls in school, we see plenty of girls of all ages walking to school as we drive along. I have a few good pics that I’ll post one of these days.
LikeLiked by 4 people
Potato cakes are my favourite at any time too. Can you believe that some people have corn-flakes or worse, those choco pops for breakfasts? So many poor people in India, yet always so smiling.
LikeLiked by 4 people
Potato cakes are fabulous. In fact, almost any savoury breakfast beats any other option. And, yes, smiles abound in India.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I would love to taste that potato cake!
LikeLiked by 4 people
I have a similar recipe, using sweet potatoes, coming up on the cooking on page 32 blog. Stay tuned.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Bargain!
LikeLiked by 4 people
I know.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a delightful find!
LikeLiked by 3 people
Love these moments.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Wonderful trip!
In another life, I worked for a government agency helping poor areas. We found one of the most powerful development tools was providing tiny loans and other assistance to help women found small businesses. It had a great multiplier effect in the village as well. That the prices were so low simply reflects that they live in a totally different world from industrially developed nations [and even parts of their own nation].
LikeLiked by 5 people
You make an excellent point. She has priced her food to make a living without gouging her diners.
LikeLiked by 1 person
They look delicious. I love Indian breakfasts, the spicier the better!
LikeLiked by 3 people
You said it—the spicier the better. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
When travelling abroad, I have often avoided roadside stalls, concerned about hygiene and fresh products. Nice to hear that you have not encountered any such issues, Peggy. That will encourage me to be more adventurous in future!
(As to the prices, I would have been tempted to give a big tip!)
Best wishes, Pete.
LikeLiked by 3 people
Oh Pete, street food can be your safest bet if it’s a dish that is cooked in front of you. Keep in ind that a street-food vendor cleans up and packs up every night, and starts over the next morning.
I’m wary of (actually avoid) the hotels and restaurants that have buffets. Who knows how many times those dishes have been wheeled in and out of the cold room, and then left in a warmish dining hall all day.
Oh, and our trip is all inclusive for accommodation, food, admissions and the like. Anand and Deepti usually provide a tip, so I’m sure they added a bit extra.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Those potato cakes look really inviting. Not sure about the chai, though 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
Lots of chai versions are ho-hum, but this one was excellent.
LikeLiked by 2 people
It was nice of the other diners to offer you a seat like that. I’ll bet eating in non-touristy places, you not only get cheaper food but often tastier food too.
LikeLiked by 2 people
It was very nice to be offered the table, but sometimes it seems like white privilege in action. We’re quite happy to wait our turn and feel a bit embarrassed when we get favoured. And yes, we seek out non-touristy places for our meals because they almost always have tastier and cheaper food.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I guess it depends why the people were standing. I’ve never been anywhere near India, of course, so I don’t know much about what usually happens there. I have been to other places, though (Porto in Portugal springs to mind), where I seemed to get very friendly service in restaurants and things just because I was so clearly not a local. Perhaps that was all that was going on.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’ve travelled and lived in many places where white privilege occurs. You’re right, sometimes it’s a heartfult gesture towards non locals, but often it’s a harking back to British or other white rule. And sometimes it’s age. Today a teenager insisted that I go before her in the lunch line at a spice garden. She was clearly in front of me, but refused my urgings that she was first. I accepted and her mother beamed with pride. Me too.
LikeLike
Indian food is one of our favorites (my wife and I got addicted to them during a trip to the Mid East in the ’90s), esp. their various types of bread. Good you got to enjoy food at the roadside stalls.
LikeLiked by 3 people
To be honest, we are enjoying good food almost everywhere we go, but I especially love street food and supporting small businesses.
LikeLike
What a great trip you’re having, I love following along, I learn so much!
LikeLiked by 3 people
Thanks for following along. I learn a lot too and really enjoy sharing it! 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
So much fun to read about your trip. I am from maharashra and vada pau is so so yummy!!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thanks for stopping by. And yes, vada pau is very, very yummy.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wow, what a deal. Don’t you love it when that happens?
LikeLiked by 2 people
I cherish all these moments.
LikeLike
I´d definitely have one (or more) vada(s)…. sounds like a great trip!…. sending best wishes.
LikeLiked by 2 people
It’s been a fantastic trip and still more than three weeks to go. I think I’ll have another vada (or more)! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
The unexpected treats are often the best. And I’ve never met a potato cake that I didn’t like.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Potato cakes are like that—irresistible. 🙂
LikeLike
The best meals in India are in open-air dhabas. Rukmini and I still talk about a meal of fresh-water prawns we had near Chilka Lake in Orissa and that was over thirty years ago. sounds like you’re having a great trip.
Tony
http://breadtagsagas.com/
LikeLiked by 2 people
Memorable meals are like that and, yes, open-air dhabas are the way to go! We also have some great memories from Chilka Lake, but none involving fresh-water prawns.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I think that a breakfast is always delicious in the middle of nowhere. Because you’re free. Free to breath… to think… to dream. You’re in the middle of nowhere, not in a stressful place 🙂
xoxo ❤
LikeLiked by 2 people
We’re going for a long drive tomorrow and maybe we’ll find another snack corner in the middle of nowhere. Here’s hoping. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hahaha! This is a beautiful life 🙂
xo ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Sounds like a great breakfast at an even greater price, Peggy! –Curt
LikeLiked by 2 people
Right on both counts. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
very wonderful
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks voulaah.
LikeLiked by 1 person
oh very welcome
kisses
LikeLiked by 1 person
Snack corner! I need to explore our area better. We live in Tennessee but mainly eat at home. When we grab something to eat, it usually is at places that are familiar. I know we have little places tucked in here and there, ones that speak another language and I am thankful for pictures to order from! Enjoy your travels and finding these little tasty places to eat along the way 🙂 Jen
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for stopping by and for commenting. Hope you find some hidden gems (snack corners) where you are.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I find Indian food quite tasty. It is quite spicy but tasty. I visited India when I was younger and it was great. The best places to get food is from the Dabar on the roads as you have gone to. Lovely post I enjoyed reading
LikeLiked by 1 person
We love Indian food and agree that the roadside places can be the best. Much better than the big hotels.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yeah exactly. Hotels take quite long as well, but roadside is just fry or fast made
LikeLiked by 1 person
So true. The roadside places make fast AND delicious food.
LikeLike
Nice post !….hope you enjoyed the wada pav…and btw…This word-mauli is used to describe the ‘caring mother’. Therefore this word is not just translation of ‘mother’ in Marathi. For regular use, we say ‘aai’ to describe or call mother.
😀
LikeLiked by 1 person
We did enjoy the wada pav. Thanks also for the information about ‘mauli’ and ‘aai’. I love language and really enjoy knowing more about the words.
LikeLiked by 1 person
wonderful…these are amazing people who can do anything…usually, and sadly, with very little. continue…
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s why we made a point of patronising these small businesses.
LikeLike