Sweet And Spicy

I love sweet and spicy food. When I think of ‘sweet and spicy’, many memories come flooding. I especially love ‘Dahibara Aludum’ and ‘Gupchup’ (i.e. Panipuri or Golgappa).

I was very small when I was introduced to Dahibara Aludum, a famous dish of Odisha. 

Dahibara Aludum

My maternal grandfather and subsequently my father treated us to the Dahibara Aludum prepared by Raghu, a much-in- demand Dahibara Aludum maker & seller. Raghu sold his yummy fare in front of Barabati Stadium of Cuttack - the venue of many important cricket-matches.

Famous for Dabhibara Aludum- Raghu, Cuttack, Odisha

I still remember the very first time I had taken a bite of this delightful dish! Apart from majorly satisfying my taste-buds, Dahibara Aludum also encouraged the serious thinker in me. As my spoon pierced into the fair and tender Dahibara’s flesh, I wondered how can something be so soft and yet retain its shape without breaking. Later, I wondered, how can any fried item maintain uniform fairness and not have burn injuries! 

Dahibara, Cuttack, Odisha

By itself, the Dahibara dipped in the curd-water tastes sweet. Though most vendors do not add sugar in the Dahibara or the curd-water, yet it tastes sweet perhaps because of the natural sugar-content in the milk that is used for curd-preparation. The Dahibara is sweet only if one hasn’t added the hot and spicy chilly powder on top of it; such addition turns it spicy.

Also, there is the spicy Aludum, easy to tear, that is served along with Dahibara. One bite of Aludum and you can sense the rich spices lingering in your mouth. Together they are a super cool sweet and spicy combination that anyone can eat without any tantrum!

On one occasion, being an over-zealous spice-lover, I had added extra chilly powder on my Dahibara serving. Ah! Fiery hot and spicy! I had to have water then! Having been in the same situation earlier, my understanding family stepped in to help me! I was offered fresh Dahibara and curd-water. I gobbled one Dahibara up and drank a whole bowl full of curd-water, but still the effect of the spice magic persisted in my mouth! That’s when I had to resort to sweet Peda- a sweet that is sold near Dahibara Aludum to control such emergency!

Peda

When I was small, when Raghu brought his treats, they got over within less time as many Dahibara Aludum lovers like us were eagerly waiting! Not much has changed after all these years. Though Raghu has changed his address and his grandsons handle the business now at Bidanasi, his Dahibara Aludum tastes the same and there are still eager foodies waiting to lap it all up within no time! The twin-cities of Cuttack and Bhubaneswar boast of yummy Dahibara Aludum that’s available on major roads and areas. Served by vendors on cycles or hand-carts, you cannot miss this filling and appetizing snack that doubles up as a meal!

Also, Gupchup (i.e. Paanipuri or Golgappa) is a must-try when you visit Odisha. Many varieties of Gupchup are available. In an incident similar to my above Dahibara experience, I had zealously asked the vendor to add extra green chillies and spicy powder in the potato mixture served as filling inside the Gupchup balls or puri. The dish became very spicy. Then, the vendor dipped the Gupchup into sweet and refreshing jaggery-water- syrup infused with mint and tamarind. Aha!

My sweet and spicy memories got triggered when I came across the culinary stars, Vikas & Vir, talking about their #Foodventures. Vir’s video featuring Alubukhara Dahi Tikki and Vikas’s video with Lobster Thermidor are #Foodventures that sweet and spicy food-lovers like me would love to try.

I love such sweet and spicy concoctions, don’t you?

Which is your favourite sweet and spicy food? Please share your views in the comments section below.

Operation Food

Before you judge the title of this post & think of nations-

And about their carefully planned & executed food operations,

Let me confide that the tale that I am about to narrate here-

Relates to children, whose eating-tantrums cause fear!

One evening, when the kids of different ages, shapes & sizes,

Decided that they would not eat dinner, there were surprises!

Despite the tasty fare & their moms at their coaxing best,

The not-willing-to-eat-behaviour of the kids was a tough test!

Deja Vu

In  my first visit to the abandoned warehouse, I felt melancholy.

That there was not a soul in sight was not the only reason that gave me a fright...

I was also shocked to find an opaque box levitating in the air at my eye-level.

My curiosity about the contents of the box made me reach out for it in my nimble manner.

I opened the box to find feathers of many birds.

Was the box levitating because it was light owing to the feathers?

I was trying to figure this out when I found one feather emerged out of the box by itself and headed towards my head as if it was a rocket and an invisible force had commanded it to strike me.

As the feather hit me, I could feel how heavy it was & I was knocked out...

When I opened my eyes, I was on the couch of my home,

"Adya, are you okay?" my manager asked.

10 Responsibilities of Bloggers

Responsibility means many things to many people.
What is responsibility for me, may not be for you.

There is no doubt that we all have responsibilities.
We all have social responsibilities too.
As Bloggers, this is more pronounced as we have a say and a reach.

Blogging and responsibility are connected.
When we are Blogging, we are in a position for making a choice to blog.
In a way, Blogging is at the cost of something else...
In my case, I have sacrificed, ignored or postponed other responsibilities just so that I can blog!

Blogging is a responsible activity.
Bloggers do have responsibilities.

As per my views, the following are some of the responsibilities of Bloggers:

1. Correct Info- Bloggers need to share correct facts, data etc. in their Blog. They need to cross-check and verify the information before posting.
In case they have shared any misleading or incorrect statements, info or comments, on being informed, they should update their blog.

2. Due Credit to Sources- Bloggers must accord proper credit to the sources. Pics, quotes, research data etc must be ably supported with links to the original idea-proponents.

Need To CTRL Save And Nurture Nature

"There are no short-cuts or elevators to success; one has to take the stairs."

 There are no short-cuts to save nature and our environment; we have to take care.

The cost of an industrialized & globalized world is huge; paying a heavy price.

Leaving a less perfect world for our children is so unfair and not at all nice...


How much more time or common-sense is required for understanding in men?

"We do not inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children."

The clock is ticking and the hour is late as we helplessly watch our Earth sink,

As our environment steadily heads to disaster's brink, it's time to act & think!


Think of the future when our kids cannot experience what we are privileged to & can.

Flora and fauna may be extinct, and from pics/videos, kids may get the gyaan.

Time to press the alarm button; better still, learn and advocate CTRL + SAVE.

A healthy Earth with all its treasures intact is what we strive for as we crave...


We just have one planet- Mother Earth who's dear as she supports & nurtures.

Instead of being her staunch supporters, why have humans gifted her curse?

"The Earth has enough for everyone's needs, but not enough for anyone's greed."

Let's save our world! Sincere efforts and CTRL + SAVE is the need.

Present Time

She was a migrant, who wished to be self-sufficient.

The new country offered her study as well as work opportunities.

In her spare time, she worked as a waitress to support her education.

Though she encountered impolite customers, she never lost her cool.

One day, a smart gentleman arrived with a gift for her.

He had become livid with rage the other day for a trivial matter and had not appeared smart.

Anger has such effect.

Despite this, she had served him with her usual calmness.