1. Samosa
Did you know Samosa actually originated in the Middle East? It was called Sambusa and it came to India probably around the 13th century with Middle Eastern travellers and traders. The filling of the samosa can have Vegetables, lamb, chicken even beef.
2. Dosa
Dosa originated in South India and has been around for over 2000 years. It has very little fat and is low in calorie. One serving of just plain dosa without the stuffing is only about a 100 calories! The longest Dosa ever made was 54 Feet and 8 inches and weighed 13 kgs. It was prepared by 29 chefs in Hyderabad and it earned its place in the Guinness Book of World Records.
3. Pav Bhaji
Pav Bhaji, a very popular snack in Mumbai, originated in Maharashtra. It is basically vegetable stir fry served with bread and generous portions of butter. While Bhaji is the Marathi word for Stir Fry - Pav/ Pau is the Portuguese word for small bread rolls which was introduced by the Portuguese during their brief presence in the sub-continent. Pav-Bhaji came into existence around the 1800s - it was meant to be a quick snack for the factory workers. Some of the variations use bananas instead of potatoes to meet the dietary needs of the Jains. Hmm.. interesting!
4. Momo
Momo a snack native of Nepal and Tibet has been made very popular in various parts of India due to the Tibetan and Nepalese diaspora. The word "momo" means steamed bread in Chinese. It is served with red hot sauce - which is very spicy.
5. Kati Roll
Kati Roll or simply roll originated in city of Joy- Kolkata, West Bengal in a restaurant called Nizam - around 1930s. It is a skewer roasted kabab wrapped in paratha - a form of flat bread.
6. Chaat
No discussion of Indian snack can be complete without talking about Chaat. It originated in state of Uttar Pradesh and it has become very popular throughout India and its neighbouring countries. The word Chaat comes from the Hindi word chaatna - which roughly translates into "tasting" in English. There are various different varieties of chaat some of which include Bhelpuri, Dahi Vada, Aloo Chat etc.
The beauty of all these snacks is there is no set recipes for any of these and it varies in different regions of India. No Chaat or samosa or kati roll will taste exactly the same in the various different corners of the subcontinent.
2. Dosa
3. Pav Bhaji
4. Momo
Momo a snack native of Nepal and Tibet has been made very popular in various parts of India due to the Tibetan and Nepalese diaspora. The word "momo" means steamed bread in Chinese. It is served with red hot sauce - which is very spicy.
5. Kati Roll
6. Chaat
The beauty of all these snacks is there is no set recipes for any of these and it varies in different regions of India. No Chaat or samosa or kati roll will taste exactly the same in the various different corners of the subcontinent.
