REDISCOVERING
INDIA THROUGH ITS INGREDIENTS...
The streets of old Lucknow have many a story to tell.....Everytime I
visit these narrow streets and get lost in them I discover something new. Balai
is one such discovery made some time ago in the “gullies” of Chowk. It has the
nuttiness of our clotted cream (malai ) along with a rich creaminess that comes
from the reduction of milk.
Milk is slowly heated (never boiled) in thick-
bottomed, flat 
and shallow kadhais on cowdung “uplas” and a layer of balai forms, the milk is allowed to reduce to a very thick consistency and the balai is
removed and stacked on top of each other. These gateaux-like stacks are sold in
the streets especially Victoria street in the mornings. In this street they
have a specialty called Kashmiri chai being sold in the winters; its not the
kehwa but a light pink colored very sweet milky tea, the nawabs called it Kashmiri
because they felt the color and the sweetness was just like the people of
Kashmir, royal comprehension does affect cuisine you see !!
Here’s the interesting part though, this tea is ”eaten“ with a spoon and not sipped. Kagazi samosa, a light flaky puff is crumbled into a cup and this pink tea is poured into it and then its topped with a huge dollop of Balai.This rich and royal winter concoction warms you up instantly.
and shallow kadhais on cowdung “uplas” and a layer of balai forms, the milk is allowed to reduce to a very thick consistency and the balai is
removed and stacked on top of each other. These gateaux-like stacks are sold in
the streets especially Victoria street in the mornings. In this street they
have a specialty called Kashmiri chai being sold in the winters; its not the
kehwa but a light pink colored very sweet milky tea, the nawabs called it Kashmiri
because they felt the color and the sweetness was just like the people of
Kashmir, royal comprehension does affect cuisine you see !! Here’s the interesting part though, this tea is ”eaten“ with a spoon and not sipped. Kagazi samosa, a light flaky puff is crumbled into a cup and this pink tea is poured into it and then its topped with a huge dollop of Balai.This rich and royal winter concoction warms you up instantly.
On my last visit I went to
Banwali gali in Chowk, to the 200 year old Ram Asrey Mishtaan Bhandar and
discovered this wonder all over again, this time in the form of a Gilori or a
paan. “Nanhe”, their balai specialist guided me through the complete process of
making the Balai and then filled it up with a inique mixture of nuts and
“Kesari Misri” - a saffron flavored rock sugar. We rolled up the Giloris when the
balai was still warm and I stole a moment to make one for myself!! The taste,
the mouth-feel ,the contrast between the creaminess of Balai and the crunch of
the rock sugar... created a perfect moment and gave me a food memory forever...
Here's an inspired recipe, dedicated to Nanhe, the Balai maker....
Bruleed Balai éclairs
Ingredients:
Choux buns or éclair shells 3
Rock sugar 1
tbsp
Gulkand ½
tsp
Chopped nuts 1tbsp
Method :
1. Roll the gulkand and the nuts in the balai.
2. Cut and retain the tops of the éclairs
3. Fill the éclairs with balai mix and top with rock sugar and brulee
with a torch.
4. Put the tops of the éclair back and serve immediately.
Hey Ranveer! My name is Reshmy and I write at www.bombaychowparty.com.
ReplyDeleteI have been so wanting to get my hands on some good balai ever since I read of it as an ingredient in Awadhi recipes. I fell in love with Kaymak in Turkey and am now taken by my own deduction that balai is probably some sort of an outcome of the Turkish influence on Indian cooking. Have you been able to trace its history in any way? Would love for you to share the recipe and procedure for making Balai. Curious to know if it includes any process of culturing like the Turkish kaymak does. You can't really taste it in Kaymak but it does add some complexity to the heavenly clotted cream to take it beyond just layered malai. If you've travelled to Istanbul, I'm sure you've had it with honey slathered over fresh bread for breakfast though you may not have gone overboard with stuffing yourelf like your's truly did.
Also, would love to know more about the Kagazi Samosa. What an intriguing name and even more unusual story around how you eat it. What is the filling like?