5 Indian dishes that were an accident

Have you ever gone inside a kitchen without a recipe and decided to wing it hoping that it would turn out good in the end.......but it turned out to be a disaster, and your entire family had to stand outside the house while the fire department was coming..........My point is.........it rarely turns out good.

Master Oogway from Kung Fu Panda says, "There are no accidents". I say only if it becomes one of the most iconic foods of all time. You might have guessed from the title that I am talking about foods or recipes which are considered classic yet people don't know they are accidental. Today, we will look at some of the funny stories behind them and hopefully, you will be pleasantly surprised.

Starting with:

---

1. Chenna Poda

Chenna Poda means baked cheese in Odia. It is made from well-kneaded fresh cheese (Chenna), sugar, and semolina. It is then baked for several hours till it burns on the top giving its characteristic taste. It is the Indian equivalent of a Basque cheesecake, which is a cheesecake that has a burnt top.

According to OdishaBytes, "Sudarshan Sahu, who owned a sweet shop at Dasapalla in Nayagarh, left sugar-infused chhena or cottage cheese with cardamon and cashew seasonings in a charcoal oven overnight and discovered an exquisitely delicious delicacy. He then later perfected the recipe, which made it one of the popular desserts from Odisha as well as in India. Even our Prime Minister at that time, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, appreciated the dish's taste.

2. Sambar

Sambar is a lentil-based stew made with pigeon peas (toor dal), vegetables (such as carrots, onion, radishes, drumsticks, brinjals, etc.), spices, and tamarind. It is popular all over South India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, etc. It can be eaten with rice, dosa, idly, uttapam, and possibly anything—one of my personal favorites.

The are many stories associated with the origin of sambar, but according to Times of India, "The story goes that when Samba or Sambhaji, the eldest son and successor of Chhatrapati Shivaji, visited Thanjavur, he was served a novel dish, possibly invented by a royal chef or even Shahaji himself. As a tribute to the esteemed guest, the dish came to be known as Sambar. Another story says that Shahji, a famous cook, was preparing Aamti (Maharashtrian dal) for Sambhaji, but he couldn't find kokum, so he used tamarind as a souring agent. Sambhaji loved this new dish and thus the world-famous Smabar was invented.

3. Yogurt

Yogurt, as you might know, is a dairy product that is produced by fermenting milk. The bacteria that are responsible for making cultured yogurt is called "Lactobacillus". Although yogurt is a simple ingredient, it is used in various dishes, from Mishti Doi to Biryani to Turkish eggs. It is found in a lot of Mughalai and Indian dishes.

Historians believe that it was made in Turkey as early as the 6th century BC when goat's milk was stored in bags made from animals' stomachs. Great British Chefs states that when men carrying goat's milk on their travels opened their sacks, they found that the milk had thickened and soured thanks to the bacteria culture, creating a very probiotic-enriched dairy product.

4. Maddur Vada

Maddur Vada is a savory type of fritter snack made from rice flour, semolina, maida, onions, curry leaves, and many more. The dough is then fried in oil till crispy and these fritters are usually served with coconut chutney.

Karanataka.com states that Maddur Vada was invented back in the year 1917 by Ramachandra Budhya who was running the Vegetarian Refreshment Room at the Maddur railway station. The website states that "It was April that year when Ramachandra Budhya was running a tad bit late in frying the usual pakodas for the incoming train passengers. In a jiffy, he threw ingredients together to prepare at the very least, something edible for the passengers to munch on when they arrived. Little did he know that he had created a masterpiece. 100 years later, that food item has become one of the most iconic delicacies of Karnataka – the Maddur Vada." It is an extremely popular snack that is eaten during tea time and is sold on trains between Bengaluru and Mysore.

5. Bombay Halwa

The word "halwa" is derived from the Arabic word 'hulw' which means sweet. It is made out of cornflour, water, ghee, and sugar. It is flavored with cardamom, nuts, and ghee and is colored either orange, green, or red. A reference to halwa appeared in the 7th century, referring to a mixture of mashed dates with milk. By the 9th century, the term was applied to numerous kinds of sweets, including the now-familiar sweetened cooked semolina or flour paste.

It was invented 150 years ago in Karachi in the year 1896 by Giridhar Mavji. Agro & Food Processing states that Giridhar Mavji was experimenting with different sweets at that time and he accidentally stumbled upon this concoction. The Karachi Halwa was cut into square lumps and was quite popular. After India's partition, the owners relocated to Mumbai, and there it was known as the "Bombay Halwa".

---

These are some of the famous recipes which are considered to be accidentally made, and thankfully so. Some of these dishes are so common that we see them every day yet we don't think about them at all. I was surprised to know that some of them were accidental, and that is the problem with Indian cuisine. We don't have a lot of documented proof about our culinary history. We need to talk more about our culinary possessions, and we need to share those stories with the world. It is our duty and responsibility to tell those stories............because if we don't, who will?

See you next week!