Papads, pickles and Partition: A Sindhi reminiscence
The Hindu
Way back, in the Sindh province, the papad was not just an accompaniment to meals but was offered as a snack to guests along with a glass of water
All three mealtimes at my home — yes, breakfast too — are usually marked with a query of how many papads will be needed at the table. The younger generation requests a particular, rather popular, peppery brand and instantly the voice of a rabbit singing its name echoes in my head. Spouse and I settle for the equally famous Sindhi papad. The Sindhi papad is unique. It is an amalgamated version of its Punjabi and Rajasthani cousins: it has the urad dal and pepper of the former, and the moong dal and jeera of the latter. Way back in the Sindh province, it was not just an accompaniment to meals, but served to guests on its own as a snack with water. To combat the extremes of climate, its salty flavour compensated for the loss of sodium from the body during sweaty summers while the jeera and pepper fought phlegm in severe winters. Its history is not all innocent. Apparently, prospective brides at one time would be asked to roast a papad over a direct flame to judge their culinary skills.More Related News