Taste of the yesterday

Every society has its own traditions, customs and civilizations which vanished or replaced with the passage of time. Food culture and taste have no exceptions. The taste of yesterday foods has been either vanished completely or replaced with new foods due to change in manufacturing methods and techniques and eating habits of new generations. The taste of yesterday was not merely a taste but it has many facets of culture and traditions. The generation who witnessed these traditions and taste has also been replaced by new generations. However we can see still some food items in towns and villages of Pakistan.

Here are some food items which tastes are still in the memories of old generation of Pakistani society.

Laddo peethiyan

An all season item made of gramme flour, salt and chilli fried in mustard oil were tasty, easily digestive and chewable by young and old. Served with tamarind sauce and sliced radish added charm to the taste. These were sold by vendors in luke-warm form under a coal stove. Vendors are now rarely seen selling this item.

Buntay wali Bottle

It was a popular summer season soft drink. It consisted of lemonated carbonated water served in pilled bottles chilled in icy water. Its opening sound with a thumb was a great amusement for children. The thick glass made bottles are no more seen.

Baqar Khani

It was mixture of flour churred 

in pure butter, milk and baked

 in oven to give it a brownish 

look. These were taken with

 sweetened milk or saltish 

Kashmiri tea as a breakfast dish.

Burf wala Golla

Made of crushed ice, sugar syrup and mixed with different edible colors was an eager likeness of children. These were available in rectangular shape pierced on small wooden sticks. Ice-cream has now taken its place to a greater extent.

Das and Lounchirray

Das is a form of Kultcha, baked of fermented flour and lounchirras made of cooked gramme flour, served with pickles and green chilli was a popular breakfast food of rich and poor. These were sold hand to hand in the early morning hours. A peculiar traditional dish served in wedding ceremonies as a breakfast.

Fresh Soft Gatta

Prepared with flour, sugar and elettaria cardamom. It was easily shapeable, full of fragrance and was children’s most favorite item because it could be easily wrapped on small sticks to make edible toys on children’s demand. Vendors carried it wrapped on a portable bamboo along their shoulder.

 

Gatta Elleichi Wala

Prepared with flour, elettaria cardamom and sugar was once a favorite sweet meat of Pakistan. It was crisp, sweet and full of fragrance. The melodic voice of vendors during early wintry nights in streets and enclaves is no more heard.

Golla Kababs

A favorite dish liked by all. These were made of minced beef grinded with fresh onions, salt, pepper and several traditional masalas. This package was then made into five to six small balls and were pierced on iron bars being wrapped with thread and were baked on burnt-out coal fire. Specially a traditional dish of Lahorites and Karachites.

Khajla and Pheuonee

Khajla made of two layers of churred flour milk and butter having in between a third layer of cooked coarsely ground flour with a filling of cooked halwa with different dried fruit like almonds, coconut and dried small grapes. Pheuonees were taken with Kashmiri tea or hot milk. These items were sold like hot cakes during festivals like Ramdan, Eid, Miraj Sharif and were also served in marriage parties.

Lahori Porra

Delicious and tasty 

Lahori Porra made of 

churred flour, milk,

 pure butter and fried in

 pure butter oil was a 

favorite breakfast item 

particularly when taken 

by soaking it in saltish 

Kashmiri tea. Now

bread and butter have

taken its place but it 

had its own taste.

Maroonda

The sweet, tasty and easily chewable Maroonda made of rice and brown sugar being handy and light in weight, no doubt, was liked in all walks of life. It was common selling item, now rarely seen in urban areas.

Qatlumma

Made of white flour, pure butter covered with a thin layer of spices, flour of gramme, dried seeds of sour pomegranate and fried in oil was an essential festival food was item like Eid, Urs, and other seasonal Mellas. Its orangish red colour gave a quenching look.