Street-rolls of Kolkata

Kolkata is known to be the street food capital of India. Thats what made me a proud Kolkattan. The sheer variety that we get in Kolkata is amazing. The food has seen an influence of over 15 plus communities and the street food is definitely no exception. But amongst all street food items, few have won all hearts like Kathi roll.

It's pretty simple – get a parota, stuff some meat inside or get it covered in egg and wrap it with a butter paper. In reality, the finesse lies in the parota. We love to differ on whether the parota should be light and soft, or heavy with layers or crunchy - is a matter of utmost importance to us, thus can create a massive fight among friends.

The stuffing of the parota brings the actual flavour. While some like the stuffing to be with sauces, on the other hand, few like it with just a dash of lemon and few slices of onion. The taste of meat rules in the latter. Egg roll is a different game altogether. It's a complete

balanced meal. Carbs, protein, you name it and it's just there.

I personally feel any egg roll should be made with double eggs. One single egg is mostly incapable of doing justice to the parota. Though the question of whether or not there should be the (un)holy combination of tomato and chilly sauce is a debate, we don't want to get in that debate. Taste is subjective, and let's respect that.

Raja Hasan from Nizams is said to be the inventor of Kathi roll. Kebabs were made with iron rods, waiting to be stuffed inside the roll. But gradually chefs felt that bamboo skewers do the same job without being too heavy in weight. Thus the name kathi roll came from the bamboo stick or kathi. During my youth, I used to have a meagre pocket money and had to manage with that, and mutton tikka roll used to be my saviour.