The Perfect Pairing: Wine and Papdi Chat -When the West Met the East

My Western Tastebuds

As a 90s born millennial, I had always been disconnected from my Indian heritage. In particular, food. 

Instead of consuming lip-smacking, home-made traditional Indian meals and dishes, I was the new generation that decided to fill their empty and hungry bellies with Italian pasta and Chinese dim sum. I preferred ordering from the newly opened dominos store instead of trying the straight out of the sizzling oil pakora, and chole puri. 

I used to avert my eyes from the excess spices and butter to lovingly look at saucy, juicy American cheeseburgers dripping in cheese. 

My parents decided to blame the opening of the Indian economy for my strange western taste buds. They never had access to any American food chains and would spend their hard-earned pennies on the roadside corner jalebis (sweet rings soaked in sugar syrup) and samosa (fried patty with potatoes and peas). 

Unlike the "spoiled kids" of the younger generation, my parents claimed that they had to walk through mountains and rivers to even get better quality food. Having western food delivered at a touch of the screen was something they could not digest. After all, the long and treacherous journey amplified the taste, not the actual food. 

On the other hand, their daughter (me) who was born in the comfort of technology and money had everything at her fingertips. My parents and I tried our first pizza together when they were 37 years old and I was 7 years old. 

By the time I reached my teenage, I had my mobile phone with all the food delivery apps pre-installed, promising to bring the American dream to my doorsteps. 

As a result, all my 5 senses demanded imported stimulation. 

As you might have guessed by now, by the time I reached the legal drinking age my wine tastebuds were purely western. The only side dish I would ever allow to exist near my tall glass of wine was a classic grilled cheese sandwich toasted till crisp. I had different varieties of cheeses ordered from a nearby international supermarket to get the perfect cheesy complementarity with my evening glass of wine. 

I considered it to the perfect pair until I met Papdi Chat. 

A Fusion of East and West

As a holiday tradition, I spend as much time as possible with my closest friends. We spend evenings curled up in warm blankets with our choice of booze and snacks, watching a cliche Christmas movie. 

It is the best time of the year for us where we catch up, tell (and re-tell) all the gossip highlights of the years and get drunk on wine to welcome the next year. 

Last holiday, my closest friend hosted the event at her place. However, she decided to spice up things. She told us that she would be making our snacks, instead of the usual ordering in. She even dropped a little teaser that it would be an Indian dish that is the perfect wine side-dish. 

I remember scoffing internally. 

As if the heavy Indian food can match the lightness of the wine! 

As the night began and she brought out plates of Papdi chat, my earlier doubt increased in size. 

Papdi Chat is famous street food with crispy Papdi (whole wheat crackers), sev (thin gram flour noodles), a watered version of yogurt, and few chutneys (sauces) on the top. The flavor can be described as a mix of sweetness and tanginess with a hint of spice. 

In my 22 years of existence, I had never heard anyone having Papdi chat with wine. The pairing was as unusual as my uncle and aunt who were completely opposite to each other and fought throughout their entire marriage. I was flabbergasted.

I would not lie for the sake of this article. It took some convincing on my friend's part for me to even taste the chat. My friends raved about the creaminess of the yogurt and the tanginess of the sauce complementing the dryness of the sparkling wine that made my mouth water. 

My fellow foodie pal confirmed that it was a match made in heaven. 

The first bite took my breath away. 

True to the review, the watered-down yogurt and the sauces went perfectly well with sparkling wine. As soon I finished with a sip of the wine, my tongue started missing the sphere disk drenched in the saucy mix. When my senses returned, I was done with the plate and going to get (steal) some from my friend's plate. 

That food pairing totally changed my perception of Indian food. 

Since then, I have developed a special appreciation for Indian food. I have gone out and ordered an Indian platter, instead of the usual Chinese platter. My wine nights are incomplete without a plate (usually, more) of Papdi Chat. 

My only regret in life is not discovering this wondering combo before. 

The Recipe 

In order to make Papdi Chat at home, you can follow my easy recipe and whip up the perfect wine snack within minutes.  

You need (for one serving):

-6 Papdis. I would suggest getting the ready-made ones from your local Indian supermarket or just use whole wheat crackers instead. They work almost as well.

-Half a potato. Boil it till soft and chop it into small pieces so that they can easily fit in your mouth.

-Half a cup of boiled chickpeas. (Optional)

-50 grams of yogurt. Put some water in it and whisk it until it is smooth.

-One teaspoon of Mint sauce. 

-One teaspoon of tamarind dates sauce. I would suggest getting this ready-made from the store. If you really can not find one, only then you are allowed to use tomato ketchup as a substitute. 

-One tablespoon of pomegranate seeds (optional).

-One teaspoon of sev (optional). 

-A dash of salt, red chili powder, cumin powder, and chaat masala each. 

To assemble the dish

This entire process would barely take 10 minutes. All you need to do is arrange the crackers on your plate. Put them side by side to each other. 

Next, place the potatoes and chickpeas so that every piece has a few companions. Pour the whisked yogurt on top of the beautiful spheres, followed by sev and pomegranate seeds. 

Put a generous spoon of both the sauces so that each side has some sauce on the top.  

The final step is to sprinkle a dash of all the spices and you're good to dive right in with a glass of sparkling wine. 

I hope you all try the pairing this holiday season and love it as much as I did. If you end up getting obsessed with this, tell your friends about this. The world really needs to know about this magical pairing.