Street Food Adventures in Varanasi: Culinary Highlights of Your Tour Package
Also known as Kashi, Varanasi is one of the oldest living cities in the world, whose spiritual and cultural capital makes it a popular tourist destination among millions of others every year. Although temples of ancient times, the hypnotizing ghats at the Ganges river, and numerous rituals make the core of any Varanasi tour package, the street food culture of the city is almost as good of a reason to get there. Varanasi is a great gastronomic experience with its well-designed culinary scene that combines the old values, taste, and the local aesthetics. The streets of Varanasi are a paradise to a food lover as there is wide variety of crispy kachoris, syrupy jalebis and many other. In this article, you will learn what you must consume and be included in street foods and cuisine that you must include in your Varanasi tour package since you will not only entertain the attractions, but also, delight the cuisine.
The Street Food Culture of Varanasi Essence the street food tradition of the place has made a name of itself.
Varanasi has rich street food that is represented by a direction of the North Indian, Bihari as well as Awadhi. The crowded streets of the city with vendors and food stalls are heady with the smells of spices, frying oil and the delicacies of newly prepared food. These kinds of street foods are not only meant to satisfy the hunger but it is part of the culture and it reminds you about the heart of Varanasi. You are in Varanasi and it is as interesting as it is challenging to travel alone, to be able to walk up the ghats or through the chaotic and magical alleys, a Varanasi tour package made with food on it will pop up the experience.
The greatest bit? The street food of Varanasi is cheap, original, and of different varieties even appealing to vegetarians and even people with a sweet tooth. The majority of foods are extremely traditional, and many dishes are cooked with the help of recipes that were used by dozens of generations. When you get to your Varanasi tour package, ensure that you will have an eating spree in Varanasi.
Adventurous Street Food in Varanasi
1. Kachori Sabzi: Make Your day a Spicy one!
A tour package in Varanasi cannot be complete without tasting the popular kachori sabzi. The classic breakfast entail very crispy and deep-fried kachoris which are puffed-up pastries with spiced lentils or urad dal served with tangy potato curry (aloo sabzi). The flaky kachori and the spice aromatic curry are a mouth hole.
Visit Kachori Gali adjacent of Vishwanath Temple where shops such as Ram Bhandar are famous to serve kachoris directly taken out of the kadhai. Its vibrant mood, people having a morning breakfast, will make this place an ideal inclusion into your Varanasi tour package. It goes well with steamy masala chai in a glass.
2. Banarasi Chaat: Dose of Flavours
Chaat Varanasi is a food made in the streets of India, and its feature predicts something peculiar. The varieties of chaat in the city including aloo tikki, pani puri and tamatar chaat are filled with sweet, sour and spicy tastes. In particular, tamatar chaat is a Varanasi dish. It is prepared using mashed tomatoes, spices, and hot and crispy toppings served hot and finished with fresh coriander leaves and sev.
Go to Deena Chaat Bhandar in Lanka area and get an unforgettable chaat experience. The fresh taste of vibrant flavour and the street excitement makes it a place you must visit in your Varanasi tour package. Expect a long line because both locals and tourists rush to this famous attraction.
3. Lassi: The Rich Creamy
Varanasi is well known in its thick lassi which is creamy and refreshing and at the same time indulgent, a yogurt drink. The lassi is usually served in an earthen kulhads garnished with a thick layer of malai (cream) and rosewater, (or) saffron, (or) cardamom can also be used to garnish it. You need to visit Blue Lassi Shop in the old city and they have more than 50 types of lassi, you can even get exotic fruit flavoured lassi.
Another very Varanasi experience is to be seen passing the time drinking a lassi as the world passes. Here, it is important to note that your Varanasi tour package should involve a visit to one of these iconic lassi shops where you can just sit and enjoy the city in the process.
4. Malaiyo: A Season Special
In case your Varanasi tour package is in the months of October to March, do not miss on malaiyo, which is a frothy, melt in the mouth dessert where milk foam mixed with saffron and pistachio is allowed to melt. It is a winter specialty found only in Varanasi and it is usually sold early in the morning. This texture is airy and the mild sweetness finds its way cleanly into the palate after enjoying spicy street foods.
Visit the Godowlia region to come across sellers with malaiyo in clay pots. One of the most amazing things to remember by any winter Varanasi tour package is the experience of relishing this transient delight.
5. Jalebi and Rabri: A musical Sugar Syrup
Jalebis of Varanasi need to be featured on the list of people who love desserts. These golden sugar syrup soaked spirals, fried, then crisped up are usually served with rabri, a thick, condensed milk dessert which is flavored by cardamom and nuts. The mix is luxurious but strikes the right balance, so it is the favorite sandwich among locals.
Stores such as Vishwanath Misthan Bhandar near Kashi Vishwanath Temple sell the piping-hot jalebis to provide a maximum crunchiness. Sweet stop is the part of Varanasi tour package, which will make you feel out of sugar rush and smile.
6. Thandai: The Holy Swig
The thandai of Varanasi is a milk based drink that is literally chilled with almonds, saffron and spices and is a cooling beverage in summers. There are also stores of bhaang thandai vendors (stores selling thandai laced with cannabis to give a mild intoxicating effect) during certain festivals such as Holi (use with caution!).
7. Banarasi Paan: Perfect Epilogue
One must not forget the Banarasi paan, and there is no trip through the region of Varanasi, that is complete, unless this delight is tried. This piece of betel leaf, which contains areca nut, slaked lime and other condiment, is a cultural practice as well as a digestive. The variety of paan available in Varanasi is infinite meaning that there are sweet and spicy kinds. Check out a paan shop by Dashashwamedh Ghat to watch how paan is prepared and how this famous snack tastes.
You should include a experience as a guest in a paan shop in your Varanasi tour package because there is no better way to find out who you are than a mad slice of life.
Guidelines to Street Foods on your Varanasi Tour Package
- 1. Prefer crowded Stalls: Select stalls with lots of people and this will mean high turnover of the food which will be fresher with the hygiene being better.
- 2. Eat Early: Some of the dishes such as malaiyo and kachori are simply taken in the morning and that too when they are fresh.
- 3. Drink a lot of water: Drink a lot of water or take bottled water; you should keep yourself hydrated to cope during sightseeing.
- 4. Demand Mild Tastes: Do not order spicy food until you become used to it, even then tell the vendor not to use much of the chili.
- 5. Embark on a Food Tour: Most of Varanasi tour packages include guided food walks, which offers a variety of hidden treasure discovery and information about the culinary history of a city.
Why to Add Street Food into Your Varanasi Tourist Package?
Visiting Varanasi will never be complete without plunging into the culture of food in the city. The experience of eating in the street food is more of a journey through senses that accompanies the spiritualism and history of Varanasi. Every plate has its own history with traditions, with community, with the city and its inseparable connection with the past. Be it kachori sabzi or malaiyo, every morsel of food relates to the beating heart of Varanasi.
Additionally, street foods are also a good means of guiding through the essence of the city. There is no need to go to a fancy restaurant to know what Varanasi tastes like, and here it is, the streets do the trick. Distributing food to the poor, you can add food stops to your Varanasi tour package and bring more memories you did not want to forget.
Conclusion
The city of Varanasi will smitten the heart, soul and palate. It is a place of spicy chaat, malaiyo, and other types of food that people use as street food. Do not forget to take a gastronomical tour around Varanasi as you prepare your Varanasi tour package. Tasting those flavors (which have deep traditions and which are served warmly) will make your travels memorable. Well pick up a plate, dive into the revolution, and have the street food of Varanasi take you through a delicious journey in one of the eternity of this very city.
