Recipes One

Tomatoes-15 Rs/ Kg

I had been avoiding my weekly trip to the vegetable market since a month because the rains in Bombay turn the entire market place into a slushy mess. We do have 3 supermarkets around our place, and they carry every kind of vegetable-even those that arent considered local here, for eg. Zucchini, Celery, Peppers in all colours, red cabbage, Baby tomatoes etc. However I desist from buying the exotic stuff-mainly because they are generally stale (Poor turnover?) However, herbs like basil and parsely are quite popular.

Green Markets here are in the open-mostly outside of railway stations, so that people getting off the trains can pick up the stuff they want on their way home. Or atleast, thats my guess. Most of the vegetable vendors are called bhaiyyas. In local parlance, they are called bhaaji market-bhaaji meaning veggies.

There are some vendors that sell just one vegetable-for eg. Tomatoes. (See tomato man above) Some that sell one type of stuff, for eg. Greens like different kinds of spinach, spring onions, coriander, dill etc, and some that sell a little of everything.

The market that I go to is considerably large, extending onto two whole streets and on both sides of each street and everyone shouting the price of his wares-especially if it is CHEAP. (at this point, I strongly regret not having taken a pic of the marketplace in my so many visits-will post one soon enough ). Vendors sit behind HUGE mounds of green peas, beans, tomatoes. Huge as in a kid could be standing inside and not seen!

A friend of mine who has once come visiting from Bangalore was quite amazed to see the variety and quantity of stuff. It was then I realised the advantage I had in being able to procure such fresh stuff plus having a variety of stuff to choose from.

Trucks bringing in sacks of vegetables from the wholesale markets obstruct the street. Then there are small boys-mobile vendors as I call them, selling stuff like lemons or drumsticks. Especially so when they are available cheap like 10 lemons for 5 Rupees, or 5 drumsticks for 10 Rupees and they have this nasty habit of calling every female-"Aunty" despite her age. They have another nasty habit of sticking these things under your nose and forcing you to buy their wares or they will block your way with the long drumsticks, until you push them away or buy them.

Its total chaos there. I realised on my last visit that Id prefer this Bazaar therapy anyday to a retail therapy. Probably stems from the market visits I used to make as a child holding my grannys hand. The smells, the sounds, the whole atmosphere is probably very deep rooted in anyone who grew up in India.

Vegetables-

French Beans, Carrots, Ridge Gourd, Giant Cucumber, Radish, Tomatoes, Snake Gourd

Herbs-

Coriander, Baby Fenugreek

Fruits-

Lemons (the lemons here are much smaller and skin is thinner), Papaya, Pomegranate

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