Name: Indian Street Food Workshop with Chef Anita Jaisinghani of Pondicheri
Start: 2017-08-05T11:00:00-05:00
End: 2017-08-05T13:00:00-05:00

Asia Society Texas Center presents Indian Street Food Workshop with Chef Anita Jaisinghani of Pondicheri.

Indian street food, popularly known as “nukkadwala” food in India, is varied and diverse. It offers a range of different flavors all at once, such as sweet, spicy, and tangy, creating a treat for the taste buds and a party in your mouth.

Each Indian state has something different to offer as their specialty.

Popular street food dishes include vada pav, cholle bhature, parathas, papdi chaat, pani poori, aloo tikki, samosas, pav bhaji, pakora, and lassi.

Over the last few decades, a large Indian community has settled in Houston and brought with them their culture, language, and delightful cuisine, adding to the diversity of our local culture.

During this workshop, Pondicheri chef Anita Jaisighani will explain the history of Indian street food while teaching you how to make pani poori, mango lassi, and Indian tomato salad.

A tasting will follow the demonstration.

• Pani Poori – semolina puffs filled with vegetables and jaljeera, a cumin, tamarind, and mint broth
• Mango Lassi – a cooling yogurt drink sweetened with mango nectar and cardamom
• Indian Tomato Salad – tomato with tadka (tempered) mustard seeds

This class is designed for those with little to no experience, and is appropriate for all ages. Families with children, adults, and lifelong learners are welcome.

At the end you will leave with a new set of skills to try out at home!

The Huffington Post: Eat Boldly. India’s Street Food Is Worth It.

Buzzfeed: 22 Vegetarian Indian Street Foods That Will Make You Salivate Unattractively

About Chef Anita Jaishinghani

Anita Jaisinghani is the chef and owner of two award-winning restaurants in Houston and New York City. Raised in India and trained as a microbiologist, Anita arrived in Houston via Canada in 1990. Having been a stay-at-home mother for her two children, she gradually developed her love of food into a career, beginning with an out-of-home catering business and selling chutneys through Whole Foods. Her first restaurant job was at Café Annie, where she worked as a pastry chef for two years.

Following her time at Café Annie, Anita opened Indika, serving deeply personal dishes that illustrated her desire to portray Indian food in a new light. Pondicheri followed in 2011, expanding with the opening of the Bake Lab + Shop in 2014 and it’s first out-of-state outpost in New York City this past year.

With all of her kaleidoscopic menus, Anita combines the complexities of Indian cuisine, the practice of Ayurveda (one of the world’s oldest whole-body healing systems), and the goodness of fresh, local ingredients.

About Pondicheri

Pondicheri opened in Houston in 2011, serving non-traditional Indian dishes and baked goods. “Pondicheri” is an early spelling of Pondicherry (or Puducherry), a small coastal town on the Bay of Bengal in South India that passed through centuries of Dutch, Portuguese, British, and French control before gaining independence in the mid-20th century.

Like its namesake town, Pondicheri aims to create an environment in which regional and cultural influences come together to provide a diverse and complex experience.

Pondicheri has been recognized nationwide, with a James Beard nomination for best new restaurant in 2012 and inclusion in Houston Chronicle’s Top 100 Restaurant every year since opening. Its honey mesquite cake was named one of the top 10 New York Dishes of 2016 by The New York Times.

Chef Anita Jaisinghani has been a James Beard semifinalist twice for Best Chef Southwest, once in 2012, and once for this upcoming year.