Hogging Food In The Betting Market Of Bikaner

Chatpatti/ Satta Bazar means betting market. It is an old locality in Bikaner where one can get some treasured traditional snacks. As the name suggests, a lot of people, especially businessmen gather to unwind themselves over tea, snacks and casual chattings. The locals gather in groups to predict rains and commodity prices. It is a means of entertainment and camaraderie between the residents.

Juniya Maharaj Ki Dukan- This shop is in an old musty alley of Bikaner. It is best known for its dal kachoris. They are like deep fried, flaky discs which are made from refined flour. It has a crumbly filling of lentil mixture, cloves, coriander seeds etc.

A curry is poured over it which has finely-diced potatoes in it. Around twenty ground spices are used in it to produce the taste that they do!

Get yourself a hot cup of tea and enjoy the traditional Bikaneri breakfast. But you wanna make sure you reach there before 1pm because after that the shop closes!

The best of the experiences are always fetched in the older areas with local people and food.

Brija Maharaj Ki Dukan- Try some hot and crisp ghee (clarified butter) jalebis and lose yourself in the food moment. It is a coil shaped saffron coloured item which is dunked in a sugar syrup for the sweet taste.

The good part is that jalebis here have tiny knots all over the edges, unlike a lot of other places, so it is not overly sweet, just the right amount!

Brij Maharaj Sweet Shop- This tiny shop sells sweets. We tried their Pandhari Ke Laddu, motipak and balushahi petha.

Ladoos are sweet crumbly balls made of wholewheat flour, ghee, chickpea flour and mawa (khoya). It is a seasonal snack only available in the summers. Balushahi Petha is very crunchy and is glazed with melted sugar. There are also rose petals in it to complement the flavour. Motipak, the third one is a saffron flavoured granular fudge. It has chickpea flour, ghee and mawa and looks very beautiful when garnished with edible silver sheets and rose petals.

Graduate Kanji Wale- You might have tried Dahi Vada but Gujiya Dahi Vadas could now replace its position! It is a crisp fritter stuffed with dry fruits and urad and moong dal. Then, it is layered with some smooth beaten curd and showered with roasted cumin powder and red chilli powder.

Lal Chand Roop Chand Feni Wale- We have been trying so many sweets, this is yet another food beauty! We tried a saffron flavoured baked cookie and it was of heart shape. It is made from maida or all purpose flour, ghee and rock sugar (mishri). It also has two saffron dots on it.

To note, there is not even a single drop of water added to it and it serves to be a good journey snack.

Feni is yet another sweet snack of theirs that we hogged on! Feni is a bunch of very fine strands. It is of multiple types but here it was an amusing melt in mouth saffron flavour. It's made from all purpose flour, clarified butter and sugar.

Tip- If the feni turns into a ball while holding it in the fist, then it is not right for you. Instead, each strand should be as dry and individual as before.

Jesraj Shivraj- Here, yet another variety of sweet awaited us, Ghaal Ke Ladoo! It is a round traditional sweet made from all purpose flour, sugar, ghee and rose water. This is more of a summer sweet.

Kitti Ke Ladoo is a winter delicacy. It is again a round shaped grainy textured sweet. It has coarsely powdered mawa, burra, cardamom and rose water.

Gondpak- It is a soft, dense fudge made from whole wheat, ghee, sugar, dry nut and gond (edible gum)

Bikaner is a hub of sweets.

If you want to listen to some kisse and kahaniya of the Satta Bazaar, make sure you watch the video linked below!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg-UAKkuPCk