In the bustling streets of Kolkata, there exists a love affair that transcends time – the eternal bond between Bengali people and phuchka. These crispy orbs of delight, filled with spicy tanginess, are not just snacks. They are a significant part of Kolkata’s culinary identity. Bengalis flock to phuchka stalls like bees to honey! There is no other way.
However, every bite of the phuchka must have a balanced mixture of all the ingredients – potato, spices, chilli, sweet, salt, tanginess, chanas, and coriander leaves! Coriander, might I say, is a very important aspect of the phuchka filling, without which it remains eternally incomplete.
Which is why, when one Bengali family went to their nearest phuchka wala and found that he ran out of coriander leaves, they made it their mission to go home, grab a bunch of coriander leaves from their personal stock, and give it to him so he can make the perfect phuchkas for them!
Sohini, who is a chef by profession, posted a video on Instagram and wrote:
“I’m back to base and back to the phuchka. Winters are all about coriander and he didn’t have any today so my maa and kakima kinda lost it. Rescued by my babia who brought the tupperwear from home. Chaotic scenes all around. But great phuchka.”
In the video, we see how Sohini’s father arrives with a black dabba filled with coriander leaves and the phuchka wala gives him an adorable smile.
Have a look:
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Several people found this video adorable and lauded Bengalis for being so kind (and obsessed about eating the perfect phuchkas!). Here’s how some of them reacted to the video:
In Kolkata, the evening phuchka is not just a snack. It is a ritual!