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ragzaroundtheworld

@ragzaroundtheworld

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⚓ India.
Food. Travel. Jazz & Underground music. Aviation. Amateur astronomy.

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Came to an after hours joint where drunk Chinese uncles are hanging out and they asked me if I can handle mala chicken. They said "it's very spicy" (they had to get an English speaking guy out from the kitchen). Amateurs.

Also, you know you're in for a treat when you hear the wok being vigorously tossed behind the curtain. by @ragzaroundtheworld

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7 hours ago

Gluttony 😅 by @ragzaroundtheworld

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8 hours ago

Tide pools never fail to entertain. by @ragzaroundtheworld

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12 hours ago

Found the Penang equivalent of my Indonesian FamilyMart iced Americano. But this one's pleasantly acidic. Follow the aroma and it may never disappoint you. taken in Two Streets by @ragzaroundtheworld

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15 hours ago

It's a different vibe exploring a place on foot after hours. Especially after a spell of rain. taken in George Town, Penang by @ragzaroundtheworld

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17 hours ago

Durian is such a strange fruit. Not at all pleasant tasting to begin with and yet, I cannot stop eating it. To be honest, I only dislike the initial pungent taste but really enjoy the after-taste and aroma of the fruit. Two strikes for and one against. I guess that's what keeps pulling me back to it. taken in Penang Durian Tree 槟城榴梿树体验馆 by @ragzaroundtheworld

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2 days ago

An important part of why I love traveling in this part of the world. Maggi goreng and teh in various forms. by @ragzaroundtheworld

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2 days ago

Came to Penang to witness the Nine Emperor Gods Festival, a Taoist celebration observed across the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia and to a lesser extent in China, from the 1st to the 9th day of the ninth lunar month. Known locally as Kew Ong Yah among the Hokkien speaking community in Penang, the festival marks the descent of the Nine Emperor Gods to earth, bringing wealth, longevity, protection, and their eventual return to the heavens on the final night. The entire period is filled with vibrant rituals and strict devotional practices, including going fully vegetarian (no eggs, onion and garlic even), abstaining from alcohol and all forms of indulgence. The festival is also widely known as the Vegetarian Festival.

The Nine Emperor Gods are represented in the heavens by the seven major and two minor stars of the Big Dipper - Ursa Major, the Great Bear. They are the nine sons of Doumu, the Goddess of the North Star, which sits within the Little Dipper - Ursa Minor, the Little Bear.

This was my first vegetarian meal in one of the world’s great food capitals. Over the next few days, I’ll be exploring the many food stalls that spring up during the festival and immersing myself in the ceremonies that define these nine sacred nights. taken in Ee Beng Vegetarian food by @ragzaroundtheworld

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3 days ago

Went on a very productive jaunt to the bay yesterday to check out the first FilHom (Filipino Homepreneurship in Maharashtra) Bazaar organised by a collective of Filipina home entrepreneurs and to try some Indonesian vegetarian food from Chilli-Coconut. But before making it there, did a side quest to the Parsi Amelioration Committee store to chow down some Parsi goodies: mutton cutlet, mutton samosa and a vegetable pattice. Joined my friends and headed to the FilHom Bazaar which honestly took us by surprise because we weren't expecting such a large attendance and the variety of things on sale and display. I found all my Pinoy favourites and naturally loaded up on them - some eaten then and there and the rest to be carried back. We then picked up my order from Chilli-Coconut and made our way to Bandra Born to wait out the afternoon heat before heading to Salt by Goya. Bandra Born's Cassata is GOATed so we had to get a second one. Went over to check out Salt and hung out with familiar faces, before heading to the airport and devouring some of my Indonesian food before my flight, even though I was up to my throat with food.

Noticed that the same aircraft which dropped me off in the morning was coming to pick me back up. And I had the same seat. Both times my flying time between Hyderabad and Mumbai was just around an hour which was pleasantly surprising. It's been more than 2 decades since I've experienced such short (and actual) flight times flying into or out of that city.

Bombay folks: keep an eye out for FilHom's next event and make sure you attend it! It's a fun little corner of The Phillipines in your own city.

If you would like to taste some legit Indonesian food (vegetarian only), look no further than @chillicoconut2025 . My nasi goreng came with proper kerepok - it cannot get more real than that. taken in Mumbai - मुंबई by @ragzaroundtheworld

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4 days ago

Zaragoza is such an underrated gem. It's peaceful and easy going thanks to the lack of hordes of international tourists. taken in Zaragoza, Aragon - España by @ragzaroundtheworld

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11 days ago

A recent post on the evolution of egg puffs in Kerala, followed by a discussion in a food group, and my own curiosity about the connection between the curry puff of India and karipap of the Malay world sent me down a rabbit hole.

The Indian curry puff and the various forms in Maritime SE Asia have a faint historic connection, but both developed independently. The snack first developed in the Malay peninsula when the Portuguese brought the empanada to Malacca. The empanada itself came into existence by way of Moorish conquerors who brought the sambusa of the Arab world with them.

While the empanada had a meat filling, the Malays and Chinese turned it into the epok-epok and used local ingredients and fillings like sardines etc. As Indian food started gaining influence in the Malay peninsula by way of Indian merchants, and later with the British taking indentured labour from India, Indian snacks such as the samosa served as an inspiration and Indian ingredients and spices started being used as a filling. It is possibly at this point the snack took on the modern name of karipap because to the British, every Indian dish was (and is) "curry". The snack later evolved to incorporate puff‑pastry baking techniques, resulting in two distinct versions becoming popular across the Malay Peninsula.

Over in Thailand in the 17th century, Maria Guyomar de Pinha, a woman of Portuguese, Japanese and Bengali ancestry was employed in the royal kitchens of the Ayutthaya Kingdom. She is credited with introducing many Portuguese inspired desserts to Thailand. Due to her familiarity with the empanada, she also introduced the karipap to Thailand. How she gave this name to her creation is unclear, but there was free movement of Indian Muslim merchants between present day Thailand and Malaysia and they probably carried the name with them.

Further away in Indonesia, the Dutch introduced various baking techniques to the locals which also included puff pastry. With Malay and Chinese influence, the fillings ranged from curried meats to vermicelli and keeping in line with local Javanese traditional foods, puff pastries with cooked banana filling emerged.

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Samb by @ragzaroundtheworld

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14 days ago

@indiapost_dop finally offering some real competition against useless companies like @delhivery_official and @official_bluedart by @ragzaroundtheworld

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16 days ago