Here's another...beautiful piece ... from the traditional Indian kitchen ... I am not sure where I first saw it ... but I found myself so attracted to it ... another wooden tool . As traditional as it is and as age old the design looks... many Indian kitchens still find place for this. A handle to grip and a rounded bottom to help you press down on the paranthas,roti'sand chappati's (traditional Indian bread) ... it ages well ... being made of wood and the butter used to make the roti's and paranthas definitely keeps the wood moist and greased.
City bred, me... thought I had discovered an antique ... well antique in design it sure is ... but to my pleasent surprise ... shopping at my local grocery store... Hypercity ... there, I bump into shelves filled with them .It is so pleasing to see , while we find newer gadgets in the kitchen to catch up with our urban lifestyle ... there still is a need for some old tools of the trade.
For me this sure is another beautiful and cherished part of my kitchen collection.If you know the traditional name of this piece... do write in to share.I would love to hear from you.
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20 comments:
Rajee.. I've never seen these.. Are these used to make the chapatis??? Lovely pics !! Thanks for sharing..
Hi Patricia,
Yes I am really enjoying this in the kitchen.Instead of the kitchen towels we usually use on the chappati's these are what traditionally used ...I am still amazed at the design and its simple beauty ... if you like them ... try hypercity as I mentioned.Though I bought mine from a typical shop selling kitchen stuff.The more traditional the shop more likely yo u are to find it.
Glad you liked the pictures ... i love doing my own shoot if possible for most of my post ...unless I mention otherwise,in the credits
It looks simple and elegant. I have never seen one before. Great pictures!
That is super cool!
I am so used to my 'Belan':-), but would love to try this out for making Paranthas:-)
Thanks for sharing!
Arch
i have this at home, but i always thought its a potato masher !
Hi Aditi,
Thanks... it feels so nice to know I can share things that we all enjoy.
Arch,
Hold on ...don't chuck that belan as yet ... this one goes on the tawa ... to fluff the roti or paranthas or if you like them crisp then to crisp them ...
~mE,
... I love to find different ways to use things ... so a potato masher is just as beautiful as a parantha press ... :)
I thought it was used to mash potatoes or dal...didn't know about using it for paranthas though
*blush* I thought it was a paper weight ! A very attractive one in a primitive sort of way, though.
But now that you've posted this I just have to try it out.
Rekha,
I would love to know more about the origins of this piece ... who knows it might just take us into a third tangent:) ...infact there is so little research one can find on Indian household things that it has been virtually impossible for me to discover more than I have put in this post ... hopefully someone might see this and love to share more of their knowledge with all of us ...
Sunita,
o.k potato and dal masher ... paper weight ... I love the direction this post is taking... this is soooo... much fun...
And as for trying it out...do let me know the results of your experiments. :)
Hey Rajee, I just wanted to announce my brand new baby : Chai 'n Spice !
Just for a good round of chat,gossip and rants. I found that my garden blog could be a little limiting, so... Take a look? And it's Open House... bring along as many friends as you want :)
http://chai-n-spice.blogspot.com/
Rajee - that's one I have never seen before, nor heard of. I must find it, as it will definitely make my paratha rolling easier:)
Thanks for sharing!
Sharon
Sharon,
this one is used to press the roti's and paranthas onthe pan...hmm... I wonder if it'll help on the rolling part ...
I'm sure you'll find it in the smallest store selling to more traditional households... infact if no where else... hit Tulsibagh ... can't not find it there ... may be the old stores on centre street behind M.G ...
Let me know if you get it... or I can definitely send you one from here :)
Lovely pics. I want to buy one too :) I love your house - very warm & beautiful.
Thanks VJ-Shillu,
Its soo nice to hear lovely comments this early in the morning ... thanks you made my day...
Hpe you find one soon and do tell me know how you found it to be... let me know if I can help.
Take care
it is called "mutta" or mutti in hindi
Hi Rajee, I am seeing this "gadget" for the first time ..and in love with it already :) First it was your wooden spice-box..now this too ! I am in CA, so i dont think there is a chance I would get this in any of the Indian stores here :( .. I do have some traditional pieces like this ( inherited from my mom-in-law) ..hope to do a post on it sometime.
.
-Aswathy
http://stripesandshadows.blogspot.com/
Hi Aswathy,
Fret not ... help is here ... check out the Gujrati Desi stores ... chance is you just might find it ... try the ones in Santa Clara ... Is it Bharat Bazaar ... I remember those folks used to have a lot of traditional stuff ... in fact the Indian grocery store in San Bruno is owned by a Gujrati couple ... try that ... believe me ...you can find it all more and hey how about fremont ... you have to be able to find it there... or try the places in Berkeley ... I never felt the need to call back home for anything while I lived in the Bay Area ...assuming you are somewhere around about there too ... if you still can't find it let me know ... lets see what we can do ... thats what blogger friends are for. And Wow lets here about those treasures you have in your Kitchen ... I am not too good at dealing with suspense ... look forward to those posts from you.
And thanks for dropping by ... some how it always feels good.
Rajee, thats extremely nice and kind of you . I do live in Fremont, and it is going to be my weekend's mission to find out if it is available here :)
The post on "inherited" treasures are coming up soon. I do have a blog on some other things we have collected http://stripesandshadows.blogspot.com/.. chk it out when u have a chance and let me know what you think .
Thanks again..n have fun
-Aswathy
We use it all the time (traditional marwari) home and the only place I have seen it elsewhere is in Jain households (again Rajasthani). Will ask mom what it's called and update the space :-)
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