Tour some of the Bay Area’s best Indian food trucks with baker, author, and ‘MasterChef’ star Hetal Vasavada

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On an unusually muggy spring afternoon, Bay Area-based baker Hetal Vasavada steps out of his car in creamy white overalls and a big smile. It’s a bold choice to dress for a food truck tour, she jokes with a laugh, before getting up to place her first order for what will be a long afternoon. Most people know from the appearance of Vashavada. chef. But besides her fame on TV, she’s the author of an upcoming book. milk & cardamomis a dessert-focused cookbook inspired by her Indian-American heritage and has a second book coming out soon. She also runs a blog, hosts her classes online, and sells Lemon Her Cardamom Snickerdoodles and Mini Her Pistachio Her Rose Her Cardamom Her Frangipane Tarts online.

But today, the New Jersey native isn’t going to share her bread-making tips or show off her home renovation progress. Vasavada has lived in the Bay Area for more than a decade and spends time in her bay on a sunny mission until she recently moved to the Peninsula with her husband and her daughter. And through her stay here, she’s become an expert on the best spots on the charts. , spicy aloo tikki chat and amritsari kole kulche are countless snacks from Indian street stalls. In her latest installment of Tag Along, Basavada shows us her trucks for her favorite Indian foods in the South and East Bays.

Chatupata India

115 E. Fremont Avenue, Sunnyvale

Our tour’s first spot is tucked away on the side of a strip mall in Sunnyvale, but the bright red Chattopata Pavilion, where A-frame awnings shade plastic tables suspended on the sides. Finding a food truck in India is easy. The menu offers a variety of dishes such as chaat, curries and parathas, but there is one real reason why Vasavada thinks this is a must-visit place. “Here’s Kadi her Kacholi spot,” she says with a smile.

Rajasthani cuisine is not on many menus in the Bay Area. In fact, the truck is one of only two of his that Mr Basavada has seen in the area. That’s probably because it’s “very cumbersome to make,” she says. She explains that kadi kachori is basically two foods, kadi and kachori, combined into a single, very comforting dish. “It is very Rajasthani to put it together like that,” she says.

Khadi is a fragrant, golden-yellow yogurt sauce made with chickpea flour and lots of spices. Inside are kachori, or fried pastries, stuffed with a mixture of lentils and onions. Kachori dough is stiffer than samosa dough, for example, but is particularly difficult to make, Vasavada said, because it needs to remain delicate and flaky. Enjoyed together, the deep-fried fritters retain a crisp surface, creating a surprising textural juxtaposition between the kachori chunks and the creamy, spiced yogurt sauce. “This is my favorite chart,” says Vasavada, between messy spoons on the table.

Pub Bhaji Hut

1201 Lawrence Station Road, Sunnyvale

Next, head north to the food truck at Pub Baj Hut, about 15 minutes east. This food truck is located under a canopy of trees on a side road that parallels the busy Lawrence Freeway. There are about six different vendors in a mini food truck court here, as well as two permanent restaurants at Pub Bhaji Hut, one not far away and another in Fremont. But Basavada says the Pub Bhaji Hut truck is the best version of the restaurant of the same name. plate.

Vasavada takeaway order consisted of regular pub bhaji, no cheese and extra bread. This dish originated in Mumbai and evokes memories of Juhu Beach for Vasavada. On Juhu Beach, it’s easy to find vendors selling this super-popular street food to beachgoers who enjoy dipping their toes into the sand.

There are two keys to making a worthy pub baji, she says. First, it should be cooked in a tawa, or cast iron skillet. Peek inside the truck of the Pub Bhaji Hut and you can’t miss the huge pot that takes up about half the interior and is heated from below by a formidable gas flame. Second, it should be made with plenty of butter. “I love butter,” warns Vasavada with a smile. “Butter is one of the main ingredients in this dish.” Sure enough, the truck staff at Pub Bhaji Hut slather butter on the surface of the tawa and then load it with dozens of rolls.

Light and airy, like Hawaiian sweetbread, but less sweet, it rolls out of the truck with a shallow bowl of rich amber stew once baked. Tomatoes, potatoes and peas are used in this stew, but home cooks combine spices such as coriander, cardamom, fennel, cloves and cumin, and add whatever vegetables they have on hand. The vegetables are then simmered until the texture is luscious and the flavors are concentrated and bold. The final touch is a light smear of melted butter on top.

Usually, cooked vegetables and bread form mini-sandwiches for a spectacularly nasty street snack. But Vasavada’s pro tip for the track at Pub Baj Hut is to sit on the curb, make an open-faced sandwich drizzled with red onions and cilantro, and enjoy the noise of traffic in the background.

Apna Bazaar

41081 Fremont Boulevard, Fremont

Back in the car, turn northeast on the southern end of the bay towards Fremont. However, since the terminus is not yet open, we will make a detour to the Apna Bazaar, where you will find groceries from India and Southeast Asia. The Fremont store shares the same parking lot as the previous food truck, and we ventured inside to visit the Panwari Pan shop tucked away inside.

Paan is a mouth freshener and is usually taken after meals to aid digestion, Basavada said. The triangular snack is made with betel nut leaves, a pepper-like herb with menthol properties. Paanwala folds leaves around a savory or sweet filling. In Apna his bazaar, some paans are covered in chocolate or decorated with candies. “I’ve never seen one before,” says Vasavada. We chose the Royal Metha Paan. The shop’s enthusiastic Parnwalla explains that it’s stuffed with rose petals, coconut, fennel, coriander and a blend of candied watermelon skin called tutti fruity.

Made-to-order cane juice, sprinkled with black salt and a dash of lemon juice is the perfect combination.

Chandni Chowk

40967 Fremont Boulevard, Fremont

By the time we’ve roamed every aisle of the grocery store and finished both juice and bread, the windows of Chandni Chowk, a bright rainbow-painted truck, are open. Dotted around the asphalt, blue, red and yellow painted steel drums serve as both standing tables and ornaments, and are adorned with faux Bharat oil decals. Bollywood music plays in the humid air and you can linger over a cup of chai in the fire pit.

Ms. Vasavada orders both matka and cutting varieties of chai, which are sold in trucks. Cutting chai is stronger, literally translated as “half cup” and meant to be brewed longer to provide more concentrated flavors of tea leaves, ginger and cardamom. By comparison, Matka his chai has an earthy flavor, and the black tea comes in a clay mug, giving the drink a subtle smoky flavor. It’s customary to break the mug when you’re done with it, but Vasavada suggests that if you take it home, it becomes a miniature pot perfect for growing small plants.

Besides chai, the attraction here is pani puri, which can be poured with one out of five waters. Unlike most restaurants in the United States, Chandni Chowk serves panipuri the way it is enjoyed in India, Basavada said. That means the truck crew stuffs the crunchy puri with mashed chickpeas and plenty of water before handing it over. Ready to eat. “Warning: Punny is a little spicy,” she said before approaching the truck window.

Standing in front of the truck window, we rush through all five waters in rapid succession. First the classic mint, then the sweet and sour Hatta Mita, followed by the mouth-wateringly sour Kala Hatta. Then comes the pineapple. It’s a simple sweet option, and the last and most amazing is the sour and spicy pomegranate water that leaves a pleasant burn on your lips. Vasavada explains that the truck especially misses Indian food and drink as the sun begins to set behind the clouds and more customers hang out for chai and chaat. “This is my place with my Indian friends,” says Vasavada, holding a cup of chai in his hands. “It’s like, ‘Let’s go see Chandni Chowk.'”