Recipe contributed by Niloufer Mavalvala, author of Niloufer’s Kitchen
A teacher at heart Niloufer loves doing cooking demonstrations. She recently published a cookbook, The Art of Parsi Cooking; reviving an ancient cuisine. She enjoys travelling the world relishing world cuisines while creating an awareness of our super delicious Parsi Food.
Parsis have a deep love for their eedu (eggs) and we have even managed to create a “Pak’’ of the same. With the recent turn around announcement of the revered egg being healthy once again, isn’t it perhaps the perfect time to revive the once loved Eeda Pak?
What was prepared as part of the Winter interlude, is now rarely ever spoken or heard off. I recall eating Eeda Pak as a child and even helping to prepare it from time to time. I also know how very fond of it my mum is, but we have not kept up this tradition over the past years and perhaps it has been far too long. I recall it being sweet but gingery, grainy yet moist, darkish but almost like a good caramel, and it has a distinct richness that is hard to describe. I can also clearly remember the two 5x8x3 inch ‘’Pink” glass dishes, with a clear top that it was always kept in (yes, you guessed, no other dish would do!).
The excitement of filling it to the brim, while waiting eagerly for something to be left over to scrape and eat instantly from the large kulai no patio (the pot) it was prepared in. A smaller “pink” dish always kept aside to send off to a favourite cousin or aunt who may have requested her share. The masses of egg whites left over was always sent off immediately to our dear family friend, a caterer who would then put these to good use. Food was never to be wasted. By far the most valuable lesson we have been taught.
Next came the sheer delight of breakfast time, when we would slather lots of cold Eeda Pak on hot toast and in the hope of enjoying it with a cup of tea, which I always had to bargain for as it was not for the very young, specially if it had almost no milk in it, a strong cuppa that I would longingly wish for.
Writing about the Eeda Pak has made me want to revive this tradition in earnest. I may have to make several small “pink” bowls from this lot of Eeda Pak, but it may all be well worth it after all. Here is my grandmother’s recipe that my family looked forward to each year with much gusto.
This post is part of my ongoing series on the blog, the A to Z of Parsi Food which has been curated in collaboration with Parsi food enthusiasts globally. For more interesting recipes follow the hashtag #AtoZChallenge mentioned below.
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