This Mumbai home chef makes Namkeen puran poli and other unique Awadhi dishes

For home chef Maya Shukla cooking is meditationmdasha process of recentring that she describes as ldquodhyaanrdquo It allows ldquoher to remember her parents but without falling into the trap of nostalgiardquo as she carries forward their legacyBorn and raised in Mumbai her relationship with her roots in the Awadh region of Uttar Pradesh has survived through the puris nenwa sabji sponge gourd and baramdasha vada made with ground urad daal and had with kadhi or chutneymdashthat her mother would make On the 63yearoldrsquos Instagram handle maya_ka_khana nuggets about belonging through food are evident in every postItrsquos while recreating these dishes of her childhood and mapping the stories around them that she started a weekend delivery kitchen Maya Ka Khana We first learnt about Mayarsquos kitchen when her son Sitanshu Shukla reached out for orders over WhatsApp It began with the seasonal Gujarati undhiyu in March before Shukla started focusing on vegetarian Awadhi cuisinemdashmatar paratha with tamatar chutney kalanji aloo with kairi chutney puri and aloo paratha It was however her September Ganeshotsav special meal box that got our attention Namkeen puran poli with traditional pumpkin sabji and homemade kheer Wersquove always relished the Maharashtrianstyle puran poli hot off the tawamdashthe crumbly chana dal and jaggery stuffing making it a scrumptious treat But a namkeen version was a combination we had never eaten The flier mentioned that the recipe passed down to Shukla from her mother Rajkumari Mishra was a staple in the small village of Kalinjara on the banks of Gomati in the erstwhile Awadhi kingdom of western Uttar Pradesh This was our chance to travel through foodWe placed the order on a Friday over WhatsApp for a Saturday afternoon Since itrsquos still a nascent setup you will need to book a delivery person on WeFast or Dunzo to pick up the meal This felt like a bit of a roundabout way for us Shukla sensed it and offered to deliver it to us insteadThe meal which arrived just in time for lunch came to us in a paper box We ordered two boxes Rs 950 Rs 80 for delivery Each box had four puran polis Before grabbing a bite we warmed the meal in the microwave as suggested by the chefThe discovery happened when we finally sat down to eat tearing into the rotimdashcrumbs of the spiced stuffing again made with chana dal fell onto our plate reminding us that this was very much still puran poli Every bite was soft and delicious and though the roti was thicker then what we have tried it still melted in the mouth What we can remember most is the fragrant smell of jeera which stayed long after we had eaten the polisWhile this can easily be a standalone dish the pumpkin sabji that came with it was an interesting additionmdashnot too spicy and bursting with flavours It was a bit messy trying to scoop the sabji because the filling kept falling apart but tell us if therersquos a better way to eat puran poli The rice kheer was a sweet way to finish our meal It wasnrsquot exceptional but felt like something yoursquod make at home But what took the cake was the dried mango achar that came with it Itrsquos difficult to put into words but we will say thismdashwe chewed on the peel long after the meal was doneWhat Maya Ka KhanaAt maya_ka_khana InstagramWhen Deliveries over weekendsCall 9920107173Rating goodMaya ka Khana didnrsquot know we were there Sunday midday reviews anonymously and pays for meals