Street Food in Pakistan – ULTIMATE 16-HOUR PAKISTANI FOOD Tour in Lahore, Pakistan!

(drum beats) – Hey everyone, I hope you’re having an amazing day. It’s Mark Wiens. I’m in Lahore, which is the Punjab province of Pakistan. This is an amazingly vibrant and energetic city. Today we’re gonna go on a food tour of the old city of Lahore. We’re gonna go to Gawalmandi, Lakshmi, Chowk, and Shao… Shao Alami, thank you. We’re gonna eat some street food. We’re gonna eat at some of the best restaurants. I’m gonna be hanging out with my friend, Ali, and some of his friends. And we’re gonna show you all the food in this video. (percussion music) We’re starting off this morning at a place called Sadiq Halwa Puri, which is known to serve some of the best halwa puri and chana in Lahore, which is a very common Lahori breakfast. So, it’s gonna be a chickpea stew along with the fried dough. And what he does, he really slaps that dough out. He kinda twirls it on his finger, right onto the oil and that just plops into the oil. The spin move is amazing. It fries for only about, probably only 30 seconds or so in that oil and then they take it out. Okay, we’re gonna go eat now. (funky mystical music) Awesome. They do have a dining room, but it’s quite dark back there, so we’ve decided to take the food and sit on the street by the car and eat. Or maybe on the car and eat. Be careful of the wire. Hello. So, the owner mentioned that we gotta eat the puris right now while they’re hot and fresh. Immediately, as I feel that puri, it’s just so soft, yet so like, delicately crispy, at the same time. And I’m gonna scoop into the chana, which is, it’s like a chickpea stew. What’s amazing to me is the puri. It’s has such delicate textures to it. The way he slaps that dough. Some parts of the puri are gummy, other parts are kinda elasticy. Really rich, really, really hearty. Try the potato curry there, you can that butter on top, you can see the potatoes floating around, the spices. There’s an herb flavor to that. Oh yeah, that’s delicious. Again, so rich. What’s up, man? – Hey, it’s good to see you. I’m a big fan – Thank you so much. The next thing we also tried here that they’re famous for is the katlama. This one is with meat inside. I think there’s a couple of different varieties. But it’s the same dough, then you can see the minced meat filled into it. And then that’s just, such a, almost like crumbs because it’s so deep fried. (car honking) Oh, that’s like a next level meat pie. Yeah, that’ really like, dangerously, oily good. Let me just introduce to you too, who we’re eating with today. We’ve got Ali from Landmark Communications. He was in charge of setting up our entire trip, so a huge thank you to Ali. – Thank you so much to you, Mark. It took us two years to finally have you here. – Yes, yes, Ali has bee inviting me to Pakistan for over two years, and then, finally to have a chance to meet Ali, to be hanging out in Lahore, it’s amazing. And we’re gonna have a lot of good food on this trip. Another important part of this dish is the halwa puris. It’s the sweet component that is often eaten along with this whole meal’s spread. Mm, mm. It is sweet, but it’s almost like porridge like. Okay, now I remember, it’s semolina. And it has that kind of grainy texture to it. And then it has a very floral, sweet taste to it. That was an amazing first stop. Breakfast, Lahori breakfast. We’re jumping in the car now and moving to the next spot. (happy upbeat music) We’re on our way to an area called Gawalmundi, which is a famous area for food in Lahore. And, as Ali was just explaining to me, Gawal means "milk man" and mundi means "market". So, it used to be the milk man market, but now it’s just, it’s a market, but it’s full of food, known for food. That’s where we’re going next. The traffic is just kinda flows, and you just kinda weave your way around, and others weave their way around you. The colors, the buses, it’s just, I’m still just loving everything, and just, wow. (funky mystical music) We’ve got a short little walk to get to the next place where they’re very well known, legendary for lassi. (sloshing) First, he takes in the metal cup, he adds in some buffalo butter. That’s like creamy butter, straight up butter. You can smell the animal, buffalo-iness of it. He takes this wooden propeller, he really whips it up. And then, he adds in the lassi, that liquidy goodness. And then, finally on top, he adds on one more ingredient, which is a, it’s the purest form of sweetened buffalo butter. Feeka lassi cha, this is of the most famous, one of the most legendary lassi shops in all of Lahore. Oh man, that’s look like just creamy sensation. – You don’t know whether you have to eat it or drink it. (Mark laughs) – Yes, that is a masterpiece. It looks like a trophy They’re saying what I should do is take a few sips of the liquid first, before digging into the butter. Wow. Oh, that’s amazing. It’s sweet, but not overly sweet. It’s not rich yet. The liquid is not rich, it’s watery. Very refreshing, it’s very icy. Okay, Joel’s gonna try it. – Whoa, the creation of it is beautiful. I can’t wait. Wow, yeah. It’s not that creamy and it’s so gently sweet. – Next up, to try the richness of it. The butter, the pure butter. And you can just see that’s just thick. Oh, wow. That is like whipped cream, but times five. And then you’ve got this sour component. It’s kinda fluffy at the same time. That’s like the most pure whipped cream I think I’ve ever had. (Joel laughing) That’s like the greatest whipped cream you’ve ever tasted. – (laughs) Dude. – [Mark] Like nuggets of fluffy butter. – [Joel] That’s crazy – [Mark] Nuggets of fluffy butter. (Joel laughs) – I mean (laughs) – So unbelievably creamy – Yeah – [Mark] Now he mentioned to mix it all up, so you’ve got that butter mixed into the milk and the wateriness and then it’s more like a actual hand-mixed milkshake. Wow, then you’ve got those chunks, curdled chunks of butter, it’s amazing. – Big fan of you – [Mark] Thank you so much. What is your name? – Thank you, thank you. – Awesome, man. Thank you very much. – Thank you – [Mark] Thank you very much. (bright pop music) That is, for sure, the richest, thickest, most unbelievably delicious milkshake I’ve ever had, butter milkshake I’ve ever had in my life. We’re stepping down this alley here just to take a look. Birds flying overhead and you can, yeah, definitely see the building kinda tilting in. This is a muhala, which is like a, it’s a neighborhood? – It’s a neighborhood. – A community – Exactly – A community And it opens up into a courtyard here. So many families and a lot of families live together – [Ali] And they lived here for centuries. Their parents and grandparents all used to live together. – You see the birds – These courtyards are the common combined for all the families. – Okay – This is the shared area. – Ah – They all share together. – [Mark] And it’s amazing how on the road, it’s loud and you hear the honking, but then you come back in the alley, you come back into the courtyard, and it’s peaceful, it’s so peaceful. (percussion music) We stepped outside of the alleyway, and immediately outside, he has corn, he has chickpeas, he has a charcoal stove going, he has a rounded pan, which is filled with black salt. And you can feel the heat just radiating off that black salt, and as soon as you order the snack, he tosses in a handful of corn, which is already peeled off from the cob. And he tosses in a handful of chickpeas. And then he whooshes that around in the hot black salt until it cooks. And you can feel the heat of that roasting. You can really smell the aroma of that corn coming out. He makes a little cone out of a piece of paper and puts that snack in there. And that’s freshly roasted, that’s beautiful. What an amazing way to roast. Mm Oh, it’s wonderful. It’s kinda dry, but it that attractive, kinda dry kinda taste, like very starchy. It has a wonderful saltiness to it, which I believe just comes from the flavor of that heated black salt. You can taste the salt all the way through it, instead of just being on the surface. Yeah, that’s amazing. (happy upbeat music) It’s huge, almost the size of a small cow. (happy upbeat music) Yeah, the streets are just starting to come alive in Lahore now. It’s buzzing and bustling. There are donkey carts, motorbikes, everywhere little tuk tuks and cars and buses. Oh man, the liveliness, the energy, the street food, it is amazing here. I’m loving it. Okay, we’re gonna cross this street. (motors revving) (percussion music) Walking down the street again, and we came across a man selling sweet potatoes, but his display of sweet potatoes is beautiful. It’s just like a giant bouquet of sweet potatoes arranged in a spoke formation. We ordered, he slices open the sweet potato, he takes it out of the skin, he cuts it into pieces, and then he sprinkles on some masala powder, a mixture of spices. And then, the interesting part is where he sprinkles on, he squeezes on, it looks like a mandarin orange juice all over it. Mm – It’s good. – Oh, it’s nice. – [Ali] Even the masala is very optimum. – [Mark] Uh huh – Not very much, not very low – Mm hmm – The right quantity of masala. Very nice – And then, rather than being lime juice, where it’s more sharp, it’s more mellow with that mandarin juice. Mm, yeah. That’s a really healthy tasting, delicious snack. (happy upbeat music) We just arrived to the next area which is called Shah Alami, and we’re gonna jump in the back. This is a motorbike connected to a cart. We’re gonna jump in and go down the road to go to the next spot. Okay – This is awesome. (bright pop music) – Oh, this is the spot right here. – 45 years ago – [Mark] 45 years ago? – This is the Baba ji. – [Mark] Ah, okay. Again, as soon as we got out of that motorbike, we came to the corner of the street, and immediately, you can see people just standing around or sitting on motorbikes, eating. It’s like a popsicle, but it’s kulfi. It’s a type of ice cream. But this place is called Baba ji Kulfi, which literally translates to older, respected man ice cream. And you can see the old, respected man, he’s on the pillar of the wall. It’s made from milk and khoya, and we were just talking to the owners. Khoya is milk that has been cooked down and reduced into a really condensed cream. – I couldn’t control myself. I already had a bite. (Mark laughing) – Oh, and they’ve been here for 45 years, as well, right? – Yeah, a lot of history behind it. – Yeah Oh, it’s cold on my front teeth. It has this kinda grainy texture to it. Really good though. You can taste the sweetened condensed milk kinda taste to it because of the khoya, that roasted cream. Oh, this is your first time… – This is my first time – to have this? – Yeah – Awesome – It’s amazing, it’s really nice. – [Mark] It is, it’s really good. – [Ali] But it’s the finest and best kulfis that I’ve had in Pakistan so far. – Oh That kinda sticks to the stick. But that went down really easily. (traffic and cars honking) Look at those skills. It looks more like a meat grinder than a fruit press. (car honks) (engine roaring) Oh yeah, you can just see that froth on top, that is fresh, just ground. He just smashed that orange. You can just taste the freshness, and actually, it’s more salty than it is sweet because he added in like a whole teaspoon of salt in here. To me, it’s more like an energy drink. Not like an energy drink, but like Gatorade, a natural Gatorade because of that salty taste to it. (percussion music) It’s just amazing how everything is able to function and flow together. I mean, there’s motorbikes, just seas of motorbikes. And there are literally like, there’s milk men going opposite directions, there’s horse carriages and donkey carts, and pull carts. And then there’s just, I mean you can be looking out at the street as you go and just see fascinating thing and fascinating circumstance. (percussion music) We did a little loop. We passed by the jewelry market. There’s so much action and energy and colors. We saw another snack on the side of the road. He’s making chana chaat, which is chickpea snack mixture, but it’s so complex, it’s so amazing looking. You know, we had to stop. Yes, sure. – Yes because I have seen you in so many countries interviewing – Thank you very much – Ghana, Kenya, and so many countries. – Thank you, thank you. Thank you very much, nice to meet you. I’ve literally been in Lahore just for 12 hours now, and we have met so many amazing people. The people, the food has been amazing, the people have been the highlight. – [Ali] Yogurt and menthol – [Mark] Yogurt and menthol – [Ali] Dried apricot chutney (cars honking) (speaking Urdu) – [Mark] It’s just amazing (speaking Urdu) – And the uncle who’s making it, he has, again, so much incredible skill. He’s in his fifties and they started selling here, he started making this with his father when he was a kid, right in this exact same position. They’ve been selling it here for 40 years, so when he was around 10 years old is when he first starting learn how to make this. So, 40 years of perfecting this snack. Alright – [Joel] Proper street food cart here, so… – Chana, chana chaat Oh – Mm – Oh, that’s amazing. – [Ali] Is it? – Oh, the chutney, the apricot chutney. – Amazing – Yeah, that one is incredible. – So incredible, really nice. – Yeah, well, what really stands out to me is the apricot chutney. It has that sweet fruitiness to it, and then you taste the onions in there. You taste the coolness of the yogurt. Then you’ve got the creaminess of the chana, those chickpeas. Man, what a refreshingly starchy, just delicious whipped up snack. And then at the front of his cart, he just has a pile of vegetables. I think it’s self service. Oh yeah, oh those aren’t even pickled. They’re actually just fresh. He does have a bag of fresh chilies. A quick chile in between bites of the chaat. Cheers – Cheers – Chew that up nicely Oh – Mm – It’s not that spicy, actually. (speaking Urdu) – [Ali] Now he’s not taking the money – [Mark] Even after everything that we’ve eaten today, that has given me a sense of like, overdose of heightened, just excitement and energy. That was unbelievably good. We tried to pay, he would not even accept payment. He is an amazing man. When you are in Lahore, Mohammed Illias, Mohammed Illias. Shukriyah, man. It was unbelievably amazing. And if you look around, oh, funny enough, Thai center is right there. So, he’s right in front of Thai center. Come here when you’re in Lahore. He’s amazing. (happy upbeat music) Thank you very much, thank you. Oh yeah, the kulfi. Well, that was a fantastic mini side trip. We’re back to the car now. – What a trip and this is one hour of two weeks. My mind is blown, I’m so excited. This is awesome. – Everything that we’ve eaten so far today has just been morning snacks. We’re now on our way for the real lunch. (happy upbeat music) Immediately, you can smell the meat and the spices. And we’re at a restaurant, it’s called Butt Karahi. This is one of the most famous restaurants in Lahore for a dish called karahi, but specifically, the mutton, Which mutton is goat in Pakistan. The mutton karahi, as well as, the chicken karahi, that’s what we’re gonna eat here. And he just brought in a fresh batch of chickens. You can actually choose your own live chicken, they said, and then they’ll cook it immediately. It does not get fresher than that. (chickens clucking) They’re giving me the honor of choosing the chicken, so I have the pressure. I have no idea how to choose a good chicken. Which one do you think? And in five minutes, the chicken is completely skinned. He just kinda yanked off the skin and feathers, and now he’s just slicing it up, using that foot knife technique, into bite-sized pieces. Oh man, that is gonna be a fresh curry. We’ve chosen our chicken, now we’re choosing a piece of the goat, and I think we’ve getting some of the leg here. Oh, he just split those legs in half, but I’m taking peek. This is almost like a little meat hut in here, and he’s wearing the full scrub outfit. Oh, I just got hit with a little chunk of meat. That is knife skills. So, the butchery and where they prepared the meat is over on this side, but then they have a main dining room, which is actually very nice and quite luxurious, which is on this side right there. We’re gonna get a quick look at how they cook the karahi, and karahi is actually the metal pan that the dish is cooked in. So, it’s a curry, but cooked in a karahi, which is that metal pan. And he adds in literally like a half a block, a brick of butter into every pan. They add in tomatoes, which he chops up, stewed tomatoes. Then he adds in scoops of cream, so it’s gonna be hearty, it’s gonna be rich. But before they serve it, they sizzle it and boil out most of the liquid. So, it’s still saucy, but it’s more thick. It’s not like a runny sauce. It’s a very thickened, spicious blend with the meat tender, just falling apart in it. That is gonna be amazing. (sizzling) (speaking Urdu) This is a really nice place up here, and it’s really filled up now. There’s a lot of people here. It was an hour long wait, but I, for sure, know it was worth it. The moment has arrived. They put them on our table and immediately, you can smell the butter, you can smell the spices. The only thing better than one karahi, is two karahis. So, we got both of them. One is the mutton, which is goat. And the other is the chicken, which I chose the chicken. (percussion music) And that’s all sliced ginger on top of there, too? – [Man] Yeah – [Mark] Ginger, right? – [Man] Ho, ho, ho. – [Mark] But yeah, they simmer it down. They boil it down until it’s more of a thick, rich sauce. And you can see the butter. They literally added in like a block of butter into every pan. They finish it off with strips of ginger, as well as, coriander, fresh chopped coriander. Wow, it is unbelievable. Okay, I gotta try the mutton first. (laughs) yeah. That is insane. The richness of the butter, and you can taste all of those, the blend of spices in there, the dried spices. But then you’ve got the freshness of the freshly chopped ginger. That is a beautiful, beautiful thing. And the mutton is so tender. Next is for the chicken, and kind of break off some of that chicken. You can again see all the slices of fresh ginger in there. (percussion music) Whoa, mm. And I taste the fresh chilies in the chicken, as well. (percussion music) The chicken is absolutely stunning, but I think the mutton, I think the mutton is the winner. – It’s amazing and I would say the same thing. Mutton is the winner of today. It’s amazing, full marks to the mutton. – [Mark] What about you, Joel? – I couldn’t actually believe how soft that was when the first bite hit my mouth. I just started laughing. – Which one do you like better, the chicken or the mutton? – Mutton. – [Mark] Mutton, okay. – Delicious, really good. – [Mark] Just every single bite is a total excitement. I’m gonna get a bite, kinda scooping up some of the spice from around the rim, the rim of the pan. Oh, with a piece of the, the last piece of that mutton. Scoop er up. That spice, that ginger, that tender meat. (laughs) And that completes the karahi. (percussion music) Lahore is really a night city, and so, there’s so many restaurants that open up at night. It’s almost 8 p.m. now. We have quite a lot more food to eat today. I’ve gotta admit, I’m getting a little bit sleepy though. Joel, how are you doing? – Yeah, I’m excited for this fish, but oh man, this has been a long day. Awesome, but it’s been a long one. (sizzling) (Mark laughing) – [Mark] So, the restaurant is called Saddique Fish Corner. And yeah, this is fried fish restaurant. They have not one, not two, not three, there’s four vats, pans of oil, which are bubbling away all at the same time, frying fish. And the oil is dark and murky, but that’s because it’s pure mustard oil that the fish is frying in. But it’s just a beautiful scene. It almost looks like it’s like tide pools of frying fish. Okay, thank you. – [Man] Hot, hot. – [Mark] The chef is giving me a taste test right now. This is right out of the oil. Oh. Oh, man. (Mark laughing) Very nice Oh, that’s so good. You taste the spice in there. I can taste the coriander seed, I think. And then there’s seeds of cumin in there. And then, yeah, you’ve got that mustard oil aroma. Oh man, that is just greasy delightfulness. There frying the fish in the first shop down there, but then they have about three, one, two, three, is that four? Four, like, shop houses, which are all dining rooms, and they’re all packed to film. (traffic and cars honking) Yeah, get your bite. – Awesome – It’s still smoke, it’s still coming out. – [Mark] It come with a sauce on the side, as well. But that crust, you can see that golden crust of spice and from the mustard oil, how yellow it is. Really incredibly good. And even the fish has this silky texture to it. And then you’ve got, you can really actually taste the mustardy taste of it. And then you’ve got definitely cumin seeds. Mm The sauce is just kinda mellow tasting. The sauce is more, almost citrusy tasting, almost fruity, like almost apricoty. That complements without taking away the flavor of the marinade of the fish. We devoured the fish, but we did figure out that this is actually apricot. It’s an apricot sauce. It’s almost like a light, refreshing apricot jam. And you can actually drink it. (cars beeping) Hello, how are you? (motorbikes engines purring) (cars honking) What’s the name of the chicken dish? – It’s called chicken sajji. – Chicken sajji. And that’s also a very common dish in Lahore. – In fact, all over Pakistan. – All over Pakistan – Yeah – And there’s a very well known place for chicken sadji just up ahead in this same area in this same market, which we are navigating our way through the motorbikes and the traffic to get to. Whoa – If you see the smoke is rising – That’s coming from them? – Yeah, that coming from the… – Oh ho ho, wow. Hello (speaking Urdu) (motorbikes purring) (fire crackling) We made it to Khalifa chicken sajji. They have some chickens on the skewers which are vertical, which are getting ready to go, but then they’re roasting the chickens. It’s almost like, almost looks like a slow roast, like a manual style style rotisserie. So, he just monitors the chickens continuously, rotating as they need to be rotated, and then, just perfectly, so the skin is perfectly roasted. Very good. (laughing) Oh man, that is just, that is amazing. – Delicious – [Mark] Chicken sajji, delicious. (clanging) That is a fascinating, impressive grill. It’s so huge and just the way he carefully rotates those chickens and moves them down the line. As soon as the chicken is done roasting, they pull it off the grill, and then he slices it perfectly, in a way, methodically, because then he slices open the breast, he slices open the leg, and then he squeezes in lime in every slice that he makes. And then, he pours in, he dumps in some seasoning, looks like some salt plus some seasoning. And then that finishes off your chicken. (speaking Urdu) They actually brought us out a table and we are sitting with the owner now, gonna dig in on the side of the street. They do also have a dining room inside, but we wanted to enjoy the ambience, the street side atmosphere, be bathing in the chicken smoke as we’re eating. I can’t wait to try the chicken. It’s so hot and fresh right off the rotisserie. – [Joel] Yeah, look at that. – [Mark] Yeah, you can smell that masala seasoning that he sprinkled on and the lime. – This is the coolest street food I think I’ve ever tried. (both laughing) I love the lime. – [Mark] The lime and the masala, that’s what makes it. Oh, with the rice, mm. And the rice, again, you can taste that masala. – Amazing, very good taste. – [Mark] And the food just keeps coming. How is it? – It’s amazing, amazing. Delicious, yum, lemon, lemon. (percussion music) – Okay, I do prefer the thigh. It’s juicier. The breast is a little dry, the thigh is nice and juicy. I’m just leaning back in my chair, but we have one more spot to go to, one more restaurant to go to for dinner tonight. Thank you, shukriya. – [Joel] Thank you very much. (motorbike engines humming) – [Mark] Oh, we’re going against the river. (happy upbeat music) The final restaurant that we’re at going to is called Khan Baba, and this is Ali, he said it’s one of his favorite restaurants, but it’s kinda a courtyard section. I know they have a seating area here, which is the old one. We’re gonna go into the new seating section, which is here, and then you can smell the different cooking stations kinda around the entire courtyard. But one final meal. This has been a long day and a lot of food. – These are the keeman naan, like the minced meat. (happy upbeat music) – Goat, goat… – [Joel] Goat – [Mark] Goat chops, yeah, goat chops, thank you. (laughing) Oh, that tenderness was totally unexpected. That’s just like melt in your mouth tenderness, and like fatty ooziness, and then that’s just like charred grilled. (happy upbeat music) That is like supreme, tender roasted meat. – [Ali] It was with minced meat, minced meat, yes. – [Mark] Okay, next dish is the mutton korma, and this is a, yeah, you can see the pieces of meat, which just look so tender again. You can see the slices of ginger in there, as well, I think. Mm Oh Again, just ridiculously tender meat, and then, that’s kind of a very rich, garlicky, oily, just supreme sauce. That is not the first time today we’ve eaten a rich, rich, buttery, buttery meat dish. What a way to end this incredible food tour of Lahore today. I have to admit, I’m very tired, I’m very sleepy, but just had a couple bites of those goat chops and that korma, and man, that was delicious. Hello. – Hello, how are you? – I’m fine, enjoy. (Mark laughing) – And so, I’ve just come outside, and just was gonna finish off the video here because we’re heading home from here to get a good night’s rest. But what an unbelievable day in Lahore today. It has been, the people we met, and yeah, now more people, amazing people in Lahore. And that’s been the story of the entire day, not just right now, but the entire day. – Sing now – [Mark] You want to sing, oh, you want to sing a song? Okay. – Music, classic music. (man singing in Urdu) (applause) – [Mark] Wow, very good, amazing. – Thank you. – [Mark] Very good, thank you. – Thank you so much, Mark, my bro. – [Mark] Thank you so much. Again, I just want to say a massive thank you to Ali, he’s the CEO of Landmark Communications and Pakistan Travelmart. He helped us with our visas, he’s made all the plans for us, and I fully owe it to Ali. Thank you so much, Ali. It’s been so much fun to hang out with you and eat, and then just, yeah, thank you for arranging everything. You are awesome. And to Malik for also helping arrange everything in Lahore and the food. Yeah, what a day. I will have all the information in the description box below, everything we ate. And good night from Lahore. If you enjoyed this video, please remember to give it a thumbs up. Leave a comment below, I’d love to hear from you. And if you’re not already subscribed, click subscribe now and also click the little bell icon, that way you’ll get notified of the next video that I publish. Good bye from Lahore, I will see you on the next video, and lots more food to come. I got some lassi? Oh, uh oh. (laughter) Thank you, okay. I just totally lost the spoon.

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