The thin and cripsy 'papad' is part and parcel of every Indian meal. But does it require some makeover to beat the challenge from the influx of its international variants like nachos and tacos?
Some celebrated chefs feel innovation is justified to make 'papad' more appealing to the changing taste demands, while retaining its variety and traditional flavour.
From the Sindhi plate to Rajasthani thali and the Malayali Sadhya, no Indian meal is complete without papad - the most visible ingredient in cuisines of all states and communities.
Be it young or old, rich or poor, people across all sections relish papad, or papadum for many.
However, with the new competitors coming in and finding their way to the taste buds of modern food lovers, this traditional snack surely needs more creativity and innovation for a new gastronomic experience, feel experts.
Nachos is a dish from Mexico consisting of tortilla chips served with various toppings. Taco is also a Mexican dish composed of corn or wheat tortilla folded or rolled around a filling.
"For majority of us papad is just an accompaniment which goes along with the main course. But if you see papad as a main ingredient there can be many different dishes made out of it. Instead, papad can be used in place of nachos and tacos," feels celebrity chef Ajay Chopra.
"For us papad has just become a part of our meal but if you see, India has a huge variety of papad," Chopra, a widely travelled food expert who hosts cookery show 'Northern Flavours' on Living Foodz television channel, told PTI.
As the cooking techniques and the ways of presenting food have changed, the papad is used but in a more modernised way while retaining its traditional flavour and texture, says the restaurant and food service consultant.
Rohan Ghotage, the owner of North Goa's restaurant Habanero which specialises in Tex-Mex cuisine, says papad has a great potential and can carve a niche for itself as a snack.
"Unfortunately there has been very little creativity with papad over decades other than the 'Masala Papad' that is served," he says.
On where does the traditional Indian papad -- made with varied ingredients like lentils, rice, potato, chickpeas and tapioca -- stand today, he says, "Papad is seen as an accompaniment to Indian food and not a separate snack by itself."
However, he adds that the ingredients and spice content in papad make it acidic in nature due to which customers restrict to one or two pieces.
"While nacho and tacos can be served in multiple ways and with multiple fillings making them a great wholesome snack or even a meal. The nachos and tacos are basically neutral in taste and the flavour is usually added with salsa and fillings," Rohan says.
Among the diverse range of Indian papads, the one very popular and readily available in the market is the Lijjat Papad, manufactured by a women's cooperative.
"Lijjat papad has become the traditional food item of most Indians. Its taste is well received by every Indian since generations. We have met the needs of the consumers since 58 years and our increased sales figures speak about the growing demand for papads by the consumers," says Swati Paradkar, the president of Shri Mahila Griha Udyog Lijjat Papad.
She says there is a growing demand for Lijjat papad even in the international food market.
"This is evident from the growth in our export sales which has reached Rs 67 crore during the last year. This reflects the growing popularity of Lijjat papad in the international food market," says Paradkar.
Asked about the demand for Indian papad abroad, she says Lijjat papad is exported to many countries like the UK, USA, Middle East countries, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Holland, Japan, Australia.
"The response from the international community has matched our expectations and at times we have to prioritise export over local sales in order to fulfil the demand of foreign countries," she says.
Echoing a similar view, Chopra says foreign visitors and tourists like to explore the cuisine and India has a variety of papads.
"One of the main reasons behind the increasing popularity of papad is the desire to know more about the Indian lifestyle, culture and tradition and every state has a different variety of papad," he says.
Rohan also says that foreign tourists do like papad and try it for the novelty factor. "But again, the spice level in the papad is what they complain about," he says.
"It's high time Indian papad is given a makeover. Chefs and restaurants should come up with innovative recipes of a good healthy snack or a meal using papad.
"Papad has to be moved from being just an accompaniment in meals to being the main ingredient in meals. Doing this will require a through revamp of the entire chain right from the ingredients that go in papad making," he feels.
Talking about innovation of papad, Chopra cited an instance. "I have a Maharashtrian friend, had visited her once for a dinner. Along with main course there was a crispy crumble served along with the food and I realised it was papad added with Indian spices (roasted peanuts, dry red chilli, garlic, salt and made into chutney)."
"When I added it to my food the papad took that food to another level and from that day if my kids are fussing about the food I just sprinkle that mixture on top of it and it's ready to go," he says.
The chef has also created an innovative recipe of 'tuna bhel in papad cones'.
Sharing his experience, Rohan says, "There is a Rajasthani dish called 'papad churi' which I found pretty interesting. Apart from this I have not had any other recipe made with papad."
He feels the popularity that a naan or paratha commands in international market is not yet given to papad as globally customers do not want to cook several items over a meal "like we Indians do".
"It's usually one or two items that are quick and easy to make. So having papad all by itself is not that common and a lot of work has to go in promoting papad," he says.
Chopra says there can be a variation to the papad by adding some herbs like coriander, mint or oregano "where we are maintaining the traditional flavor but with a twist".
Rating papad's popularity globally at 7/10, he says, "But with more variations and flavours added to the papad, it can go to 10/10.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
