EAT | CITY OF PORT-LOUIS
If Mauritius had to have an official street food plate, the iconic ‘dholl-puri’ would undoubtedly be the winner. Filled with cooked and blended yellow split peas, this pancake-style flatbread is seasoned with turmeric and cumin. Traditionally served with lima bean curry and a ladle full of Mauritian rougaille (spring onions, garlic, pepper, and ginger in a spicy tomato-based sauce), for a boost of flavors one might also relish it with various chutneys and pickles.
In Port-Louis, like any other region of the country, people would line up on the streets for this special paper-thin treat sold by street vendors at almost every corner.
So, what makes R.Maraz so special ?
They are the pioneers of ‘dholl-puri’ in Mauritius! A century ago, Ramawahh Ramsahye Maraz, the father of Ramesh Ramsahye Maraz, started off as an entrepreneur preparing and selling ‘tekwa’ (round-shaped sweetcakes with split peas filling), but having to deep fry the cakes would only increase the cost of production. Consequently, he attempted to make a hybrid version using ‘roti‘ and ‘tekwa,’ two traditional Indian food recipes brought to Mauritius by Indian immigrants. This is how the famous ‘dholl-puri’ was born and the rest is history.
After the demise of his father, Ramesh Ramsahye took the family business to new heights and at the age of 74, he entrusted his father’s business to his two sons, Chandan and Ashutosh, making it a three-generation line of descent.
While dholl-puri remains a crowd favorite owing to its authentic taste, ‘rotis’ and ‘puris’ can also be found at R. Maraz.
Comments are closed.