Ponk Vada

Surat's most celebrated seasonal winter snack — tender fresh sorghum (ponk), the immature green seeds of jowar harvested at peak milky stage in December and January, mixed into a seasoned batter of besan, green chilli, ginger, cumin, and fresh coriander and deep-fried into small fritters. The fresh ponk seeds burst slightly when fried, releasing a sweet, grassy juice into the crispy besan exterior; the combination is unlike any other fritter in Indian cooking. Sold from pushcarts for only six to eight weeks a year in Surat's lanes; Suratis queue for fresh ponk vada the way Mumbaikars queue for first Alphonso mangoes. Also eaten raw with lime and salt (ponk salad) or with jaggery.