Its not even day break and Sudhakar Parab, 34 is irritated with the vendors thrusting giant bundles of coriander and fenugreek at him at Dadar's busy vegetable market. Parab who owns three Chinese food stalls around Sarvoday Nagar and Gadav Naka in Bhandup has come all the way to Central Mumbai looking for spring onion.
"With the onion market in a mess we just don't have enough spring onion. I have sent my brother to Vashi too. The chopped leaves are a must-have ingredient in any dish since it adds texture, colour and flavour besides making for a great garnish," says the 34-year-old, whose twin heavy gold-chains are a testimony to the success of his business.
He admits trying chopped cabbage as an alternative but makes a face. "It has a weird smell. Neither the boys who have to chop it nor the customers seem to be happy."
Parab isn't alone. Depending on whether you speak to civic authorities, fancy hotels and restaurants (who see them as competition) or the vada pav cartwallahs, the ball park figure for the total number of Chinese food stalls is cited between 35,000 to 50,000! Given the small investment and the good returns it fetched, Indian Chinese food which made its first forays on Mumbai's streets in the early 80s has since caught on in a big way.
“The haftas, the cost of fuel, the rice, noodles, cooking oil and spices have all gone through the roof. At its current price of Rs 55-60 a bundle spring onions are turning out the most expensive ingredient,” complains Ahilya Sawant a resident of Parel whose Chinese food stall has kept her family going after her mill-worker husband's mill shut down.
Since every dish uses at least handful of chopped spring onion stalks, cumulatively it adds up to a huge requirement. The five big traders in the onion market at APMC Vashi who deal in spring onions says there simply isn't enough. "While we normally get between 25-30 trucks of spring onions daily, currently this has reduced to a truck or two," says one of them Mahipat Patil according to whom spring onions come in from villages around Nashik and Niphad in North Maharashtra. "With onion prices scaling new highs everyday, farmers don't want to pull out the young onions since they feel they will make a killing with fully grown ones," he points out and adds, "Even five stars which source from us are having to make to do with far lesser than the usual requirement."
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