Pindi’s decades-old naan centre attracts foodies in droves

Shahadat Naan Centre’s steaming hot sesame naans are most popular among locals

RAWALPINDI:

Steaming hot toasted sesame naan [flatbread] and parathas, prepared with desi ghee at a naan centre in Kartarpura Food Street, Rawalpindi, are very popular among the citizens who gladly stand in long queues to buy their breakfast.

Shahadat Naan Centre, established in Kartarpura Food Street some fifty years ago, has no match. The sesame naans prepared here for breakfast are most popular among the locals. In preparation for naan, the combination of fragrant sesame seeds and milk enhances the taste of the naan cooked in the traditional tandoor [oven].

Citizens believe that there is no second to the sesame naans prepared at the Shahadat Naan Centre. Ghulam Abbas, a citizen who stood in line for buying breakfast in the morning, said that he is 40 years old and he started buying naan from here in his childhood.

“We have been buying naans from here for so many years and even today the taste of their naan has not changed,” he said. “The owner of this tandoor cooks naan in a very professional manner. First, the flour is kneaded well, then the flavoured sesame seeds used in the preparation of the naan are added and after
the naan is cooked well in the oven, it is given to the customer,” he explained.

Using milk instead of water in the preparation of naan greatly enhances its taste and gives it a unique and rich flavour. Customer Noor Elahi said: “In Rawalpindi there is a tandoor in every street, where kulchas [a kind of bread] are cooked in the morning, noon and night but none can be compared with the ones prepared at the Shahadat Naan Centre.”

The main reason for the fame of this shop is its toasted sesame naans. Many years have passed since this shop was established, but till today there has been no difference in the quality of their food. The parathas and roghani naans prepared here in the morning are extremely delicious and rich in taste because of the use of pure desi ghee instead of cooking oil in their preparation. Moreover, the prices of such good quality naan and paratha are equal to that of the ones being sold at any other tandoor.

The citizens of Rawalpindi also get the naans prepared by Shahadat Naan Centre for weddings and other occasions. The owner of the shop said that in the preparation of toasted sesame naan, he gives special attention not only to the cleanliness but also to the quality of the material and ensures that the naan is cooked properly in the oven. This makes the naan very crispy and delicious at the same time.

To meet the demand of the citizens, the centre also cooks chicken and minced meat parathas. There is a rush of customers outside their shop every day from 7 am.

Additional employees have also been hired to make the scrumptious naans available to the citizens in a short time. Even in the current period of inflation, there has been no difference in the business instead, it has expanded and the number of customers is increasing every day.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, October 16^th, 2022.