Winter treats in great demand

The demand for dry fruits increases during cold weather. Juice vendors have virtually disappeared from the city streets. No, they are not on a strike but are busy selling nuts with the advent of the winter season.

The goodies on sale are groundnuts (mongphalli), popcorns, rewris, kishmish (raisin), date (khajoor), pistachio (pista), almond (badaam), walnut (akhrot), pine nut (chilghoza), cashew nut (Kaju), dried apricot (khushk Khobaani), coconut (nareal), and figs (injeer)

“I see vendors enthusiastically pushing their pushcarts after covering the goodies with polythene sheets. I can hear them screaming, urging residents to leave the cosy comfort of their beds and make purchases,” says Sajjad Azhar.

“In winter I eat plenty of nuts. Cashew is one of the dry fruits, which every age of person likes from children to elders. When guests arrive, I serve roasted cashew to them. If you like, you can also eat them as a snack,” adds Sajjad.

“The change in the goodies on sale is synonymous with the winter delicacies and every year the residents rush to Raja Bazaar, and other city markets to purchase alluring packs of goodies from the not-so-young-entrepreneurs sitting under tarpaulin tents,” says Seemin Naqvi.

“Little wonder, encouraged by the heavy demand, the juice vendors this year left behind their traditional business of quenching thirst and took to lanes and streets, not for the convenience of city residents, but for earning some more money,” adds Seemin.

“It’s a golden opportunity for us,” says Zafar Abbas, a juice vendor who has been cycling his pushcart down the city markets and streets for the past ten years. “After selling juice for the entire day, I was able to earn around Rs200. Today, I am able to pocket this much money in less than four hours.”

“Every other city resident is purchasing nuts. The sale is exceptionally high this year due to another reason also. During the weekend holiday on Sunday the entire family, in most of the cases, visits Raja Bazar together to enjoy the purchasing spree, “says Azeem Hussain.

Another juice vendor, Junaid Zaidi, says, “The business is profitable because the prices of nuts shoot up two days prior to the weekend holidays, increasing the profit margin. In anticipation, we purchase nuts from the market a few days back at a nominal price and reap the fruits of increased prices.”

“I like eating cashews as they are a good source of iron, fibre, folate, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium, and calcium. They have vitamins, proteins, minerals, fibre, and antioxidants,” says Sameera Zaidi.

Samar Zahra says, “No mention of goodies is complete without the corn-wallas and their pushcarts. Parked right at the end of the road, these vendors are engaged in roasting corn. So, what are you waiting for? Get off your vehicle and discover the art of tasting it.”