Indians are no strangers to street food experiments. While some enjoy trying different fusion recipes, others prefer to stick to traditional versions of their favourite foods. The experimental takes tend to range from innovative and appetising to downright off-putting. Recently, a foreigner decided to try a bizarre burger that belongs in the second category. A video about the same has gone viral on Instagram and raised many eyebrows online. It was posted by Jonathan Matas, a Seattle-born artist who is currently in India.
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In the reel, we see Jonathan approaching a food vendor at a shop and asking for an "Anda Burger." The man starts preparing the dish from scratch. The vendor starts by pouring a red-coloured liquid onto the tawa in front of him. "Oh my god, what is that?" Jonathan asks. It is revealed to be an energy drink. Jonathan asks the vendor about some of the other ingredients added later, too. The man breaks two eggs over the sizzling drink. He then tops it with chopped onion, crushed laddoo, masala peanuts, and chocolate cereal. He also crushes and adds (uncooked) Maggi noodles as well as potato chips. Finally, he pours the remaining energy drink from the bottle over all these ingredients. He uses a spatula to mix and cook them together, like a scramble of sorts. This is what forms the 'patty' of the burger.
The vendor places halves of two bread buns on top of the egg preparation to heat them together briefly. Later, he assembles the burgers and presents the plate to Johnathan, along with a fresh bottle of the same energy drink used earlier. The foreign artist sits down and takes a bite of the burger. "It's not bad," he declares. The vendor thanks him. He comes up to Johnathan and serves him sev on his plate. Jonathan wants to know what it's called, and he spells it "save." He says, "I don't know what save is. Some kind of chips on the side." He tastes a few of the crispy strands and seems to like them. Watch the complete viral video below:
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The viral reel has clocked close to 2 million views on Instagram so far. It received a range of reactions. A few people joked that it took "courage" to try such a burger. Others encouraged Jonathan to try authentic Indian food rather than such bizarre experiments. Read some of the comments from Instagram below:
"How can I unsee this?"
"Save save save...god save you."
"Tell me this is some kind of spoof."
"Even 'save' can't save you, bro. Good luck."
"Is there anything he left out and didn't add?"
"Bro is adding everything he sees in his shop."
"As an Indian myself, I will never be going to eat that."
"This is definitely not Indian food. Please try some authentic Indian cuisine. You will definitely love it. I don't think anyone eats this kind of food even in India."
"Bro, you're our guest, and we love that you're exploring India. But just a heads-up - this kind of food isn't common here. It's more of a weird trend by a few vendors for content. Real Indian street food is so much better and safer - hope you get to try the authentic stuff!"
"Bro made a burger that can cure jet lag, diabetes, and heartbreak at the same time."
Before this, another bizarre burger video that went viral featured Maggi as an ingredient.