Doubles (food)

Doubles is a common street food originating from Trinidad and Tobago. It is normally eaten during breakfast, but is also eaten occasionally during lunch or as a late night snack and popular hangover food for local Trinidadians.[3] Doubles are made with two baras (flat fried dough) and filled with curry channa (curried chickpeas) and various chutneys.[4] [5][6] Doubles was first created in Fairfield, Princes Town by Emamool Deen (a.k.a. Mamudeen) and his wife Raheman Rasulan Deen in 1936.[5][1][2]

Doubles
Doubles
Place of originFairfield, Princes Town, Trinidad and Tobago
Region or stateTrinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Suriname, other parts of the Caribbean, United States, Canada, United Kingdom
Created byEmamool Deen (a.k.a. Mamudeen)[1][2]
Serving temperaturehot
Main ingredientsCurry chickpea and bara
Other informationServed with: chutney, kuchela, achaar, and pepper sauce

Origins

It has been speculated that the dish was inspired by a northern Indian dish called chole bhature (or sometimes channa bhatura).[5] Chole bhature is made by combining channa masala with spicy chickpeas and bhature (poori) , which is a fried bread made with maida flour, a common flour in Indian baking.[5]

The name doubles arose when Mamudeen used to sell the bara (flat fried dough) used to make doubles, alongside the channa (chickpeas).  It wasn't until the people buying these two items from Mamudeen began requesting to double the bara in their orders which is why the name doubles stuck.[3]

Preparation

Doubles can be served spicy, sweet, or savory depending on the preference of the individual preparing or buying the double. The sandwich consisting of the two baras gets its spicy kick from the spicy pepper sauce added to it. It is also paired with mango, chandon beni (also known as culantro), coconut, and tamarind. [6]

Cultural significance

Given the diversity of Trinidad, doubles is credited with its ability to "define and maintain symbolic boundaries of identification", and is considered an authentic standard of Trinidadian cuisine. [6] Doubles is culturally significant outside of Trinidad as it is a comfort food for displaced Trinidadians in major cities across the globe who have historically been marginalized as immigrants. [6] The consumption of doubles by immigrants from Trinidad has been credited with developing a "deep psychological imprinting" and as such is such is considered culturally significant for how it encapsulated Trinidadian identity into such a simple and unique snack. [6]

See also
  • Cuisine of Trinidad and Tobago

References
  1. post. "History of doubles". M.facebook.com. Retrieved 2019-05-17.
  2. Mohan, Neki (28 June 2015). "Street food of Trinidad, Tobago gains popularity in South Florida". WPLG.
  3. Trinidadian Doubles are the Best Cheap Eats in Brooklyn — Dining on a Dime, retrieved 2019-11-09
  4. Mohan, Neki (June 28, 2015). "Street food of Trinidad, Tobago gains popularity worldwide". WPLG. Retrieved February 9, 2018.
  5. Deen, Badru (2013). Out of the Doubles Kitchen: A Memoir of the First Family of Doubles. 7720 SW 168 Terrace, Miami, FL 33157, USA.: Caritrade. p. 2. ISBN 0615855369.CS1 maint: location (link)
  6. Plaza, Dwaine (2014-07-09). "Roti and Doubles as Comfort Foods for the Trinidadian Diaspora in Canada, the United States, and Britain". Social Research: An International Quarterly. 81 (2): 463–488. ISSN 1944-768X.
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