'Tiffins' give New Brunswick's Indian community a taste of home

Every morning in India, as people get ready for work or school, their homes are filled with a spicy aroma and sizzling sounds from the kitchen.

Household cooks everywhere, some rising hours before everyone else, are creating what are called tiffins: containers stacked on top of each other and carrying a freshly cooked, full-course meal of rotis, a curry, cooked vegetables, yoghurt, rice, pickle and sweets.

Homemade food is an essential part of Indian culture, and the need for it follows Indians wherever they move, including to Moncton, where more than 2,000 people of Indian origin live, according to the local Indo-Canada Association. And where a growing number of vendors are now providing tiffins for people who can't get them at home. 

Tiffins are similar to lunch boxes, but the work that goes into them is a little different. 

Vatsal Devi of Moncton remembers how much time his mother in Pune, in western India, devoted to preparing his tiffins.

"If she knows that OK, my son is going to go and work 7 a.m. in the morning, she will wake up at 4:30 to 5 to cook food for me," Devi said. "That's an everyday story."

Tiffins can be two to six containers of varying sizes, depending on the variety of food.

In India, the customization of tiffins is subjective, and the meals change from province to province as does Indian cuisine. But even in India, people who move away from home can opt for a commercial tiffin service.

When Devi moved to Canada, his mother advised him to choose a tiffin option that worked best for him but hoped he would choose to do his own cooking.  

"So that I also learn how to cook, and wherever I go in this world, like, I could survive."

At home, she would cook the whole spread from scratch, including rotis, rice, curry and lentils, all in about two hours.

"Even if she is sick, she will at least cook one or two items, but I hardly remember, like, there has never been a case where I get out of my house without a tiffin," Devi said.

But with his New Brunswick job, he doesn't have time to cook, and a tiffin from a local service is both affordable and healthy, he said. He's been using a tiffin service in Moncton for a few months now, calling it the "closest" option to the taste of home. 

Asked why he chose tiffin-style meals over takeout, Devi again thought of his mother's cooking.

"Homemade food is made more out of love and affection," he said.

It costs him under $300 a month, including delivery six days a week at the place and time of his choosing. 

"That was the equivalent amount of grocery that I used to do."

And with the variety of tiffin services around town — they are also popular in Saint John and Fredericton — he can try others if he wants change. He can get two meals out of one tiffin, with the dishes changing every day.

Veena and Rahul Sharma operate Veena's Kitchen, which specializes in Indian cuisine, at the Moncton Market.

The Sharmas added the tiffin service model to their service about three years ago during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

They were soon packing and delivering 40 tiffins a day.  

The difference between their normal takeout and a tiffin is that the tiffin isn't garnished or plated. It has a more home-style feeling, which makes the food taste homemade too, said Rahul.

Because of inflation, packaging costs have increased, Rahul said, but it doesn't affect Veena's Kitchen much, as they prepare the same food for their counter and their tiffins, and the combined sales average out. 

After their kids left for university, the couple were on their own and reduced the deliveries to within two kilometres. Some clients still come in to pick up their tiffins, he added.

"We've just a delivery problem. Otherwise we are good."  

One grateful customer, who'd used the service from the start, ordered three tiffins when his parents visited from India. They liked the food so much, Rahul said, they decided not to cook.