RajasthanIt is matter worthy of appreciation that when even surviving in the rough terrains of Rajasthan is difficult, people here have devised recipes (and a whole lot of them) emulated by all in the country.Culinary art of the princely state of Rajasthan is judged as the most majestic and royal by the connoisseurs of food. But the truth is that the story of Rajasthan's cuisine is a success story of the grim determination and struggle of the people of Rajasthan against all odds of nature.
Greater use of milk, butter milk and other milk products can be seen in Rajasthani cuisine. Crops like millet (bajra) and barley (jowar) is also used as it could be cultivated in parts of Rajasthan. Use of beans from locally grown plants like sangri, ker etc besides dried lentils is also popular here. Gram flour is also a major ingredient of the Rajasthani dishes. Most Rajasthani curries appear red in colour and appear to be very hot but that is not so in taste. Pure ghee or butter is used as a medium of cooking. Chutneys from the locally available spices help to make the food even more interesting.
In the royal kitchens of Rajasthan food was very serious business and rose to the level of an art form. Hundreds of cooks worked in the stately palaces and kept their recipes a closely guarded secret. Some recipes were passed on to their sons and the rest were lost for ever. It became a matter of great prestige to serve extraordinary dishes to guests and the royal cooks were encouraged to experiment.
The tales of how cooks tried to impress their guests by presenting at least one unforgettable item on the menu have now become legends. The monthly budget ran into lakhs of rupees and the royal guests were treated to such delicacies as stuffed camels, goats, pigs and peacocks... it was perfectly normal to have live pigeons and other birds fly out of elaborately decorated dishes. The food was served in gold and silver utensils and the number of dishes at one meal ran into hundreds. It was usually never possible to taste all the delicacies sewed.
The finest cooking in India was derived from the Mughals and did influence the royal kitchens of India, as did European cooking. But the common man's kitchen remained untouched, more so in Rajasthan. Cooking here has its own unique flavor and simple, the most basic of ingredients go into the preparation of most of the dishes.
Rajasthani cooking was influenced by the war-like lifestyle of its inhabitants and the availability of ingredients in this region. Food that could last for several days and could be eaten without heating was preferred, more out of necessity than choice. Scarcity of water, fresh green vegetables have all had their effect on the cooking. In the desert belt of Jaisalmer, Barmer and Bikaner, cooks use the minimum of water and prefer, instead, to use more milk, buttermilk and clarified butter. Dried lentils, beans from indigenous plants like sarigri, ker, etc.
Diversity In The Type of Diet:
Different communities of Rajasthan have their own distinctive style of diets that is in general high-protein and low-fat diet except for the Marwari cuisine, which is highly rich in its contents. Rajput community is a warrior class and loves hunting. They are not averse to enjoying the meat of their game though it is not cooked in their daily kitchen. The game is cooked outside the home and is headed by males who serve as the chefs for the non-vegetarian cooking. Most of the other communities are strictly vegetarians including Vaishnavs, the followers of Lord Krishna, Bishnois, who are for their love of conservation of both plant and animal life, Marwaris, who are known for having rich diet and most notably Jains, who are very strict with their diet rituals. Jains do not eat after sunsets and do not use garlic and onions in their food, which is otherwise very popular amon the other communities of Rajasthan.
Non-vegetarian:
FoodFishes and chicken are not very popular in Rajasthan. Colonel James Tod noted in his treatise, Annals and Antiquities of Rajputana, that "the Rajput...hunts and eats the boar and deer, and shoots ducks and wild fowl". However, it is not uncommon to see that all the warrior-class learns to eat whatever is available as it is a necessity in the game of survival. Today, the government of India has banned such hunting as these wild animals are now in the list of endangered species. Kachri, a vegetable belonging to the cucumber family, is used to marinate the meat and imparts it with a distinctive tangy flavor. The meat is first basted in the spices and then roasted in a pot over a wood fire until it turns into gravy. It is commonly consumed with bajra rotis (type of bread of millets).
Common Ingredients:
Dried beans and spices such as 'heeng' (aesofoetida), amchur (mango powder), red chillies and mustard seeds, pickled meat, dried preparations called 'papads' and 'badis' form a large part of Rajasthani cuisine as they could be conserved for long periods of time and proved themselves to be very useful in the early days when there was little produce in summers and transport was not so efficient. The curries prepared using these dried preparations and often yoghurt or buttermilk and a lot of chillies and other herbs are simply delicious. Rice is considered a delicacy in Rajasthan as it does not grow here. Chewing dried pork fat, called sauth, in winters was considered prevention against colds and is still considered a good traditional remedy.
Common Dishes:
Karhi, popularly known as khatta, is made up of buttermilk or yogurt mixed with chickpea flour, mustard seeds and crushed garlic cloves and it is said that longer it stays on the fire, the better it tastes. 'Gatte ka saag', made using freshly made dumplings of chickpea flour and 'badi ka saag' made using sun-dried moth-lentil dumplings along with 'khichra' a porridge of millets and moth lentils that are cooked along with water, a little spice and some ghee in combination with either jaggery or karhi form a staple part of Rajasthani diet. The hot red-chilli-and-garlic chutney (a type of tangy Indian sauce) 'raabori', millet flour cooked in buttermilk, which is believed to be an excellent coolant in the summers) are quite popular with the food. Sangri and ker (a hard desert berry) abounds in the preparation of Rajasthani meals as vegetables.Though sweet preparations are few, Bikaneri sweet specialists are known all over the country for their delicious preparations. 'Seera', made of wheat flour in ghee and 'laapsi', a porridge made with desiccated grains of wheat are the common desserts of the state along with sweetened rice dressed with saffron and dried nuts and raisins.
Regional Specialities:
Dal-Bati-Choorma, made of butter, cereals and sweetened bread pudding of Jaipur is considered a specialty, cherished by all the Indians. Bikaner is famous for its sweets and bhujiya (salties) along with its papads, badis and on the non-vegetarian side, the lean mutton of the desert goats. Jodhpuri kachoris (puffed breads with stuffing) are either sweet (when stuffed with mawa) or quite tangy (when stuffed with hot green chillies and hot spices). Milk sweets of Bharatpur are not very commonly seen in markets but melt deliciously into the mouth. They are prepared by boiling milk for hours to such a consistency that it can be folded into little pancakes. Ghevar, a delicacy especially prepared during the Teej festival is quite popular. It looks like a round cake made up of white flour, which is then dipped into the sweetened syrup and is dressed cream and khoya. Kebabs and pasandas and sevaiyan, prepared especially during the Eid festival are an integral part of the Muslim dining table are have moved on from the Tonk and Loharu region to cover the whole of the state.
The cooking style followed in Rajasthan is based on the natural climatic conditions of this desert land. There is scarcity of water and fresh green veggies in the state of Rajasthan, which has an adverse impact on its cooking. In the desert belts of Rajasthan, it is preferred to use milk, butter milk and butter in larger quantities to minimize the amount of water while cooking food.
There is an enormous variety of sweets in Rajasthan, which are relished and savored by all. In Rajasthan, the sweet dishes are had before the meal, with the main course and after the meal unlike other desserts. Therefore, sweet dish is never called dessert in Rajasthan. When a guest arrives in the house of a Rajasthani, he/she is served food in a proper manner. Self service concept is considered rude and thus it does not form part of the etiquettes of Rajasthanis.
Dried lentils and beans obtained from native plants like sangria are used extensively in the preparation of Rajasthani dishes. Gram flour is the major ingredient in the making of a couple of delicacies such as "pakodi" and "gatte ki sabzi". Powdered lentils are liberally used in the preparation of papad. Rajasthanis are quite fond of chutneys, which are prepared using different spices such as coriander, turmeric, garlic and mint.
Out of all the Rajasthani dishes, dal bati churma is perhaps the best known. For those who are in a lookout for variety, Rajasthan has a lot to offer. Infact, as you travel from one part of the state to another, you'll find that every region has something unique, which reflects in its food as well. There is a popular sweet of each region like Mawa Kachori of Jodhpur, Rasogullas of Bikaner, Ghevar of Jaipur, Malpuas of Pushkar etc.
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Rajsthan is always popular for its culture and food. Rajasthani dishes are very execellent to taste.
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