RAJASTHANI CUISINE OF INDIA

 

India is known for its Culture, Traditions, Festivals and Food.  Every state has its own speciality when we talk about food, depending on the climatic conditions and other geographical factors. It is really interesting to know about the food while you travel different places and when it comes to India every city you travel you find a difference in flavours with different recipes. 

During my trip to Rajasthan I had some really great experiences and one thing I always enjoyed is the food of my home country India. Rajasthan is one among my all time favorite places to visit and enjoy its authentic food. While travelling Jaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur or other cities of Rajasthan, I could see the dry deserted land and think how it is possible for such a state to have an amazing unique cuisine with dry areas without much rainfall and availability of water.

But we all know that Rajasthan is still considered as India' s most visited place for its Royal and Rich cuisine. RAJASTHAN is a princely state and the name means Land of Kings ( Raja+Sthan where Raja means King Sthan which means Land) also known as the Royal Land for food.

The state of Rajasthan was ruled by Rajputs,the warrior caste that fought for the pride of India against the Muslim invaders.

Therefore Rajasthani cuisine is highly influenced by these fiercy warrior's lifestyle and the availability of crops or vegetables found in this dry deserted land. The Food was prepared in a way that could last for several days and could be eaten without reheating was preferred. 

Today the Rajasthan cuisine is one of the most enjoyed cuisines with a huge variety of dishes for vegetarians and non vegetarians which are colorful and unique.

Due to the scarcity of water and extreme heat it was not easy to grow vegetables and could be used with very limited availability.   Whatever was grown in dry land was the only option to cook or sun dried some foods to be used later in the year. Hence dry and powdered spices played an important role in Rajasthani cuisine .The various spices give unique flavor and fragrance to the food like red chilli powder, Cloves, Cardamoms, pepper, etc.

 The other most common kinds of ingredients used in Rajasthani Food are beans, lentils, gram flour, corn, barley, millet, bread and dairy products such as Ghee( Clarified butter) and yogurt or buttermilk.

The state of Rajasthan is known for its influence of the Rajputs community who are meat lovers. But it has a large population of the Brahmins, Jains, Maheshwari, Vaishnavas, and other vegetarian communities/ caste which depends heavily on millet, grains and pulses. This brings the best of spiciest and unique dishes in Rajasthan. Let's start with famous and favorite  Vegetarian dishes enjoyed not only by locals but is favorite cuisine for international travelers as well 

Some of the traditional and authentic vegetarian Rajasthani foods are

The Kadhi of Rajasthan is a spicy and tangy dish made with yoghurt and gram flour with spices like cumin, chilli, salt and garlic. This is quick and easy to prepare unlike Punjabi Kadhi which is thick and with pakoras( Pakoras are fritters which can be made with or without vegetables). Kadhi is served with Bajre Ki Roti( Millet flour chapati) or steamed rice. 

Gatte Ki Sabzi Recipe

A spicy yet delicious Rajasthan curry is prepared with Gram flour as it's main ingredient. It is a bit similar to Kadhi. Gatte’ a kind of dumplings made of gram flour with salt and spices cooked and added into spicy gravy made of yogurt or buttermilk . This authentic dish is served with rice, chapati, Batti or even Bajra ki Roti ( Chapati made of Pearl Millet flour ).

Rajasthan, Dal bati Churma

 Dal Bati Churma is one of the most famous dishes of the state of Rajasthan and no Rajasthani food is complete without Dal bati Churma. The main ingredient in Batti (hard round-shaped dumplings that are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside) is whole wheat flour dough with salt and clarified butter added to it are then roasted over firewood. It can be baked or fried also. Served with Dal ( lentils) or Rajasthani kadhi and sweet churma is a real rich treat. 

Churma is made of Batti which is crushed and finely grounded. Adding clarified butter, sugar and Nuts makes a perfect Churma. As mentioned earlier there' a generous amount of ghee is used to fully enjoy as a  traditional dish. I was so inspired after eating this amazing dish that I had to try cooking here in Canada to fill my cravings. The pics of my Home made Dal Batti are uploaded here. 

Ker Sangri ki sabzi - Sangri or Prosopis cineraria is a small to medium size tree, found mainly in the Thar Desert of Rajasthan in India.Ker Sangri is a traditional Rajasthani dish made with dried Ker berries and Sangri a kind of  beans grown in dry land . Ker is also used to make pickles that can be preserved and stored for long for months. Pickle goes well with Bajra ki Roti ( Chapati made  Pearl Millet flour).

As mentioned Rajasthani cuisine was strongly influenced by the Rajputs, who are predominantly non-vegetarians and the diet consists of spicy hot Mutton and Chicken dishes. Some of the famous dishes are:

Laal Maas which means Meat curry 

cooked in red colored gravy prepared with yogurt and hot chilies. This is a super spicy dish enjoyed with Chapati. Traditionally the dish was prepared by using goat/ lamb but now even chicken is used to prepare Laal Maas.

Safed Maas- A popular mutton based dish which has a white Gravy ( Safed means white)The dish has a strong Rajput influence which makes this dish a royal delicacy with a rich gravy made with ingredients such as cashew nuts, poppy seeds Milk/ cream and more. The meat preparations used was wild boar, hare or goat

jungli maas -Jungli (Jungli means Jungle wild ) maas said to be a really hot mutton dish that is a specialty in Rajasthan. The tender meat dish is traditionally cooked in clarified butter is considered as Rajput  legacy. The dish was cooked and served for the  Maharajas returning from their hunting expedition. Hence considered as a classic post hunt  dish.

Ghevar 

Ghevar makes for a traditional sweet dish in Rajasthan and is super tasty. Something I never want to miss when in India.  This is a round shaped dessert with toppings of rabdi, malai, mawa( Rabdi Malai and Mawa are all rich milk products)and nuts. Made with all purpose Flour, Clarified Butter( Ghee) Milk and sugar syrup this delicious mouthwatering dessert is served during festivals and traditionally associated with Teej festival. 

The other snacks and food you can find some extremely tasty in the cities of Rajasthan are

Mohanthal( sweet)

Mawa Kachori( sweet)

Mirchi Bada( spicy)

Pyaaz Ki Kachori ( spicy)

Samosa (spicy)

Lassi( sweet my all time favourite drink in Jaipur. 

I am not a food specialist but shared my knowledge with you based on my experience. These were some of the few dishes but there is so much more to this. I am sure you will be able to explore and enjoy some scrumptious dishes during your next visit to Rajasthan, India.