Cooking in Rajasthan involves a blend of spice and colour in treasured recipes.
Perhaps there is no other cuisine (save Lucknowi), that boasts of such a royal heritage — having passed down the era of maharajahs and their palace kitchens — than that from Rajasthan. Chef Amit Gaur whose penchant for this cuisine took him into the palace kitchens of Udaipur as well as Rawat Mahal, Deogarh, agrees. “It is rich and elaborate, and traditionally, at least ten dishes were served in a heavy silver thaal,” he says.
Cooking styles
There are three distinct styles of cooking, Rajputana (non-vegetarian), Vaishnavi (Brahmin, satvik food) and Jain (without onion, garlic or root vegetables), explains chef Bhairav Singh of Renaissance, Mumbai.
“Mostly, ghee and milk are used as cooking mediums. In Jodhpur, more farsans are had with the meal, while the Rajputana and Marwari communities prefer their food spicy and Katiawar, which is close to Gujarat lends from the latter’s geographical proximity.”
Pièce de résistance
Is the junglee maas, (hunting meat), made with ghee, salt and red chillies? “The meat is left to marinate overnight, then placed in earthen vessels on the hot sands with temperatures around 45 degrees,” smiles Singh. While vegetarian favourites – ker
sangri and gatte ka sabzi are popular, gourmands are experimenting to bring about new-age flavours.
Ask chef Shyam Singh Kusava, who has worked at the Mansingh Palace, Jaipur, and has created a new rasgolla vegetable and an amrud (guava) sabzi too! In the city at The Orchid, he explains, “The trick lies in the play of different spices. The Jawa mirchi, which is a special Jodhpuri red chilli, is a must-add,” he smiles.
Must-have
Chef Maubji Maharaj of Golden Star Thali, says that rotis rule in the cuisine. “The food goes best with bhakris, soft dopatris and the missi roti which is made of gram flour.”
The best part of this food is that the cool weather is the perfect time to partake in laal maas and the other dishes. Enjoy!
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