“Land of Kings or Land of Kingdoms”: Rajasthan
Rajasthan is the largest state of our country having sandy and dry area in the northwestern region, Thar dessert and more fertile and watered area in the southeast region, the Aravalli range. This state is culturally rich and brings the ancient Indian way of life. Rajasthani cooking is largely influenced by its inhabitants and the availability of ingredients in this arid region. The insufficiency of water and fresh green vegetables have had affected their cooking style and hence they preferred cooking food that lasts for several days and could be eaten without heating. Although different communities lived in different parts of Rajasthan, they used similar form of cooking and variety of spice, but their different culture bought multiple variants of the exact same cuisine. The different communities are:
Rajputs, who were a fiercely proud warrior caste famed for their code of honour and fearlessness in the face of battle; they are predominantly non-vegetarians. Their diet consisted of game meat and dishes like laal maas (meat in red gravy), safed maas (meat in white gravy) and jungli maas (game meat cooked with basic ingredients)
Vaishnavs, who were followers of Vishnu and strongly devout in their faith; are pure vegetarians or lacto-vegetarians.
Bishnois, a conservative spiritualist section found mostly in the desert areas who believe in the conservation of all life; They follow a set of 29 principles/commandments given by Guru Jambeshwar (1451-1536). Bishnois strictly cook their own food by themselves and are pure vegetarians.
Marwaris, an ethno-linguistic group who hail from the Marwar region and are prolific merchants; they again are a pure vegetarian.
Jains, a relative minority who ascribe to the ancient tenets of Jainism. They are abstained from most root vegetables, and precisely avoided onion and garlic, which are integral parts of most Rajasthani cooking but are believed by the Jains to symbolize the principles of greed, lust and anger.
Rajasthani cuisines have not been influenced by any foreign cuisine, although they had extensive communication and trade with the Mughal emperors. This was because, the ingredients used by Mughals did not grow well in this dry state. They extensively used water both for farming and cooking, which was not available for the local residents. The rajthikanas or rajgharanas had huge rasowara (kitchen) that usually had no economic limitations, and employed a minimum of 10 to 12 chefs, called khansamas. Most of the richest and flavorful dishes have their origins from the royal rasowara. The “khansamas” were of each royal family were so strict that they did rather kill themselves then reveal their secret recipes to the larger community. Dry-fruits were extensively used as a mark of how royal the families were. This system was complex that the best way to judge the might, influence and wealth of royal was basis their dry-fruits ration.
Flavors, Ingredients and Techniques
The Rajasthani’s mostly used grains like millet, maize, jowar and ragi as the use of water to any cuisine with was less, also they lasted for long and could be stored. Their cooking style are amazing, because of the habitat they stay in, they have learnt to use any and all resources available to them. For example, “ker sangria,” ker are wild berries which have a tangy and peppery finish, while sangri are wild beans that grow abundantly in the desert. They are cooked together in water or buttermilk along with an assortment of spices and are an integral part of Marwari cuisine.
Their food is always so delicious and leaves a flavor behind to relish the taste. They use almost all spices that grown and cultivated in Rajasthan. Their extensive uses are of tamarind, coriander, cumin, sesame, turmeric, ginger, garlic, cardamom, carom seeds, amchoor (dried mango powder), cinnamon, nigella seeds, aniseed, cloves, asafoetida, dried fenugreek and most importantly & red chillies. Rajasthan’s dry red chillies are highly in demand across the country.
A method of cooking particular to Rajasthan and inspired by the war-like nature of their expeditions is khad cooking, or pit cooking, wherein the food is prepared in pits dug out in the sand. This slow-cooking technique was created to ensure that the fire could not be seen by enemy troops.
Some of the famous Rajasthani dishes are mentioned below:
Gatte – Famous Food of Rajasthan: Marwaris food platter is always incomplete without this delicious dish. They have different variants of gatte preparation like shahi gatte or masala gatte, which are covered with spicy gravy. Gatte pulao are a festive preparation, where vegetables are replaced by gattes, served with Mangodi ki Daal or Kadhi.
Kadhi: This is the most common dish found in all the Rajasthani dishes. It is made of besan and pakodis, and is way too spicy and mouthwatering.
Aam ki Launji – Raw Mango Launji: This dish is prepared with a combination of sweet and sour taste. It is prepared by marinating raw mangoes in aromatic spices and sugar.
Ker Sangari – Ker-Saangri Ro Saag: Ker Sangari is a dish with its roots in Rajasthan. A wild berry growing in the heart of Thar Desert – Ker, along with dried wild beans – Sangari, are put together to curate an authentic piquant yet tangy Rajasthani Sabzi. It might not be appealing in looks, but I can assure every taste bud in your mouth will be telling a different story. Assorted with local herbs and spices, Ker Saangri Ro Sang can be relished with delicious Bajre ki Roti, topped with melting Makkhan (White Butter).
Bajra ka Raab: Rajasthan has a large part covered with desert and hence has extreme climate. In the winters it is severely cold and thus this dish is prepared to get some warmth and relaxation. It is made of bajra, ghee, warm ginger juice and jaggery. This dish is also rich in iron and magnesium.
Methi Bajra Puri: Methi Bajra Puri is a deep-fried puffed bread, made with the goodness of Bajra (pearl millet flour) and fresh methi (fenugreek leaves). Bajra provides a crunchy character to this healthy, light puffy delight, making it a perfect snack to munch. It can be served with a curry/sabzi as well, making it an appealing whole meal.
Bajra ki Roti with Lehsun Chutney: Bajra is one of the most popular dishes in Rajasthan. The taste of crispy roti goes well with the lehsun and onion chutney. This spicy dish of Rajasthan lets your mouth water to the feeling of garlic cloves and red chilly powder.
Mirchi Bada: The hot and spicy mirchi bada are really delicious and are usually served with morning or evening tea sessions.
Pyaaz ki Kachori: A common breakfast dish pyaaz ki kachori’s is stuffed with onions, spices and garnished with chutneys and dahi.
Kalmi Vada: Kalmi Vada is an authenticate evening snacks for rajasthani’s. This crunchy dish is prepared by blemding chana daal coarsely with some green chillies, onion and other spices. It is best served hot with green chutney.
A division of the cuisine that stands out from the rest is the vast range of Rajasthani desserts. Due to their skill in the use of dairy, they have invented tasty and mouth-watering sweets that utterly enchant the taste buds. These include the unique ghevar, a crunchy cake-like dish made from flour, soaked in ghee, milk and topped with sliced almonds, malpua (fried pancakes), kheer (an aromatic milk-based dessert), halwa (dense, sweet, pulpy confections) and laddoos (ball-shaped sweets).
Ghevar: Ghevar is known as the crown dish of Rajasthan. This crunchy delight is made in different shape and sizes, round being the most common.
Malpua: They are authenticate food of Rajasthan. It is prepared from flour, milk, khoya, and added dry-fruits, rabdi is served as a complementary dish. This dish is the most famous of pushkar, specially in Makkar Sakranti.
Mohan Thaal: This is the royal sweet dish of Rajasthan. It is prepared with besan, ghee and dry-fruits to garnish.
Mawa Kachori: Rajwadi royal sweet dish, these kachori’s are sweet in taste. They are stuffed with mawa and crispy dry-fruits and are served hot.
Gujia: Gujia is a festive sweet dish prepared with khoya also known as mawa and crushed dry-fruits, they are then moulded into dumplings with either suji or maida and then deep fried to make them crispy. They are often served during Holi and Diwali or in big royal weddings.
Kalakaand: This dish is prepared with paneer and dry-fruits are used to garnish. The lion gate of rajasthan is famous for this soft and delicious, ancient mawa-dish.
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LAJAWAB
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