Awadhi cuisine is from the city of Lucknow, which is the capital of the state of Uttar Pradesh. The cuisine consists of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. Awadh has been greatly influenced by Mughal cooking techniques, and the cuisine of Lucknow bears similarities to those of Persia, Kashmir, Punjab and Hyderabad; and the city is known for Nawabi foods. The bawarchis and rakabdars of Awadh gave birth to the dum style of cooking or the art of cooking over a slow fire, which has become synonymous with Lucknow today.
Their spread consisted of elaborate dishes like kebabs, kormas, biryani, kaliya, nahari-kulchas, zarda, sheermal, roomali rotis, and warqi parathas.
Awadhi cuisine has a lot of influence from Mughal cooking style and bears resemblance to those of Hyderabad and Kashmir. The cuisine consists of both vegetarian and meat dishes but done in the dum style of cooking over a slow fire that has become synonymous with Lucknow.
While Mughlai food is known for its richness and exotic use of spices, dried fruit, and nuts. The Mughals did everything in style and splendor. Since they ate very rich food they reduced the number of intake during the day. Mughlai dishes as they are called have lots of milk and cream with spices to make rich and spicy meal that is the reason why Mughlai recipes are rich in fat, carbohydrates and proteins.
Again Awadhi food does not use over a hundred spices but use a handful of uncommon spices. The slow-fire cooking lets the juices absorb into the solid parts. In addition to the major process of cooking food in Awadhi style, other important processes, such as marinating meats, contribute to the taste. This is especially the case with barbecued food that might be cooked in a clay oven of over an open fire.
Awadhi dastarkhwan
Dastarkhwan, a Persian term, literally means a meticulously laid-out ceremonial dining spread. It is customary in Awadh to sit around and share the Dastarkhwan.
The menu changes with the seasons and with the festival that marks the month.
1 What is Dhungar in cooking?
This is a quick smoke procedure used to flavor a meat dish, daIs, or raita. The smoke permeates every grain of the ingredients.
Also Dum dena method used in Awadh cooking means 'Dum' literally means 'breath' and the process involves placing the semi-cooked ingredients in a pot or deg, sealing the utensil with flour dough and applying very slow charcoal fire from top, by placing some live charcoal on the lid, and some below.
2 Galavat the use of softening agents is made from raw papaya or kalmi shora (common name:salt peter{potaassium nitrate}) to tenderise meat.
3 Baghar is a method of tempering a dish with hot oil or ghee, and spices. It may be done either at the beginning of the cooking, as in curries, or at the end.
4 Loab refers to the final stage in cooking, when the oil used during cooking rises to the surface to give the dish a finished look.
5 Moin when fat is rubbed into the flour and made into a dough for kachoris or pooris or parathas.
6 Ittr (Perfumes) the use of perfumes play an important role in Awadh cuisine they are used to enhance the aroma of the dish.
7 Yakhni cuts (Mutton) these cuts are usually taken from the joints and the ribs of the animal.
8 Chandi warq is small pieces of silver that are placed between two sheets of paper then patted to be used to decorate dishes before presentation,
9 Zamin doz in this style of cooking, a hole is dug in the ground and the ingredients are placed and covered with mud, then a layer of burning charcoal. The cooking takes about six hours.
