One night, sometime in the late sixteen hundreds, Chhatrapati Shivaji’s eldest son, and fabled Maratha warrior Shambhaji, felt hungry in Thanjavur. The cooks had gone home, so the king decided to take up the kitchen knife. In an effort to cook Maharashtrian dal, Shambhaji mistakenly threw in some local tamarind by mistake. The dish became his favourite and came to be named after him: Sambhar.
It may be an apocryphal story, but Thanjavur was under Maratha rule from 1676 to 1855. The story of Indian food is also the story of Indian royal cuisine, how conquering armies and traders brought along ingredients and influences that manifested themselves in royal recipes. “There is no greater chef than time,” says Das Sreedharan, widely credited as the man who took authentic Kerala cuisine to England. Dishes that were once known only in royal kitchens and feudal tables, have entered the culinary gestalt of India, now available in myriad restaurants and food festivals. The Shikampuri Pulao — where a breast of chicken is stuffed with dry fruits—at the Punjabi food festival, was a Patiala royal favourite. The Shahi Tukra was born in Shah Jahan’s kitchen centuries ago. Gulezar Biriyani, redolent of exotic flowers, was a royal Himachali chef’s brainchild. After Independence, crowns fell into penury and jobless master chefs like the Qureshis started restaurants, as did the Maharajahs later. The heritage tourism revolution of the 1990s made royal cuisine part of the palace experience. The cookbook explosion that followed, included many erstwhile nobles giving away ancient family recipes.
Restaurateur and epicurean Sanjeev Bali says, “You hear stories of cows fed on grass, which was watered with saffron- and rose-flavoured milk, to give the desired flavour. Dishes were cooked with precious stones and served on gold and silver thalis.”
Bali is a pioneer in stand-alone restaurants that specialise in royal food. He restored a wing of Jaipur’s Amer Palace to start a royal fine-dining restaurant named 1135 AD — the year in which the fort was built. It’s a compulsory stopover for bon vivants who come to Rajasthan to live and dine like princes. Bali received ample support from the royals; when 1135 AD was ready, the first visitor was the late Bhawani Singh of Jaipur. Bali’s other restaurants, Hanuwant Mahal and Umaid Bhawan Hills, Jodhpur, are reflections of Rajput history.
CUISINE INC.
The biggest players in royal cuisine are luxury hotels. The Taj Group owns some of the finest palace hotels in the country: Lake Palace, Udaipur, Umaid Bhawan, Jodhpur and Falaknuma Palace, Hyderabad. At Taj Falaknuma, chefs have recreated traditions and tastes of the Nizams. Before launching, they did month-long tastings of exclusive Hyderabadi dishes, and were given access to noble Hyderabadi homes which still prepare the fare. At Umaid Bhawan of Jodhpur, Maharaja Gaj Singh takes a keen interest in the menu. “One of our singular dishes is khudd meat,” says Ashish Rai, GM of the hotel. “It’s a pit roast, favoured by royal shikaris. The key difference between us and other resort hotels is the authenticity of our cuisine”. The Maharaja holds annual cooking competitions for royals in his palace gardens, where queens, princesses and princes compete to create the most authentic dish. ITC Hotels’ Dum Pukht restaurants proclaim the ‘Royal Repast’, with Shorba, Kebab, Qorma, Qaliya, Salan, Nehari, Naan and Biranj on the menu. The company also retained as a consultant Masihuddin Tucy — who claims descent from Bahadur Shah Zafar, and specialises in Lashkari food such as Talawa Gosht. Deepak Haksar, COO, ITC Hotels, feels cuisine is a sacred family heirloom passed down generations. “Regular promotions are done across the chain to showcase the vastness of Indian heritage through food,” he says. Manjit Gill, Corporate Chef, ITC Hotels, says faded, local cuisines are also promoted. “Dehlavi cuisine is an initiative we took to bring people of Delhi closer to food served in Dilli ages ago,” he says. The Executive Chef Elangovan Shanmugan at Vivanta by Taj Blue Diamond, Pune, agrees royal cuisine has cachet. “The Mystic Masala Restaurant offers Peshwai food once prepared by Deshastha Brahmin cooks for kings.” Raintree Restaurant Vivanta by Taj Connemera, Chennai serves the cuisine of the Rajas of Pudukkottai — the only official princely state in present-day Tamil Nadu — as well as from Ramanathapuram and Sivaganga.
THE MOVEABLE FEAST
Most of all, what took vanishing royal recipes to the masses was tourism. There are more than 120 heritage hotels in India. Says Samyukta Kumari, erstwhile Maharani of Bhavnagar, “Exotic dishes of Udaipur and Jaipur, like Bina Pani ki Roti, have returned, to please the tourist’s palate.” After hunting was banned, hare, wild boar, venison, francolin and quails were replaced in royal recipes with goat, lamb or poultry. “These days, we buy Japanese quail from cities to make Bater Pulao,” says Amit Vikram Singh, who runs heritage hotels in Jojawar, near Ajmer.
In the East, too, game no longer holds its place of pride in the carte du jour. “Hunting safaris no longer exist. Though Khandapada cuisine does,” says Bibhuti Bhusan Singh Mardaraj, former king of Khandapada, Orissa. The royal food is predominantly meat and fish. Chicken is considered a lowly meat, and not allowed inside the palace kitchens. Mansa Baunsanalli Poda is a dish created for hunting expeditions. The meat — usually hare or deer — is smeared with mustard paste, chilli powder and ground masalas, and marinated overnight. It’s then stuffed in freshly-cut bamboo, wrapped in banana leaves and placed on a charcoal fire to bake for six hours.
“We had and still have hereditary cooks, who’ve mastered the art of our cuisine. They also brew wine in the palace,” Mardaraj says. Khatta Meetha Fish (fried sweet-and-sour bhetki) or Fish Jhura Bhaja (boiled river fish fried with masala and tomato paste) are signature Khandapada dishes. “The distinctive feature of the food is, it’s seasonal,” says Mardaraj, who’s writing a book on the cuisine.
However, the vast cache of Indian royal recipes first entered the cookbook genre with the best-selling Cooking Delights of The Maharajas, authored by Digvijay Singh of Sailana. It was Singh who made dishes like Jungli Maas — a Rajasthani hunting recipe — a household name.
Many Rajasthan royals also promote their cuisines by holding demonstrations and workshops. Says Rani Sahiba Bhooratna Prabha Kumari of Deogarh Mahal, “At Rajput weddings in Mewar, dry meats like Kacher Maas, Murg ko Khatto — a chicken dish in a curd-based gravy, and Sohitos, which comprise mutton or pork with bajra, are a must. Freshwater fish is also served. Our guests enjoy learning how to make them.” Sidharth Singh of Rohet Garh says, “My mother, late Jayendra Kumari, wrote books on Rajasthani recipes. We serve these at Rohet Garh and Wilderness Camp. Guests love the Maas ka Sula, Bhuna Gosht, and vegetarian dishes like Hara Tamatar. Dal Bhatti is a dish everyone identifies Rajasthani cuisine with, but we even serve Maas Bhatti with meat instead of dal.” Rohet Garh is on the global gourmet list: with horse safaris and royal picnics serving signature cuisine on crested cutlery, it has jet set celebrities like Madonna on the guest list. Shivarjun Singh of Mandawa says the Royal Repast is one of the top selling points for their popular properties, Mandawa Castle and the Desert Resort. “In Mandawa, we serve the Shekhawati Platter. The hit is Maas ka Sula, made with strands of meat strung together — when the string is pulled, the delicate pieces of meat fall out.”
COLONIAL FUSION
Heritage cuisine is a combination of multiple influences. The fusion of Indian gastronomy with the Western, gained popularity when queens like Maharani Indira Devi of Cooch Behar — credited to have pioneered the use of chiffon saris — promoted foreign chefs, who brought Christmas Pudding and Cake to royal kitchens. From 1858, Indian royalty started patronising European cuisine. Says Diviya Singh of Jubbal, an erstwhile princely state of Himachal, “A combination of British-inspired food and traditional Pahari fare are part of the menu at Welcomheritage Woodville Palace, Shimla, which we own.” Farhat Sultana, erstwhile Begum of Balasinor, nostalgically recalls family dinners of her childhood at Shahibag Palace, Palampur. “The palace had cooks trained in Europe, Muslim khansamas, expert chappati-makers. Mithai makers would make superb sweets rich in dry fruits and nuts,” she recalls.
Zenana kitchens were a melting pot of cultures that showcased three types of food: local preparations with individual culinary and cultural histories, European dishes, and innovatively adapted cuisines. Noble Indian tables began serving English breakfast sausages and rashers, Mulligatawny soup, Kedgeree and French pastries, along with Awadhi delicacies, Rajasthani hunting food and Nepali potatoes. Heritage food entrepreneur Vijay Singh Bedla feels, princely states evolved into centres of fusion. “Travellers and traders brought their cuisines to the palace kitchens, and patronage was accorded to chefs who came from different lands. Dishes began to evolve over centuries. When tomatoes came to Mewar, our ancestors starting preparing fish in tomato paste.”
Princess of Vijayanagaram, Vidya Gajapati Raj Singh, says her Rajput ancestors liked venison and tender peacock meat. “To call Vijayanagaram cuisine ‘traditionally spicy’ would be an underestimation,” she cautions. “Women who married into our family came from as far as Nepal, Mewar and all over the North; so plenty of influences were added over the years.” Singh has managed to preserve some of her family’s exclusive culinary treats. “You won’t see Podi Koora Maamsam listed even on most specialty Andhra restaurant menus,” Singh says. The lamb is cooked twice till it is almost reduced to powder. After being boiled with garlic and coriander, the shredded meat is fried and mixed with roasted gram and poppy seeds. Other esoteric Vijayanagaram dishes served at family occasions are Dappalam (spicy mixed-vegetable gravy), chicken cooked with yellow dosakai (gourd) and a unique Channa Lamb Pulso (dal and meat stew). “Some of these have appeared in cookbooks, but one family recipe that is still relished within our ranks is Thottapura Gargara, a dry keerai (greens) fry with select spices,” says the princess. She adds, “I’ve been working on some cookbooks that can keep the Vijayanagar flavours from getting lost.”
Bedla has a similar protective instinct towards family recipes. Bedla House has accommodations for those who want to learn cooking or simply relish the food. In the case of Vikram Aditya Singh Sodawas, owner of the Karni Group of heritage hotels, he came across a recipe book by his grandfather, Thakur Bishen Singh, who had accompanied the Maharaja of Marwar on hunting trips to Africa and parts of India, and created exotic dishes using traditional Rajput styles and masalas. “Women of the family have added more recipes to our repertoire. My elder sister took a team of chefs to food festivals in Switzerland. My wife and I have held food festivals in many luxury hotels in India,” Sodawas says. Sodawas’ specialities are Sekula Murg (open-fire barbecued chicken), Akhni Mutton Pulao, Pachkutoh (a mix of vegetables), Makhiya Hari Meerchy (chillies with dairy products) and Pappad re Chutney; all elaborate preparations using slow-cooking techniques. “Today, signature cuisine is fast becoming a selling proposition for heritage tourism,” he says. Signature cuisines have been evolving as popular dishes. The ubiquitous biryani, brought to India by the Mughals, is so popular, that scores of different types regularly make their appearance at exclusive biryani festivals. The Lucknow (Awadhi) Biryani is another Mughal creation. Bengal got biryani in 1856, when the British dethroned the Nawab of Lucknow, Wajid Ali Shah, who moved to Calcutta taking his chefs with him.
Mohhamad Amir Naque Khan keeps the Lucknow tradition alive by hosting Awadhi cuisine at Iqbal Manzil, a palace built in 1928 by his ancestors from Mehmudabad. “While Awadhi cuisine is associated with Lucknow, each state and principality under the Nawab had distinctive cuisines. This region is known for its chulah or skillet-cooked kebabs like Kakori, Galawati, Sheekh and Shami, and Dum or slow-cooked curries, biryanis and rich sweets.” Mehmudabad’s specialties include Kachhi Biryani, Gular Kebab and Kundan Qaliya. Kebabs are rarely made in a tandoor. “We entertain 10 to 30 guests for a traditional meal,” he says. The Dastarkhwan at Iqbal Manzil is a meticulously laid-out ceremonial dining spread with low seating.
Apart from Lucknow, other Muslim-ruled states like Bhopal were also known for their pulaos and curries. From Moradabad and Rampur to Murshidabad, the Nawabs introduced Mughlai food that is now available in restaurants and private homes.
THE VEGETARIAN
REPERTOIRE
Not all royal cuisine is about meat. Khandapada cuisine also offers unique treats such as Moong Dal Pulao (cooked with the special Karpura Gunda variety of rice, which gives off the aroma of camphor), and Baingan ka Bharta cooked in milk. Mysore has singular vegetarian preparations. “The food of the Wodeyars, the Maharajas of Mysore, is vegetarian. They prefer mellow flavours. Their styles of cooking included baking,” explains Richard Graham, Chief Executive Officer at The Royal House of Mysore. Graham is working on reviving the Wodeyar gastronomic heritage. The Wodeyar-owned Welcomheritage Fernhills Palace serves “highly secret recipes from the royal kitchen of the Wodeyar family” in its restaurant, Curry and Rice.
The Kochi royals keep it in the family. “Our grandmothers were keen to hand over rare Kerala recipes to the younger generation,” says Subhadra Thampuran, who maintains the Royal Community Kitchen in the Valiyamma Thampuran Kovilakam in Kochi, which feeds the family elders. Travancore royal food, too, is vegetarian and conservative. However, the last queen of Travancore, Maharani Sethu Parvathy Bai, was cosmopolitan in her tastes — her Macaroni and Cheese and Chocolate Pudding were reputed to be as delicious as her Pulissery and Sambhar. The queen’s great grandson, musician and author Prince Rama Varma, calls her ‘The Queen of the Travancore Kitchen’. Sonu Koithara, Executive Chef, Vivanta by Taj, Kovalam, has unearthed rare recipes like Karikku Masala (tender coconut with spicy masala) and Anchila Thoran (curry with five leafy vegetables) from royal Travancore’s gastronomic heritage. “These are typical royal dishes we serve in our restaurants and at weddings and feasts,” he says. The Casino Group of Hotels have taken over the Chitoor palace, that belongs to the Maharajas of Kochi. Jose Varkey, Mentor-Chef, CGH Earth Group, says, “Here we serve sadya food, in the exact fashion it was served to the kings. The food is pure, natural, organic and fresh.”
As the spending power of the Indian diner and holiday maker increases, so does the exclusivity of his demands. “I feel people are fascinated by royal cuisine because a part of them wishes they were part of that glorious era,” says Sanjeev Bali. Both hotels and royal homes are trying to delve into their past to make the foodie feel like a king.
With inputs from Swati Sharma (Hyderabad), Aswathy Karnaver (Thiruvananthapurum), S N Agragami (Bhubaneswar), Sivadas Varma (Kochi) and Daniel Thimmaya (Chennai)