Salma attempts to familiarise her readers with the mystique of ‘Mughal cuisine,’ which borrowed heavily from Turkish, Afghan, and Persian patterns. The Mughal Khansamas efficaciously married the overseas effects with Kashmiri, Punjabi, and Deccan substances.
It is often said that recipes are historical treasures, and in saving them, you are preventing part of history from demise. Her ultra-modern transcreation of the authentic handwritten Persian recipe ebook ‘Nuska-e-Shahjahani,’ renowned food historian and creator Salma Yusuf Husain has taken on the big task of bringing alive a few boisterous Mughal recipes. The Mughal Feast: Recipes from the Kitchen of Emperor Shah Jahan, published the Roli Books, offers a lovely peek into the rich culinary historical past of one of India’s finest empires.
It is regularly stated that recipes are historical treasures, and in saving them, you are stopping a part of the records from dying down. Her brand new transcreation of the unique handwritten Persian recipe e-book ‘Nuska-e-Shahjahani,’ renowned food historian and author Salma Yusuf Husain has taken on a huge project of bringing alive a few boisterous Mughal recipes. The Mughal Feast: Recipes from the Kitchen of Emperor Shah Jahan, published by Roli Books, gives a lovely peek into the wealthy culinary history of certainly one of India’s best empires.
Through her informative introduction, Salma tries to familiarise her readers with the mystique of ‘Mughal cuisine,’ which borrowed closely from Turkish, Afghan, and Persian styles. The Mughal Khansamas efficiently married the overseas influences with Kashmiri, Punjabi, and Deccan substances.
In 1638, when Shah Jahan moved his capital from Agra to Delhi, the newly developed Shahjahanabad flourished in arts, literature, and structure. The foodscape of the city additionally saw a prime transformation during the emperor’s rule. Mughlai cuisine, not the handiest, has become a melting pot of various cultures. However, Shah Jahan is credited with including new spices in the delicacies.
Husain also tells us that due to the Mughals’ shared congenial relationships with the Portuguese, the imperial kitchens also became privy to the Portuguese preferred chili, which introduced a revolution of types in Indian cooking. The meals became vibrant, flavourful, and warm. Imports like potatoes and tomatoes additionally changed the face of Indian food appropriately.
The Mughals also introduced India to a spread of cherries, apricots, grapes, and melons. Shah Jahan’s unique penchant for mangoes coaxed the imperial kitchens to give you many imaginative recipes for mangoes. The new exchange routes and roads facilitated the import of almonds, pistachios, walnuts, apricots, saffron, and aromatic herbs, which found their distinguished area in Mughal qormas, soups, and rice dishes.
While rice became a staple in Indian households tons before the Mughals arrived, of their reign, the art of cooking rice saw a unique refinement, giving us some of our favorite pulao dishes like most pulao, sarangi pulao, and more.
The Mughal ceremonial dinner, on the one hand of being a nostalgic recapturing of the conventional recipes, is a special tribute to Khansamas, who, along with their team, might spend endless hours curating the unique Dawat. The formal spreads were a variety of local and international favorites, from kebabs and curries to European cakes and puddings.
The daily food, but, has been an affair of laughter and gaiety. The kings preferred to have their meal with their queens or concubines; the menu was planned with an Anh hakim(health practitioner) aid, who might make sure that the food had a few medicinal ingredients. The food was additionally cooked in rainwater blended with water from the Ganges and was served in silver and gold utensils.
