People often ask me, what is the cuisine of your preference as a chef? What is it that you would like to eat during your leisure time? To this, I spontaneously answer, “Awadhi cuisine.” Awadhi may sound like the name of a bygone era, but it is still alive and ticking in the city of Lucknow and a few nearby suburbs. This region of UP is known more for “chikan”, the embroidery work. Being a foodie though, I would vote for the Awadhi chicken; with the delectable aroma of spices held together by each strand of the dum-cooked meat.

While the invading armies of the Mughals were busy conquering kingdoms, their royal cooks were doing the same to the culinary cultures of regions where they stayed. This can be seen in the cooking techniques of Kashmir, Punjab, Lucknow and even our very own Hyderabad. Each of these places have their own unique flavour but they also reflect a striking resemblance when in comes to dum pukht cooking, where the spices used differ but the procedure of sealing ingredients in large handi (pot) and placing it over a slow fire, and allowing them to cook in their own juices, remains the same. In fact, biryani is one dish that I can quote as the perfect example in this regard, even though their individual regional menu spread may include kebabs, kormas, nihari, etc.

On my visit to Lucknow during the early days of my career, I learnt from my connoisseur friend that the cooking techniques of Awadhi cuisine are similar to those of the North-Western Frontier. He further elaborated that Awadh has been greatly influenced by the Mughals, who carried their cooking techniques from Kashmir to Lucknow, Punjab, and Hyderabad. They blended them with local cooking styles, thus developing a distinctive cuisine.

My personal favourite style of cooking is the dum, introduced by the khansamas or rakabdars of the royal court in Awadh. Dum is essentially cooking over slow fire, which has become synonymous with Lucknow today and no spread is complete without a dum biryani. Over the years, I have had the privilege to experiment with various techniques of cooking biryani.

The writer is an executive chef at The Ista Hotel