Kashmiri food carries with it a delicious nip of all things hot and spicy. It is a rich tapestry of Indian, Iranian, Afghani and Central Asian styles of cooking.
Kashmiri cuisine has some vantage ingredients: that is dry ginger, fennel, red chillies, curds and mustard oil. Even though it is dominated by non-vegetarian fare, the vegetarian delicacies manage to carve a niche for themselves. One of the typical ingredients in a lot of Kashmiri delicacies is the Kashmiri ver which is a doughnut-shaped cake of ground spices with a strong and pungent aroma. And yes how can one forget the scent of saffron, which forms an important part of this cuisine.
Riffling through the books of history one discovers that it was the invasion by Timur in 15th century that left a legacy of Kashmiri cuisine. With time there was an influx of skilled workers as also cooks from Samarkand whose descendants came to be known as Wazas or the master chefs of Kashmir. Wazwan is a unique concept in the world of Kashmiri cooking. Other influences are that of the Muslim and Rajput styles of cooking. A fantastic blend of all these is witnessed in the ultimate formal Muslim banquet called the Wazwan.
Phirni:
Ingredients for Phirni Recipe o Rice soaked 5 tablespoons o Milk 1 litre o Saffron (kesar) a pinch o Sugar 3/4 cup o Green cardamom powder 1/2 teaspoon o Pistachios blanched, peeled and sliced 10-15
Method
Step 1 Drain and grind the rice to a coarse paste. Bring milk to a boil. Add rice paste dissolved in a little water or cold milk. Step 2 Cook till rice is completely cooked, stirring constantly. Add saffron and mix well. Step 3 Add sugar and cardamom powder and cook till sugar is completely dissolved. Pour into earthenware or china bowls and garnish with pistachios. Step 4 Chill in a refrigerator for an hour before serving.
Bagerkhani:
Ingredients for Bakarkhani Recipe
o Refined flour (maida) 2 cups o Baking powder ½ teaspoon o Salt to taste o Sugar 2½ teaspoons o Milk ¾ cup o Fresh yeast crumbled 1 tablespoon o Raisins 12-14 o Charoli/chironji 1 tablespoon o Screw pine (kewda) water 1 teaspoon o Ghee melted 5 tablespoons o Almonds blanched, peeled and sliced 10
Method Step 1 Sieve together refined flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Step 2 Add sugar to the milk and heat in the microwave for 30-40 seconds or till the sugar melts. Remove from heat and mix. Step 3 Place yeast in another bowl, add ¼ cup (50 ml) of warm water and set aside to dissolve for 3 minutes. Step 4 Soak raisins and chironji in ½ cup warm water and set aside for 5 minutes. Step 5 Make a well in center of the sieved flour, add sweetened milk, screw pine water and dissolved yeast and mix to make soft dough. Cover with a damp cloth and set aside for 10 minutes. Step 6 Gradually add 3 tablespoons of melted ghee to the dough and knead till it gets incorporated into the dough. Add almonds, raisins and chironji. Knead, cover and keep it in a warm place for 30 minutes to allow the dough to rise. Step 7 Preheat the oven to 240º C. Step 8 Divide the dough into equal portions, make balls, cover and set aside for 10 minutes. Step 9 Flatten balls and roll them out into oblong shapes of ¼ cm thickness. Prick the entire surface with a fork. Step 10 Arrange them on a baking tray and bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes. Step 11 Remove from oven, brush bakarkhanis with the remaining ghee and serve hot.
Shufta:
Ingredients for Shufta Recipe o Cottage cheese 3/4 cup o Almonds 1/4 cup o Dates dried 1/4 cup o Coconut 1/4 o Apricots 1/4 cup o Walnuts 1/4 cup o Cashewnuts 1/4 cup o Raisins 1/4 cup o Saffron (kesar) 1/2 teaspoon o Ghee to deep fry o Green cardamom powder 1/4 teaspoon o Cinnamon powder 1/4 teaspoon o Dry ginger powder (soonth) 1/2 teaspoon o Black pepper powder 1/2 teaspoon o Sugar 1 1/2 cups o Rose petals for garnish
Method Step 1 Cut the cottage cheese into half inch sized cubes. Soak the almonds in one cup of hot water for five minutes. Step 2 Drain, peel and halve them. De-seed dates and chop them roughly. Chop the coconut into small pieces. De-seed the apricots and cut into small pieces. Step 3 Chop walnuts and cashewnuts into small pieces. Wash raisins and pat them dry. Soak saffron in one teaspoon of water. Soak the almonds, raisins, cashewnuts, dry dates, apricots, walnuts and coconut pieces in two cups water for about half an hour. Step 4 Heat ghee in a wok and deep-fry the cottage cheese cubes till golden brown. Drain and keep aside. Transfer the soaked nuts and coconut in a pan and bring to a boil. Step 5 Reduce heat Add the saffron, cardamom powder, cinnamon powder, ginger powder, pepper powder and sugar to the soaked nuts and cook on low heat till the syrup thickens two thread consistency. Stir in the cottage cheese pieces and cook for a minute. Serve garnished with rose petals.
Kahwa tea:
Ingredients for Kahwa Tea Recipe o Kahwa tea leaves 1 teaspoon o Green cardamoms 2 o Cinnamon 2 inch stick o Almonds 4-5 o Sugar 3 teaspoon o Saffron (kesar) (optional) 2-3 strands
Method Step 1 Grind the cardamoms and cinnamon to powder. Crush almonds and keep aside. In a pan pour three cups of water, crushed kahwa tea leaves, sugar, cardamom-cinnamon powder and saffron. Step 2 Keep to boil. Boil for five to six minutes till the tea turns light golden. Strain into tea cups. Step 3 Sprinkle the finely ground almonds on top of each cup and serve hot.
Kashmiri pulao:
Ingredients for Kashmiri Pulao Recipe
o Paneer 1/2 inch cubes 250 grams o Basmati Rice 1 1/2 cups o Saffron (kesar) a few threads o Oil for deep-frying o Onions,sliced 2 medium o Black cardamoms 3 o Bay leaves 2 o Cloves 3 o Cinnamon 2 one-inch o Dry ginger powder (soonth) 1/2 teaspoon o Fennel seeds (saunf) 1 teaspoon o Asafoetida 1/4 teaspoon o Salt to taste o Ghee 3 tablespoons o Cumin seeds 1 teaspoon o Green cardamoms 3-4 o Raisins 10-12 o Cashewnuts halved 8
Method Step 1 Soak rice in three cups of water for half an hour. Drain. Soak saffron in two teaspoons of water. Heat oil in a kadai and deep-fry the onions till golden and crisp. Drain on absorbent paper. Step 2 Bring four-and-a-half cups of water, black cardamoms, bay leaves, cloves, cinnamon, dry ginger powder, fennel seeds, asafoetida and salt to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for fifteen to twenty minutes or till reduced to three cups of stock. Remove from heat and strain the stock. Step 3 Discard the spices. Heat ghee in a deep pan; add cumin seeds and cardamoms. When the cumin seeds change colour, add soaked rice and the stock. Bring to a boil, lower heat, cover and cook till the rice is almost done. Step 4 Gently stir in the paneer cubes, raisins and cashew nuts. Sprinkle soaked saffron and fried onions over the rice. Cook on dum for another eight to ten minutes. Serve hot.
Content credits: Khana Khazana Sanjeev Kapoor