Rajasthani cuisine

India is well known for its spicy cuisine style. Besides this each region in India is famous for its unique traditional dishes and their special flavour. As Rajasthan is said to be a princely state so was the kitchen of its palaces. It was considered a pride to serve the guest the best and tastiest dishes. Thus it became the matter of prestige for the royal cooks and this make them experiment new flavours in their kitchen. These experiments gave rise to various royal and unique dishes, which were then passed over generation after generation and are still the pride of the place.
Although Rajasthani dishes have their unique flavour yet the influence of its climate could easily be seen in them. As here the scarcity of water has always been appeared so the in which minimum water is utilized is preferred, instead milk is used in the dishes that makes them more rich and delicious. . As Rajasthan is rich in cattle wealth, ghee and milk is used in liberal quantities. Due to these circumstances, the food that could last for longer time and could be used without heating is preferred. As the availability of green vegetables is also less here so the dried lentils, beans from indigenous plants like sangri, ker etc. are liberally used.
Rajasthani food has a flavour unique to the state. It is predominantly vegetarian and consist of a lot of variety. The spice content is also a little higher here than the Indian standards that makes the food more delicious. The food of the town-dwellers all over Rajasthan is highly spiced and fried dishes and sweetmeats are common in the daily menu.
Gram flour is major ingredient used here and variety of delicacies like khatta, gatta ki sabzi, pakodi are prepared by this. Powdered lentils are used for mangodi, papad. Bajra and corn is also used in large amount all over the state for preparations of rabdi, kheechdi, and rotis. Various chutneys are made from locally available spices like turmeric, coriander, mint and garlic. In western Rajasthan where water and vegetables are scarce, Bajri ki roti and Lasan ki chutney along with onions form the staple diet of rural people.
Rajasthani cuisine has certain food specialties. Dal-bati-choorma (baked dough balls of wheat flour in dal) and Gatta saag are delicacies prepared generally on ceremonial and festive occasions. An integral part of many of the preparations is the relish ghee, which is frequently used in Rajasthan. Some of the famous regional dishes are-Khaddi, vadi, Rabodi, pachkuta, and sabjis of various ingredient as- Gajar, Beans, Gunwar, Keri, Makki etc. In spicy dishes Mirchibada and Shahi Samosa of Jodhpur are incomparable. One can’t stop eating them although their eyes are watering.
The variety of sweet dishes is also immense and these dishes are not considered as the desert that has to be eaten at the end of the meal. Beside this there is no rationing of the Rajasthani sweets, it could be taken before, after or with the meal anytime. Besides spicy flavours, each region is distinguished by its popular sweet like- Mawa Ladoo and Mawa Kachori from Jodhpur and Jaisalmer, Malpuas from Pushkar, Jalebies from most big cities, Rasogullas from Bikaner, Dil Jani from Udaipur, Mishri Mawa and Ghevar from Jaipur, Sohan Halwa from Ajmer, Mawa from Alwar, Tilpapadi from Beawar. The other sweets that have there own specialty are-Besan-chakki, jhajariya, balushahi, laapsi, nukti, tarfini etc.
Along with this non-vegetarian food is also a specialty here. In the ancient time when the Rajas went on hunting, they used to eat the meat or the fowl that they brought back. Even today, Rajasthani princely feasts flaunt meat cuisines that are incomparable. Non-vegetarian food is also served at weddings and on festive occasions by the Rajputs.. These dishes are famous for it's mouth- watering aroma. Dry fruits, spices and yogurt are used in many delicacies. Even today it is famous that in ancient time cooks tried to impress their guests by exploring at least one unforgettable item in their menu as stuffed camels, goats, pigs and peacocks, which now became a legend. Even now- a days also almost all restaurants try to prepare a special dish that becomes their specialty.
Then the way of serving is also quite different here. The guests are considered as God and are force fed with lot of affection, which is called manuhar or manvar. It is considered extremely rude to just lay the food on the table and expect guests to serve themseleves. Thus Rajasthan had still maintained its traditional value and atticates along with the delicacy of food that one ends up licking his finger and your heart says ‘yes’ while tummy says ‘no’. This is the characteristic of Rajasthani cuisine.