is an epitome of India's composite heritage. It is a confluence of several cultures and identities, Indian and foreign, but with a compelling identities. Indian and foreign, but with a compelling identity all its own, so wondrously compelling identity all its own 400 years ago by its founders, Sultan Mohammed Quli. His invocation for the city was that "millions of men and women of all castes, creeds and religions (should) make it their abode, like fishes in the ocean". In the same spirit, he first named the city Bhagnagar, after his Hindu consort Bhagmati. Later, when the queen was conferred the title of Hyder Mahal, he renamed the city after her to Hyderabad. This book takes you on a short and somewhat sentimental journey to Hyderabad, allowing you to take in the city's charming history, experience its enchanting culture and its somewhat overdone social graces and above all, savour its exquisite cuisine. Like the city's heritage, culture and language, Hyderabadi food is a fusion of several inputs. It blends the class and refinement of the north with the sauce and spice of the south. The repertoire is rich, vast and seductive, both in vegetarian and non-vegetarian fare, and boasts of several varieties of kebabs and biryanis, and curries and dals. This is the first authentic magnum opus on Hyderabadi cuisine and is ornamented with several brilliant photographs. Pratibha Karan was born in Bombay and grew up in Bombay, Calcutta, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi. She did MA (Economics) from Lady Shri Ram college, Delhi University and then joined the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in 1967. She is presently working in the Ministry of Industry in the Government of India. Exposed to various regional cuisines since early childhood, and also to Burmese cuisine because her parents had settled in Burma for over three decades, she developed an abiding predilection for food of various flavors and textures. Her marriage to Vijay Karan brought her face-to-face with Hyderabadi cuisine, to which she took an instant and passionate fondness. This book is an articulation of an intensely precious culinary and cultural experience. This book is an articulation of an intensely precious culinary and cultural experience.

Savour The Tantalizing Flavours Of Andhra Cuisine While Hyderabadi Cuisine With Its Distinctive Mughlai Flavour Is Famous Around The World, Food From The Other Parts Of Andhra, One Of India S Largest And Culturally Most Diverse States, Remains Relatively Unknown. In This Addition To The Penguin Series On Indian Food And Customs, The Author Brings Together For The First Time The Different Tastes Of Andhra Cooking From The Humble Idli-Sambar To Spicy Seafood Delicacies. Along With The Recipes She Recounts The Traditions And Rituals Associated With Food, Such As The Right Order In Which To Serve The Dishes, A Typical Menu For An Occasion Such As Ugadi, And The Sweets Indigent On Certain Auspicious Days. From The Dishes Traditionally Prescribed For Pregnant Women, To The Festivities Surrounding Birth And Marriage, Bilkees I. Latif Describes With Knowledge And Flair The Cuisine And Customs Of Her State. The More Than 200 Recipes, Lucidly Written And Easy To Follow, Include: Amrit Phal Badam Ki Jaali Gil-E-Behisht Luqmi Meed Godavari Avakkai Bagharey Baingan Gosht Ka Achar Kachi Biryani Zarda-E-Aamba

The biryani is India’s most beloved dish—one that has spread to all the four corners of the country and assumed many forms. It originated in the Mughal courts, flowering in the jagirs of Awadh, and it is in Lucknow, Delhi and the small Muslim principalities of north India that one finds the classic versions, subtle, refined, and delicately flavoured. Pratibha Karan gives us not just the definitive recipes from these regions but unearths rare and old dishes such as a biryani made with oranges, Rose Biryani and Kebab Biryani. In the south, the biryani has an equally distinguished lineage, if not more so. There are the blue-blooded biryanis of Hyderabad which include gems such as the Doodh ki Biryani, Keeme ki biryani and Bater ki biryani. Away from the royal courts, the biryani has adapted itself into a spicy local delicacy in Tamil Nadu, with many towns like Salem, Aambur, Dindigul boasting of their own signature version of the dish. Kerala too is home to many - a prawn biryani spiced with curry leaves and aniseed, a mutton one laced with star anise. There are as many stunning variations in the east and west—Goan biryanis using vinegar and olives; unusual dishes from the Parsi and Sindhi communities; Bengali adaptations using fish and mustard seeds, even a dish from Assam! Immaculately researched, full of extraordinary recipes, and beautifully designed and photographed, Biryani is the ultimate book on this princely dish.

For Doreen Hassan, Hyderabad is not just where her roots lie, it is also the city that informs the way she and her family lead their lives.Known and loved for their legendary hospitality for over four decades, Doreen and her husband, Peter Toghrille Hassan, have preserved a way of life, a culture and a cuisine with great affection and pride in their cosmopolitan home in Delhi, passing their love for food, family and friendships to their children and grandchildren.This is not a collection of Hyderabadi recipes that stops at the biryani or the Mirchi ka Saalan or kebabs or Shahi Tukra. It is a personal story a tribute to the city that Doreen calls home.Over the decades, she has archived priceless family recipes from her husband's storied Hyderabadi family. The result is an astonishingly rich record of culinary history, which speaks of a city that absorbed influences from across the world and made them its own.

Dals have been an essential part of the human diet for centuries and they are an integral part of Indian cuisine. There are many enticing varieties of dals to choose from. Pratibha Karan, in The Book of Dals, takes you on an incredible journey to different regions of the country and shows how locally available spices and herbs, vegetables and fruit impact the food of that region. The variety of dals and dal-based dishes that you can make with these are phenomenal and mind-boggling. This book offers many varieties of beautiful, fragrant and beguiling dals that will have anyone savouring them in raptures. From the southern India, you will find Telangana Sambar, Khatti Dal and Dalcha with Vegetables and Meat. They are made using delicious combinations of chillies, tamarind, cloves, cardamom, pepper, coconut, curry leaves and drumsticks. It also has recipes such as Kootu from Tamil Nadu and the famous Bisi Bele Huliyana from Karnataka. You will also find Lentils in Coconut Milk, Katachi Amti and Moong Sprouts from Maharashtra, and Dhansak, a Parsi dish, from Gujarat in western India. Dals from eastern India such as Chana Dal Bengali-style and Assamese Mati Maa are included. From the northern India, Delhi Rajma and Punjabi Dal Makhani find a place in the book. This book is not limited by borders. It includes exotic dal recipes from the neighbouring countries like Nepal and Sri Lanka, and some delicious and wholesome dal-based soups too.

-Features recipes passed down through generations, originating from the Nawab families of undivided India -Contains archival and current family photographs, relating to the culture of states across the length and breadth of India -Comes with an included 'Kitchen Copy' featuring recipes for you to recreate at home -Will be of interest to Indians and the Indian diaspora, as well as anyone who enjoys Indian cuisine Mughal emperors governed their vast empire with the help of nawabs - a title they bestowed on the semi-autonomous Muslim rulers of India. Over a period of time these nawabs became powerful rulers in their own right and created a distinct culture of their own, with food being one of its most everlasting legacies. Heavily influenced by Mughal staples and cookery techniques, the nawabs refined their cuisine by adopting local flavours, from the refined palates that dominate the table at Rampur and Avadh to the incredible array of delicacies from the kitchens of Bahawalpur and Khairpur, now in Pakistan. For the first time, Dining with the Nawabs allows you a rare opportunity to visit the tables and palaces of these families, to learn more about their lifestyles and their love affair with gourmet cuisine. This special edition also comes with a 'Kitchen Copy', containing some of their most beloved family recipes that you can recreate in your own homes. The families featured in this book continue to be the proud custodians of this culinary legacy. They share recipes which have been passed down for hundreds of years within the confines of the royal kitchen. In these recipes and stories, which depict food as the epicenter of traditions and customs, the larger story of an ancient philisophy and a way of life is revealed. Today, Indian food all over the world is synonymous with Mughalia and Nawabi cuisine. Biryani, pulao, kebab, korma, kofta, dumpukht and other dishes of the time have all made their way from a shahi dastarkhwan into every home. The families featured here each have their own signature version of these dishes; much like the flower which grows in different soils and emanates a different fragrance, these meals are at once part of a shared heritage and strikingly unique.

A home baker for over 20 years, food stylist and photographer Deeba Rajpal put her passion to the test when she decided to blog about her adventures in the kitchen. Soon, her simple yet delectable dessert recipes accompanied by beautiful, evocative imagery struck a chord with people across the globe, turning her blog, Passionate about Baking, into one of the most popular blogs in the country. Inspired by her blog, this book is a collection of some of her most loved chocolate dessert recipes for every kind of indulgence. With healthy, tasty yet easy-to-make chocolate delights -- from tarts, tea cakes and cupcakes to cookies, traybakes and cakes for special occasions -- and simple tips and tricks, Deeba shows you how working with chocolate can be oh so fun!