India’s diversity is not only evident in its multi-religious, multi-lingual people but also the vast variety of cuisines that Indians relish. No matter where you stay there is always that one particular food item that will remind you of your hometown- one delicacy that defines ‘home’ for you. We wondered what would be the defining food items from each of the 29 states of India and came up with the following list:
1. Maharashtra – Misal Pav
Misal Pav – A water based curried preparation of cooked sprouted lentils, served with Pav and lemon wedges
2. Punjab – Makki Di Roti & Sarson Da Saag
‘Makki Roti’ is a corn meal Indian bread that tastes fabulous with ‘Sarson saag’ – mustard green and a glass of lassi.
3. West Bengal – Kosha Mangsho
A velvety gravy with juicy pieces of meat served with maida luchi (pooris)
4. Gujarat – Dhokla
Dhokla is a vegetarian made from a fermented batter of rice and split chickpeas. It is served as a snack with tangy chutneys.
5. Kashmir – Rogan Josh
Rogan Josh is an aromatic lamb dish with flavours of browned onions, various spices and yoghurt. It is usually served with steamed rice.
6. Tamil nadu – Pongal
Veg Pongal is a rice lentil dish that is often prepared in south Indian homes as an offering to the goddess. But it is also a comfort food that is very easy to digest.
7. Assam – Papaya Khar
Khar is a completely off beat dish prepared out of the unusual combination of red rice, beaten pulses and raw papaya along with traditional Assamese spices.
8. Bihar – Litti Chowkha
Litti Chowkha is baked from wheat flour dough that is stuffed with a mixture of roasted gram flour, spices and lemon juice, and served with chokha (baked and pulped vegetables).
9. Himachal Pradesh – Dham
Dham is a dish prepared by cooking red kidney beans (rajma), green lentils (moong daal) and rice in curd. It is served teamed with mash daal, boor ki kari and sweet and sour sauce made from tamarind and jaggery (gur).
10. Andhra Pradesh – Pootha Rekulu
Pootharekulu literally means coated sheets of sugar preparation. Pootharekulu are made by making thin wrappers prepared from rice flour, pure ghee and lots of powdered sugar.
11. Telangana – Biryani
Biryani- more famously the Hyderabadi version- is prepared in the form of kachay gosht ki biryani and dum ki biryani.
12. Goa – Fish Curry
Xit Codi meaning curry rice is the deliciously tangy fish curry served with steamed rice or roti.
13. Uttarakhand – Kafuli
Kafuli is a thick gravy preparation made from green leafy vegetables. Kafuli made of Spinach leaves is the most common preparation.
14. Tripura – Chakhwi
Chakhwi is a healthy recipe that is a tasty mix of bamboo shoots, jack fruit and pork.
15. Manipur – Kangshoi
Kangshoi is a soupy stew of seasonal vegetables, coarsely chopped onions or spring onion, dried or fried fish pieces and water.
16. Meghalaya – Jadoh
Jadoh is red hill rice cooked with pork pieces. It is a khasi version of biryani.
17. Kerala – Appam
Appam is a type of pancake made with fermented rice batter and coconut milk.
18. Madhya Pradesh – Bhutte Ka Kees
Bhutte ka kees is a spicy grated sweetcorn dish from the land of magical chaats, Indore.
19. Rajasthan – Dal Baati Churma
Dal Bati Churma is a traditional Rajasthani treat with the spicy dal with the sweet churma along with deep fried crunchy batis.
20. Haryana – Bajre Ki Khichdi
Bajre ki Khichdi is a porridge (khichdi) made of coarsely crushed pearl millet and is eaten with pure ghee or sesame oil.
21. Arunachal Pradesh – Thukpa
Thukpa is boiled noodles, filtered and mixed with vegetables and meat items.
22. Sikkim – Momos
Momo is a type of South Asian dumpling that is served with a chilli based dip.
23. Karnataka – Bisi Bele Bath
Bisi Bele Bath is a dish in which the sambar dal and rice are cooked together with tamarind and spice powders.
24. Nagaland – Pork with Bamboo Shoots
Pork with bamboo shoots is simply a dish that is cooked with dry bamboo shoots, loads of chillies and herbs, . This dish tastes heavenly with boiled rice.
25. Mizoram – Misa Mash Poora
Misa Mash Poora is a sea food delicacy with roasted shrimps that get even better with a squeezed lemon.
26. Odisha – Chenna Poda
Chhena poda is the quintessential cheese dessert made with chhena.
27. Chhatisgarh – Chila
A chila is a North-Indian crepe made out of chickpea flour. You can have your chila with chutney or roll it around a stuffing like Tofu Crumble.
28. Jharkhand – Rugda
Rugda also known as Phutka in some areas of Jharkhand is a variety of mushroom. The subzi tastes great with rice or poori.
29. Uttar Pradesh – Kabab
Kebabs are simple treats made of deep fried minced meat.
