In the royal kitchens of Rajasthan, as well as most other states, food is a very serious business and raised to the level of an art- form. Rajasthani cooking was influenced by the war -like lifestyle of its inhabitants and the availability of ingrediants in this region.
Food that could last for several days and could be eaten without heating was preferred, more out of necessity than choice. Scarcity of water, fresh green vegetables have all had their effect on the cooking. In the desert belt of Jaisalmer, Barmer and Bikaner, cooks use the minimum of water and prefer, instead, to use more milk, buttermilk and clarified butter.
Dried lentils, beans from indegenous plants like sangri, ker, etc are liberally used. Gram flour is a major ingrediant here and is used to make some of the delicacies like khata, gatta ki sabzi, pakodi, powdered lentils are used for mangodi, papad. The daily food in Rajasthan typically comprises unleavened bread, made of wheat, barley, millet or maize. |
