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Food Stories Of Madhya Pradesh

Madhya Pradesh, a state which is the center of Culture and Tradition since ancient times. Don’t you want to know interesting facts about its delicacies? Read here>>

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Madhya Pradesh, a state whose food story is tied between linked milestones of its history; a state where one can see the shine of jewellery in the day and feel spiciness of various Chats and other street food items in the night; a state which re-establish Temples and Ghats situated in different corners of India; a state where a dynasty captivates its history in the dishes coming from caldron (Deg).


A state situated in the Centre of India, Madhya Pradesh is also known as “Heart of India”. Madhya Pradesh is that part of India where one can see footprints of human history in the 30 thousand years old Bhimbedika Caves.
In the map of Madhya Pradesh, we can witness beautiful Temples of Khajuraho as well as very popular Pilgrimage of Ujjain.
Cities like Indore and Bhopal of this state gave a new identity to this state by their unique etiquette and culture. Even, relics of 1.5Lakh years old from B.C are found in different parts of Madhya Pradesh.

In the 6th Century in presence of Lord Buddha, a spirit of great culture and tradition was spread in Madhya Pradesh.From always, Madhya Pradesh is the important and well-developed state. During Mughal Rule and even after depletion of Mughal Rule, Madhya Pradesh was the center for many small as well as big Dynasties. Few of them were like independent states like Indore, Gwalior, Bhopal, and Rewa. Influence of these dynasties can be seen very easily all over Madhya Pradesh, even today. 

As far as talking about Food of Madhya Pradesh, so here we can see the impression of many combined cultures and traditions. And Food of Indore is not only famous in Madhya Pradesh, it is popular all over the Nation. And the development of this food had been taken place during the rule of Holkar Gharana.
From the historical point of view, 18th century’s Rani Ahilya Bai Holkar is popular all over the country for re-establishing pilgrims like Somnath and Kashi Vishwanath Temples. But Between Indore and Maheshwar, the effect of this Raj Gharane can be seen in their food habits as well as on their living standard and style.

The importance of this Holkar Gharana is that they are those people in the Dynasties of India who used western outlook in their Living and Culinary Style very soon. And few important ladies who were there in their Raj Gharana were foreigners. And the art of serving an Indian Food with beauty was developed in Indore. And since, Holkar Rajas were living in Foreign for most of the time and they were very fond of food too, so the influence of foreign (of French or British) can also be seen in their Kitchen and on their Delicacies.

Even during British rule, people of Holkar Raj were living happily. Varieties of unsurpassed dishes like Pulao, Raita (Yogurt) and Saag were being prepared in their Kitchen and these are such dishes which are being remembered until today.

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But one dish which was prepared by using corn that is Bhutte ki Kheesh gave a new level to the hospitality and prominency of Holkar Gharana and also, made them popular among other Gharanas of the nation. It is believed that starting of this Kheesh was taken place in the Malwa area of Madhya Pradesh. And after 19th Century, this dish came to Indore. This Bhutte ka Khees is prepared after frying outworn corn (Khees) into Ghee or oil.
Although, there is a culture of eating food which could be prepared by using Monsoon Vegetables and Fruits and it is kind of big ritual there.

Another gift given by Holkar Raj Gharana to Indore is of Sarafa Bazaar (Sarafa Market). This market is a market of Diamond and Jewellery during daytime but with starting of the evening, it becomes the market of Street Food for the food lovers and tourists.

During initial days, businessmen’s who sold Diamonds and Jewellery reached here from the different part of the nation. They got good money in exchange of their diamond or ornaments. As this becomes a great place for getting good quality diamonds and other jewels, so Joharis also started sitting here and since they are capable of making beautiful Jewellery pieces from raw materials, this place is good for their earning too. Each work that happened here is of Bend(Jadau) and Epideictic(Numaishi) type.
And when this place gets established properly, so people’s start coming here whenever they want to purchase any Jewellery item. As not everyone is capable or want to buy something, few peoples came here just for roaming or window shopping or for eating something like today also, it is not mandatory that if we go to the mall we have to purchase something, we go for refreshing our mood or just to eat something in a food court.
So at that time, it becomes a praxis/custom that after Jewellery shop’s get closed, few people get there with their food items to be sold in their moving cart or in their khomcha.

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Rorty/Interesting thing is that either it is Lucknow or Vanaras or Bhopal, people who eat CHAAT were local businessmen present in their shops during the afternoon or closing time or were those women who just get free from their household work and came for a walk along with her friends during the afternoon.

With time, it becomes regular that these street food shops/Sarafa Bazaar/Khau Gali is open until late night (till 1 to 2 A.M.). Also, local people of here came here with their guests to show their famous market which opens for this late and also make them taste varieties of offerings of this market like Khees, Poha, Basundi, Jalebi, Chaats, Sabudana Vada, etc.

And where in Shahi Kitchen’s of Holkar Raj Gharana, Corn is used in the making of Bhutte ki Khees; in Sarafa Market, using this corn a type of snack is prepared by frying that is Bhutte ke Pakode. This item is loved by the customers during the day as well as during the night.

We talked a lot about food items that can be prepared from this Corn. But talking about Crop of Corn, it is actually a South African Crop and which was being eaten in India even before 16th Century.

Other than these tasty Bhutte Ke Pakode, you can also eat every single type of Chaats in Sarafa Bazaar.

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But one winter food item that is Garadu is the very lovable snack of here. For tasting these Garadu, peoples came from different-different corners of India. Garadu is actually a root-like Jimikand which can be eaten after getting frying and then sprinkling a special Masala(Spice) on it. This Special Masala of Garadu is a mixture of Amchur(Unripe Mango Powder), Kala Namak(Black Salt), Kali Mirch (Black Pepper) and many other granulated Garam Masalas. And this Special masala just doubled the taste of this dish.


Along with many such fried food items, you can also find many sweet and spicy dishes in Sarafa Market. Either its night food item Dudh-Jalebi (Milk-Jalebi) or its day-night food item Dahi-Bade, many colours of taste could be seen in these streets.

The journey of Sarafa Market is incomplete without tasting Joshi Ji’s Dahi-Bade. And as much spicy their Dahi-Bade that much customers enjoy his spicy talks. This shop of Mr. Joshi was originally established by his grandfather, so this shop is 65 to 70 years old.

Taste of food of Indore is not limited to Kitchen of Holkar Raj Gharana or streets of Sarafa Bazaar. Instead of this, there are many small-small places and tehsils who have their own different delicacies. 
One such family is of the Zamindar's (Landlord's).

These Zamindaars know about their history with the help of Farman's(Orders) that Mughal Emperors used to gave in written and other Old Documents that his ancestors kept with all safety.
Many Zamindaars have such documents in which you can get dates before 1704 years.
And even today, these Zamindaar Families posses/continue their family profession of farming.   Effect of what, we can see in their cuisine also. Where in the whole country, Raja, Subedar and Thikane daar eats non-veg dishes without hesitation, in Zamindar's Kitchens today also only vegetarian dishes are being prepared.

And One special dish of their’s is Rasaal, which may be you cannot find anywhere else in the country. And this Rasaal is prepared by using Rice and Sugarcane. Since, Sugarcane yields very well in the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh and from this sugarcane Jaggery is produced by boiling sugarcane juice for a long time.
And in old times, sugar was not present so Jaggery comes up as its substitute and during winters also, consumption of Jaggery is considered very good for health. So, for making Rasaal half cooked rice is added to Sugarcane juice (half boiled) and then cooked for 3-4 hours on low heat and by the end rice properly absorbs all the sugarcane juice which gives it a never forgetting taste. Dry fruits like Almonds (Badam), Pistachios (Pista) are also added to it in the end.
These Zamindaars eat this Rasaal once it offered to God Ganesha as Bhog.

By the way, originally crop of this sugarcane is found in the nearby island of Australia, Papua New Guinea. And its use in India was seen from the time of Sindhu Ghati Sabhyata.

Other than Rasaal, one dish of Zamindar's whose roots are found in an Arabian Dish Harees is Khichda. Where in Maharashtra, Khichda and in Hyderabad, Haleem is cooked along with meat but in Zamindar's Kitchen this Khichda is prepared with Wheat, Kala Chane (Black Gram), Jaggery and Ghee.They used to serve this Khicda, first to Goddess and then eat it.

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Food Story of Madhya Pradesh is incomplete until we talk about Daal Bafla. These Bafla’s are is quite similar in looking to Baati (Delicacy of Rajasthan)or Litti (Delicacy of Bihar) and are prepared from Wheat and Corn Flour. And in Madhya Pradesh, it is been eaten along with Aarahar or Urad Daal(Pulses). Like Rajasthani Dish Daal Baati, Daal Bafla is also Safri Food (Food that one can take along with himself when going for a long journey), which Business persons took along with him as this dish won’t get spoil till 7 to 10 days.

Either it is simple Daal Bafla or royal food of Zamindar's; either it is mouth-watering dishes of Sarafa Market or dish cooked in Holkar’s Kitchen, there are many layers of taste in the Food of Madhya Pradesh.  

Different colour and taste of Delicacies of Madhya Pradesh unfold it's each fold one by one for Food Lovers came from all over the world.

There is no doubt about one thing, that behind dishes or cuisine of any place, an important role was played by the Ruling Gharanas/Dynasties of that particular place at that time.
And on the food of Madhya Pradesh, this type of influence can be seen by the Jahanuhma Gharana who is living in Bhopal and once upon a time their ancestors ruled here. In the Kitchen’s of Jahanumha Gharan, who found their roots in Afghanistan, a number of such dishes were been cooked and these dishes were popular in each corner of the country for their aroma and taste. Yakhni Pulao, Shahi  Pasande are few popular dishes of this Gharana.

One dish of this Gharana is Bhopali Pasande with whose taste no other royal kitchen can compete. Pasande is actually a Mughlai Dish which is prepared with a boneless uncut meat. And where North Indian Pasande is prepared like a curry dish, Bhopali Pasande is prepared without curry. After marinating, it is cooked with Fried Onions and roasted grams, then spices, khopra, and almonds were added to it. It was cooked overnight on low heat after covering cooking utensil with aluminum foil.

Another Mughlai Dish which Jahanuma Gharana had been taken from North India is Dal Ghosht. In this dish, Ghosht is been cooked in Mash, Masoor or Urad Pulse on medium heat of Coal. And usage of Coal for cooking it added a unique taste and aroma to it. This Bhopali Pasande is so tasty that it is possible that your stomach gets full after eating but your intention to eat more never get satisfied.
It is believed that invention of this dish took place during Delhi Saltanat and Mughal Rule when common people can’t afford to buy meat in a large amount and then to fulfill hunger of a big joint family, the pulse is added to it.

During King’s/Gharanas rule, another dish which had its place in their royal Kitchen is Yakhni Pulao. Yakhni is actually a name of a soup. And in this dish also, first a soup is prepared by using Gosht and then a packet of Coriander(Dhaniya) and Fennel(Saumph) from cotton cloth is prepared and added into meat (ghosht) along with Ginger, Garlic and Onion and little Garam Masala.  Once Yakhni is prepared, it is mixed with rice and further cooking will be done by Dum process.

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Even though today, it’s not that era of these royal kitchens but even today when these protected recipes cooked with same precision in these kitchens, then with the heat of Coal, that old time is also re-live again when with Kings and in his Kitchen’s many stories were also cooked along with food.

Food of Madhya Pradesh is as much popular as Temples of Khajuraho and City of Lord Mahakal, Ujjain.And on the food of Madhya Pradesh, there is also a great impact of each and every Royalties and Dynasties, who once ruled or lived here.

Rewa Dynasty of BaghelKhand is the same kind of dynasty which is taking care of history of their food from 100 of years.

History of Baghelas(Vaghelas) started from Gujarat; when they were in Gujarat, they are used to called Solanki’s and even today Solanki Rajputs living in Gujarat. But one squad which moved from Gujarat to Rewa and get settled in initially in Bandhavgadh and later on in Rewa. And in Rewa, they are called as Baghelas.

From the ritual of hunting in Baghelkhand, an invention of Bagheli Chicken took place.
In Bagheli Chicken, spices were added to it in a completely different way, first of all, spices gets roasted and before that Bagheli chicken gets marinated. And it is believed that if cooked it in pure Desi Ghee, then its taste just reach up to another level.

Other than Bagheli Chicken, pulse prepared by mixing other 5 pulses known as Indraahaar is also famous in BaghelKhand. This pulse is quite similar to pulse Panchmael found in Gujarat and Rajasthan in terms of it’s cooking style.
It is believed that it is food (ahaar) of Lord Indra, from where it got its name Indrahaar. As in Baghelkhand, crops of pulse yields in large ratio, so it is very common in BaghelKhand. Five different pulses that were used in this are as follows Tur, Chane, Masoor, Moong and Aarahr Pulse. All these pulses first grind using Sil Batta (grinding stone/ tool) and then left for a night to get fermented. So that it turned out to be a type of cake and then after cutting and frying it, it can be used in a number of other ways other than this Indrahaar. You can use it in Kadi; you can cook it as Sabji; you can use it as snacks, so it is a very nutritious dish.

Food of Madhya Pradesh makes us remind that living proof of our history can be witnessed in form of our food.

That’s all in Food Stories of Madhya Pradesh. Hope you like this food story of heart of India, Madhya Pradesh.

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