Himachal Pradesh is famous for food and a lot more things. It is a North Indian State whose prominence lies in the making of indigenous handicrafts such as woodwork, leather works, paintings, shawls, and many other things. If asked, out of all the handicrafts, which one lives in high demand then the answer to it simply would be Pashmina Shawls. It’s soft and tender texture makes people go crazy over it. The craze for the Pashmina Shawls has always been like an eternal thing.
This state has huge variants with its colorful and amazing sides of customs. Its cultural side includes traditional dances of Nati, Mala, Dalshone, and Cholamba, Shand and Shabu and Demon. These dance forms amazingly showcase the tribal influence in the state.
So we’ve known Himachal to be with these above-mentioned things. But just in case if I tell you that Himachal also has some of the most classic traditional and delicious food to try, would you be surprised? Well read on and explore the food of Himachal Pradesh!
Dhaam
Dhaam is a complete setup of food that includes all the essential components one requires to maintain a balanced diet. Moreover, it captures the criteria of “Healthy food eating” and heads back to the healthy food routine. This food has dal, rajma, rice, curd, boor ki Kadi and the complimentary charm of jaggery (Gur). Apart from that, one of the interesting facts about it is the special chefs who make the Dhaam are known as “Botis”. It is served in the time of festivals, occasions, and puja rituals.
Bhey or Spicy Lotus Stems
Lotus plants are like the most elegant form of nature present in our world. The flower’s beauty, the posture of the whole plant, it’s stout stems and leaves, all together marks a symbol of awe and wonder. This plant feels so good to be looked at. Now, what if I say that, you get to taste it too and the result after tasting it would be wow?! Yes. Indeed it is. Bhey is a dish which is arranged with the lotus stems. The Lotus stems are sliced into slim pieces and then cooked in the existence of ginger-garlic, gram flour, and onions. These ingredients which are added with the lotus stems are an add-on to a spiced and saucy taste.
Babru
A flatbread obtained from the filling of black gram paste and kneaded dough gives a new outlook to Kachoris. It kind of reconstructs the whole working mechanism of that of a Kachori in a fascinating way. After the first bite, the divine taste of crisps and crunches will make you develop a young and fresh combination of emotions that you never experienced before. You can have it with red chili chutney, sweet mango chutney with coconut, or mint cilantro green chutney. But Babru goes best with Tamarind chutney because its taste range from a sweet to a tangy flavor qualifies for the ideal companion for this food.
The Tibetan Dishes
Tracing Himachal Pradesh’s history back to being a Tibetan colony, with its adaptation of various Tibetan concepts and habits including the connection of various Tibetan cuisines such as Tibetan Thukpa, Tingmo, LuchiPoti, Thentuk, Naizha Cake, etc. Some of the staple food types of Himachal have the incites of Tibetan culture. These Tibetan dishes can be found in Mcleodganj and Dharamshala.
Mittha
Mittha has always been like the happy hour for the inhabitants of Himachal. It is like the yummy food angel signifying the ultimate happiness for a perfect life. Mittha is sweetened rice with a mix of various dry fruits. Dry fruits used in it are cashews, almonds, raisins, dried figs, and betel nuts. The lively presentation and the way it is served in the antique bowls manifests the heritage of Himachal Pradesh in an elegant style. So if you are having a sweet tooth just have this dish with absolute amusement.
Chha Gosht
Chha Gosht is made from lamb meat. The preparation starts with the marination of the meat and then carrying on with the further cooking process. Further, in the cooking process, several other ingredients are joined such as a bay leaf, asafoetida, and ginger-garlic paste, yogurt. Then they add a wonderful mixture of spices such as cardamom, gram flour, red chili powder, and coriander powder.
Patande
India is the place where the people don’t shy away from molding the foreign culture into their own style and giving their own Desi version to it. Therefore, Himachal Pradesh went in to redesign the foremost kind of breakfast of foreign people mostly Americans, the none other than- Pancakes! Pancakes were originated in Ancient Greece and since it’s origination it has been dined by people centuries after centuries. It is said that it was invented 30,000 years ago when humans were not considered to be civilized beings.
As a mysterious fact, Researchers have discovered pancakes into the stomach of Otzi The Iceman from the human remains of five thousand years back. Now that’s odd! Okay enough on pancakes. Now lets’s talk about Himachal’s theory and the remaking of pancakes which is Patande. The ingredients are the same as that of foreign pancakes such as wheat flour, milk, and sugar but the shape in which it is made is different. It has the shape of a Dosa and looks like one.
Conclusion
I hope you had a good tour of exploring the food side story of Himachal Pradesh. Take a tour of Mumbai’s street food too, while you are at it. I am sure, you will find it scrumptious too. I hope Himachal’s yummy delicacies with the content of beauty as well as the mistifying history behind the foods led you to have a strong feeling of emotions of pride in India. In conclusion, the next time you visit this state, may you wander in its prerequisite cultures and heritage which makes it stand out from all the other countries.
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