Kebabs, biryani and much more: Indian city on Unesco culinary list

Mouth-watering kebabs, fragrant biryani and whipped cloud-like desserts.

The northern Indian city of Lucknow has always been a food lovers' paradise, with locals and visitors swearing by its cuisine.

Last month, Unesco recognised it as a Creative City of Gastronomy - adding it to a select list of global cities and kindling hopes that it will spotlight Lucknow's sublime food. With this designation, it joins a global network of 408 cities across more than 100 countries committed to promoting "creativity as a driver of sustainable urban development".

The recognition "is a testament to its deep-rooted culinary traditions and vibrant food ecosystem", Tim Curtis, director and representative, Unesco Regional Office for South Asia, said.

"It honours the city's rich cultural legacy while opening new avenues for international collaboration," he added.

Lucknow is only the second Indian city - after Hyderabad which was selected in 2019 - to find a place in this coveted list of 70 cities globally.

The accolade for my home city doesn't surprise residents or food lovers - many echo celebrity chef Ranveer Brar's take: "Better late than never. It should have come before."

With the Unesco recognition, my beloved, chaotic, eclectic city - the capital of India's most populous state, Uttar Pradesh - is finally in the spotlight for what has always defined its soul: a passion for food.

Madhavi Kuckreja, founder of Sanatkada Trust which is spearheading a project on the Kitchens of Lucknow, told the BBC that what gives the city's food its distinct flavour is the slow pace and the time taken to cook a dish.

"'What will be cooked, how will it be cooked?' is a continued conversation from waking up until going to bed in most homes. And you are actually judged by the quality of food that comes out of your kitchen," she says.

But this focus on food is not new and many of the dishes that have come to define the city's cuisine have been around for hundreds of years.

The City of Nawabs - as it's popularly called after its 18th and 19th Century wealthy Muslim rulers - is known for its melt-in-the-mouth kebabs and a distinctive take on biryani that were created, evolved and taken to sublime levels in their kitchens.

These royal kitchens were centres of culinary innovations, blending the Persian and local Indian styles to create what became the cuisine of Awadh - as the region was then called.

It was during this time that Lucknow's most famous kebabs were fashioned. The story goes that the mutton galouti kebabs that have defined the city amongst visitors were created to feed an ageing nawab who had lost his teeth. His cooks minced the meat with papaya, saffron and spices and made it so fine and silky that it needed no chewing.

But perhaps the biggest contribution of the cooks of Awadh was the slow-cook Dum pukht technique where food is cooked on a low, slow heat, with the pot's lid tightly sealed with dough.

It was popularised during the 18th Century reign of Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah - the region was in the grip of a famine and he initiated a work-for-food programme. Large cauldrons with rice, vegetables, meat and spices were sealed to make a one-dish meal.

The story goes that the Nawab caught a whiff of the aromas emanating from the pots, demanded a taste and the Dum technique was officially adopted in his kitchens.

This technique was revived and commercially popularised in modern India by the late chef Imtiaz Qureshi, recognised as an Awadhi cuisine maestro and the force behind present-day iconic Delhi restaurants Bukhara and Dum Pukht, which are included in Asia's 50 Best Restaurants list.

Besides the obvious kebabs and biryani, the cooks also built up a repertoire of dishes that included kormas (curries), sheermal (saffron flat bread) and shahi tukda (bread pudding).

But Lucknow is not just about kebabs and biryani - the region is also a vegetarian's paradise.

The local Baniya community's traditionally strictly vegetarian cuisine not only celebrates seasonal produce but also gives the city its highly curated Indian desserts and sweets and unique street food, like chaat - spicy, tangy fried snacks.

Almost at every corner, there are little shops and kiosks, the little-known hidden gems that are popular with the locals.

In the city centre of Hazratganj, huge crowds start milling around from 5am at Sharmaji Tea Stall to get a steaming cup of milky masala chai, served in clay glasses, along with pillowy soft buns lathered with hand-churned white butter.

Morning walkers, political strategists and journalists gather around this nondescript shabby shack, which has been operating since 1949 and is now a legacy tourist attraction.

For breakfast, one can head to Netram - a no-frills joint operating in the old city area of Aminabad. Nearly 150 years after it was set up in 1880, the place is still much sought-after for its hot kachoris (fried bread stuffed with lentils) and jalebis (crispy sweet made of deep-fried fermented batter and soaked in sugar syrup).

Its sixth-generation owners - father Anmol Agarwal and sons Anoop and Pranshu - continue to safeguard the process and craftsmanship behind every recipe. An automobile engineer by education, Pranshu is passionate about his legacy. "This runs in my blood. There is nothing else I would rather do," he says.

The city also offers unique seasonal delights, such as makkhan malai, a unique cloud-like dessert, in the winter. The process of making it is scientific and complicated. The cook hand-churns the milk and then leaves it out at night, exposed to the dew that gives it its incredible frothy texture.

On cold mornings, street vendors can be seen lined up in old city areas like Aminabad and Chowk. Many, however, say that their children do not want to learn the art.

Chef Brar, who is also from Lucknow and has been an unequivocal advocate for its food, has often said that the city's rich food legacy places it right on top of the pile of the Indian street food experience. But the real value from the Unesco recognition, he says, will occur only if Lucknow can now create awareness about its lesser-known eateries.

Ms Kukreja says every dish in Lucknow tells a story - shaped by generational food businesses, from humble street carts to bustling restaurants, and guarded family recipes.

The international acclaim, she hopes, will encourage more people around the world to learn these stories and visit the city to savour the culinary delights of Lucknow.