One of the most fascinating winter sweets of Kashi is the centuries - old palangtod that literally translates to bed breaker! Though the name makes one laugh out loud, its taste will definitely leave you speechless. Known to be an expensive sweet because of the time, effort and labour involved, this sweet has been given the... Continue Reading →
Banarasi Khajur (Thekua)
Thekua or khajur as it is known in Uttar Pradesh is a traditional deep - fried sweet offered as prasad during Chhath Puja, Saraswati Puja and Navaratri. Though the dish originated in Bihar, it is now hugely popular in Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh. Thekua is made from wheat, jaggery or sugar, desi ghee, spices and nuts. It has a... Continue Reading →
Banarasi Doodh Peda
A delicious milk sweet of Kashi that has been served as prasad in most of the temples for centuries is the humble doodh peda. Made from full fat milk that is in abundance in Varanasi and Ghazipur districts and areas around the Ganga River, this simple milk innovation is hugely popular among locals and visitors and makes... Continue Reading →
Banaras Lal Peda
Kashi's most iconic milk sweet is the centuries-old Lal Peda that has been praised to the hilt by travellers, food connoisseurs and historians. This traditional dairy product of Kashi is offered as prasad in the Kaal Bhairav Temple, Kashi Vishwanath Temple and Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple. In the olden days, the abundance of milk in the... Continue Reading →
Banarasi Tirangi Barfi
One of the most iconic and celebrated sweets of Kashi is Tirangi Barfi. Also known as Rashtriya Barfi, this unique creation is the handiwork of Shri Raghunath Das Gupta of Shree Ram Bhandar in Thatheri Bazar. The British from the late 1700s right up to the mid - 1940s had managed to successfully loot the ancient... Continue Reading →
Kanpur Badnaam Kulfi
Another fascinating innovation of the late Ram Avatar Pandey, the founder of Thaggu Ke Laddu is Badnaam Kulfi that literally translates to disreputable kulfi with the famous tagline 'मेहमान को चखाना नहीं, टिक जाएगा, चखते ही जेब और जुबां की गर्मी हो जाएगी गायब |' that means 'do not offer it to your guest, for he will... Continue Reading →
Kanpur Thaggu Ke Laddu
The quintessential sweet for festivals, social gatherings and religious ceremonies across India is the hugely popular laddu made with a variety of local ingredients and desi ghee. The most iconic laddu that has made its way to Russia, USA, UK, Asia and Europe is the sinfully rich Thaggu Ke Laddu from Kanpur. Thaggu Ke Laddu... Continue Reading →
Prayagraj Biryani
Prayagraj biryani, rated second-best in India after your grandmother's is an integral component of one's daily diet in the holy city. This traditional delicacy of India is a complex dish of wholesome delicious and flavoursome goodness. Biryani is still prepared in the age-old method of slow cooking with almost all the ingredients procured locally. It... Continue Reading →
Deoghar Peda
Devotees throng the holy city of Deogarh for two reasons namely to have darshan of Lord Bholenath at Baba Baidyanath Mandir and to sample their world-famous prasad, the delectable peda. The temple of Baba Baidyanath, a Jyotirlinga is said to have been built by the Pala Empire (Pala Dynasty of Orissa) and the tradition of offering peda to Lord Shiva... Continue Reading →
Vella Dosai (Jaggery Dosa)
One of the most popular fasting meals of South India is vella dosai (jaggery dosa). This scrumptious dosa is made by Tamilians on the auspicious occasion of Maha Shivaratri, Ekadasi and Shasti. Vella dosai, as the name suggests is made from wheat flour, jaggery and spices. Three-quarter measure of powdered jaggery is dissolved in hot water on low flame. The jaggery water... Continue Reading →
Coorg Pepper
Popularly known as 'The King of Spices' or 'Black Gold', black pepper (Piper nigrum L.) is one of the most important spices of India, valued highly for its medicinal properties. India is the largest producer and consumer of this ancient spice that is used in a variety of cuisines, in the preparation of Ayurvedic medicines... Continue Reading →
Coorg Orange
Kodagu district is known for its exceptional biodiversity and though it is a major coffee growing region located in the Western Ghats with more than 50 percent of the agricultural land essentially coffee estates, native crops like pepper, cardamom, orange and rice are equally famous. The dense forest cover that spreads across more than half... Continue Reading →
Coorg Green Cardamom
An exotic variety of green cardamom, often known as the 'Queen of Spices' has been cultivated in Coorg, on the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats on the Karnataka - Kerala state border for centuries. This native variety known locally as malay yalakki is a variety of the Malabar category and is grown by a... Continue Reading →