Lucknow's Home Cooked Food Festival Brings Authentic Awadhi Cuisine to Public Space
The vibrant city of Lucknow recently witnessed a culinary celebration as Awadhi cuisine moved into a shared public space at 'The Home Cooked Food Festival'. This unique event served everyday food prepared in households across Lucknow, highlighting the recipes, techniques, and flavors that continue to shape the city's living culinary culture.
A Feast of Home-Style Delicacies
The festival featured an extensive menu that delighted both non-vegetarian and vegetarian guests. For non-vegetarian enthusiasts, the offerings included:
- Boti kabab
- Murgh kofta salan
- Murgh zafrani
- Murgh chatkhara
- Kayasthana gosht
- Lal mirch ka qeema
- Calcutta dish curry
Vegetarian visitors were treated to lavish thalis representing various culinary traditions:
- Awadhi thali
- Lucknawi thali
- Punjabi thali
- Marwari thali
- Rural thali
Each meal was followed by traditional desserts, completing the authentic dining experience.
Emphasis on Authentic Home Cooking
In keeping with this year's theme, 'Raabta: Lucknow-Kolkata', noted culinary expert Manzilat Fatima presented her signature mutton rezala at the event. "It is important to bring the Lucknow-Kolkata connection to people through food," she emphasized, highlighting the cultural bridges being built through culinary traditions.
The festival maintained a clear focus on food that is staple in homes and daily life rather than royal reinterpretations. Home chef Imrana Azmat, who presented chatkara chicken, explained, "These are dishes I make at home and learnt from elders. The taste comes from practice, not measurements."
Traditional Techniques Make the Difference
Throughout the festival, traditional cooking methods were prominently featured:
- Slow cooking techniques
- Dum cooking methods
- Hand-ground spices
Visitors consistently noted the clear difference these traditional approaches made in the final dishes. Chef Sheeba Iqbal, who served qeema biryani and mutton korma, stated, "These are authentic home-style dishes that represent our culinary heritage."
Another home cook, Farheen Iqbal, shared her emotional connection to the food: "The dishes remind me of food we used to eat at home. You don't get this taste outside."
Widespread Appreciation from Visitors
The festival received enthusiastic responses from diverse attendees. College student Ananya Singh found the food familiar and balanced, while an elderly visitor, Shekhar from Alambagh, expressed his satisfaction: "This is how Awadhi food is supposed to be."
Cultural Enrichment Through Urdu Poetry Competition
Alongside the culinary celebrations, Lucknow also hosted a 'Baitbazi' competition of Urdu poetry in Antakshari format. This event drew attention to the literary depth and cultural inclusiveness of the Urdu language.
The competition required contestants to recite sher (couplets), testing their command of vocabulary, memory, and understanding of Urdu poetry. Participants included:
- Ayesha Siddiqui
- Parveen Shuaib
- Reshma Parveen
- Najma Noorani
- Qamar Rahman
- Rahana Ali
- Meena Irfan
- Atiya B
Judges Dr. Fatima Rizvi and Prof. Qamar Jahan oversaw the competition. Prof. Jahan made an important observation about Urdu's unique position: "Urdu is the language of masses. Unlike India, most Muslim countries don't use Urdu as their language, irrespective of religion."
Together, these events created a rich tapestry of Lucknow's cultural heritage, celebrating both its culinary traditions and literary excellence in public spaces.
