Unlike conventional cuisines, a traditional Bohri cuisine starts with dessert. In\ufb02uenced by the tastes, \ufb02avors and culinary practices of Gujarat and the Middle East, the Bohri cuisine has \ufb01nally started to generate a following in the Indian gastronomic scene<\/p>\n
When I was about 10 years old, I was asked by a classmate what religion I belonged to. I responded by saying I am a Bohri Muslim. My classmate probed further and asked what that meant and I had nothing more to add. When I returned home that evening, it was the \ufb01rst of many times that I began to ask more pointed questions to my parents about our community\u2019s roots. All through my adulthood I have wondered why our identity, culture and cuisine remained a mystery to many. Especially our food, which has several similarities with tastes of Gujarat, where our ancestors first settled, and also includes dishes popular with other Muslim communities of India, yet has an identity of its own. Equally interesting are our culinary traditions, which are followed even today.<\/p>\n
In the Bohra community, meals start with dessert, followed by a small appetiser and then the main course. Bohris eat out of a large steel plate called the thaal around which diners (about seven to eight) sit, on the ground, shoulder to shoulder. It is a highly territorial experience where we break the thaal (\ufb01guratively) into several pieces, like pizza slices, and serve ourselves the dish that is served at the centre of the plate. Before the meal begins, the thaal is prepared with a set of condiments at the perimeter and a namak dani (a small container of salt) at the centre. Condiments can range from a mint and coriander chutney, kokum and potato salad and pineapple boondi raita (a salad with curd dressing) to a bowl of lemon wedges, pickled onions with jalapenos, Bhavnagri chillies stu\ufb00ed with mustard paste and peanuts.<\/p>\n
The delicious lagan ni seekh \u2013 a popular Bohri dish made with marinated minced mutton set in a casserole and topped with beaten eggs before being cooked carefully over a slow \ufb02ame.<\/p>\n
Before the \ufb01rst course begins, the youngest person sitting at the thaal is encouraged to pick up the namak dani and o\ufb00er salt to the rest. The idea behind starting a meal by tasting salt is attributed to its anti- bacterial properties but more importantly to its ability to activate our taste buds before the actual meal begins. Afer the salt tasting, we consider it auspicious to begin the meal with a sweetened rice dish called sodannu (100 grains of rice). Cooked with ghee (clari\ufb01ed butter), this fragrant dish represents the Bohri tradition of kharaas-meethas, where we alternate savory with sweet. This is done to constantly reset the palate and make sure that each course is packed with \ufb02avors. Bohri legend also says that having a little bit of sweet between the meal aids digestion.<\/p>\n
The more ambitious Bohri thaals either replace the sodannu or follow it up with ice-cream or a sou\ufb04e. This is followed by the \ufb01rst round of starters (or kharaas) \u2013 usually a plate of smoked mutton kheema paui samosas (\ufb02avored and smoked minced meat stu\ufb00ed inside a hand-wrapped \ufb01lo pastry). We take our food very seriously; a fact proven when you see a seasoned Bohra community member squeezing a few drops of lemon into a samosa (a deep-fried triangular savoury pastry stu\ufb00ed with spiced vegetables or meat) before biting into it. The logic being that the lemon\u2019s acidity activates the smoke treatment given to the meat. The samosas can be accompanied with a second kharaas \u2013 a Russian cutlet (shredded chicken in a gooey white sauce with mixed<\/p>\n
vegetables, rolled in breadcrumbs and egg and deep-fried to crispy perfection.) Sometimes our Gujarati roots stand out, especially in the naariyal kebab. This kebab is made out of desiccated coconut and garlic and is served with kokum chutney. Once the kharaas is over, the meethas (sweet treats) course is served.<\/p>\n
A\uf603er resetting the palate with the sweets, arrives the sumptuous raan in red masala \u2013 a leg of goat, marinated in spices for over two days, which is common in Bohri cuisine that believes in cooking in a slow, patient manner. The raan is marinated in the quintessential ginger and garlic paste with dhania (coriander), jeera (cumin), turmeric and a dash of chilli powder. Just before being prepared, it is marinated again for a few hours in curd and then cooked for two to three hours on a high \ufb02ame until the mutton is melt-in-the-mouth soft. It is served with salli wafer (potato sticks) and coriander garnishing. A Bohri chef will avoid placing a carving knife with the raan \u2013 the idea is that the chef is so con\ufb01dent about the dish, that he\/she knows that the meat will come o\ufb00 the bones with just bare hands. We like breaking bread or raan together as a community. The raan can be followed by the khichda or the Bohri variant of haleem. In this dish, various pulses are ground together and cooked with boneless mutton for around eight hours. This rich dish goes best with khammi roti, a traditional \ufb02atbread common among most Muslim communities.<\/p>\n
Finally, the one or two sweet dishes later, the jaman or the main course, is served. It is usually a traditional dum biryani (a rice and meat dish) cooked with potatoes. In a country as vast and diverse as India, there are uncountable cooking styles, each more distinct and interesting than the other. It is, however, the traditional ways in which it is served that brings out the feeling of cultural integrity. The sense of harmony and the familiarity that comes with sharing a plate of food with friends, family and acquaintances is what allows us to celebrate our many di\ufb00erences together and in style!<\/p>\n
MUNAF KAPADIA
\nMunaf Kapadia is the CEO (Chief Eating O\ufb03cer) at the Bohri Kitchen, a homestyle eatery where 14 people are treated to a mouthwatering six-course meal. Munaf let go of his 4.5 year career in Online Advertising to pursue his love for the culinary arts and keep his mother occupied with her sincere cooking skills.<\/p>\n
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Unlike conventional cuisines, a traditional Bohri cuisine starts with dessert. In\ufb02uenced by the tastes, \ufb02avors and culinary practices of Gujarat and the Middle East, the Bohri cuisine has \ufb01nally started to generate a following in the Indian gastronomic scene When I was about 10 years old, I was asked by a classmate what religion I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":65839,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3085],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-65838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-india-republic-day"],"yoast_head":"\n