Lucknow: 

Part of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network (UCCN), Lucknow now joins 350 cities from around the world to enter into the culinary elite. The UCCN was established in 2004 to promote cultural innovation and heritage across categories like literature, music, film, crafts, design, and food.

Long celebrated for its tehzeeb, tehreek, and taste, Lucknow, the City Of Nawabs, has added another feather to its cap, this time a global acclaim. The city with a poetic past, dotted with architectural marvels, and serving culinary treasures has officially been recognised by UNESCO as a Creative City for Gastronomy.

“Lucknow’s food is not cooked, it is, like poetry, composed,” says Nawab Masood Abdullah, a member of the royal family. “We prepare 32 types of kebabs here, and each is prepared with distinct herbs and history. In Galawati Kabab alone, 135 spices, are used many of which are derived from ancient Hakimi knowledge,” he adds.

But it does not come as a surprise for a city where food is considered something beyond the mundane, surreal - it is about the soul that understands every grain and strand. It is here that the legacy of Awadhi and Mughlai cuisine, perfected in the kitchens of Nawabs, not only survives but thrives. Be it the aroma of slow-cooked nihari or the delicate bite of sheermal, or even the melt-in-mouth Tunday Kabab. The roots of Awadhi cuisine are believed to have come from the confluence of Mughali, Persian and Indian cuisine.

Shami Kabab came from Jordanian soldiers (from ‘Mulke Sham’) during the Nawabi era, he further informs, adding that Kakori Kababs get their name from the Kakori region near Lucknow. These have delicate texture and aroma and are hallmark of refined hospitality.

Similarly the Tunday Kabab, born from soft meat craving of the royalty was perfected over four generations, and is currently available at the iconic Chowk outlet. The old Hakims (medical practitioners) used to say that these kebabs are a cure for all stomach ailments.

Abubakar, the only custodian of this culinary specialty, explains that raw papaya works like magic in this dish. "Use of raw papaya in brass vessels on coal flame while cooking, and wrapping the final dish in banyan leaves for that earthy aroma is all that is needed,” he explains.

But Lucknow culinary story does not end with kebabs. The city is obsessed with Paan. “Here, Paan isn’t chewed, it is a mood that develops with time," laughs Masood. “It is a ritual, an integral part of the culture, or you can say its a finishing stroke on a royal painting,” he adds.

The deep connection between food and identity in Lucknow has reflected in films like ‘Dastarkhan’, that captured the emotion of Lucknow through its food. Remember the song ‘Dawat-e-Ishq’, that immortalised the passion for hospitality and taste?

Yahya Rizwan, owner of Mubeen Hotel, says that Lucknow's recognition by UNESCO is not just about its kebabs or biryani. "It is about honouring a tradition of slow cooking, delicate spices, and hospitality that runs in our veins," says he.

Lucknow's cuisine is different, unique and unforgettable. Like old wine, it mellows with time and its taste, only doubles.

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