Awadhi Cuisine Has No Biryani

Despite its modern association with Lucknow, biryani was not considered part of the formal Nawabi dastarkhwan. Historical accounts of Awadhi court cuisine identify the Tora, a ceremonial spread centred around dishes such as Shahi Mutton Korma and Shami Kebab, as the true expression of Nawabi dining traditions.

• Biryani was not part of the formal Nawabi banquet tradition.
• The ceremonial Nawabi spread was known as the Tora.
• Shahi Mutton Korma was the centrepiece of the Tora.
• Shami Kebab was considered the "national kebab" of Awadh.
• Awadhi cuisine prioritised depth, aroma and restraint over intensity.
• Dum cooking and edible perfumes (meetha ittar) were central to this philosophy.
• Hakims influenced recipes through medicinal and nutritional principles.
• The decline of the Awadhi court after 1856 disrupted many traditional culinary practices.
• Modern Lucknowi cuisine preserves parts of the tradition, but much of the original system has been lost.

Was Biryani Actually Part of the Nawabi Dastarkhwan?

Most people associate Lucknow with biryani. The connection is so strong that the dish has become synonymous with the city itself.

Yet the most authoritative texts on Nawabi cuisine suggest that Biryani was not regarded as the centrepiece of formal courtly dining. Instead, it occupied a more informal position within Awadhi food culture.

The formal Nawabi banquet revolved around an entirely different culinary structure: the Tora.

Sources

• Dastarkhwan-e-Awadh
• Jashn-e-Oudh

What Was the Tora?

The formal Nawabi spread was known as the Tora.

Its centrepiece was the Shahi Mutton Korma, a dish that Awadhi bawarchis refined over generations. Historical descriptions state that a properly prepared korma should possess "the shine of pearls"—a quality standard used to evaluate the dish's finish and texture.

The Shami Kebab was another indispensable component of the Tora. Historical accounts describe it as the "national kebab" of Awadh, appearing consistently at formal banquets.

The Tora represented more than a collection of dishes. It embodied the culinary values of refinement, technical precision and restraint.

How Was Awadhi Cuisine Different From Mughal Cuisine?

Awadhi and Mughal cuisines are often treated as identical traditions. They are not. While Mughal cuisine frequently emphasised richness, intensity and bold spice expression, Awadhi cuisine pursued a different objective:

How can maximum depth be achieved without aggression?

The Nawabi culinary tradition valued subtlety. Complexity was expected to emerge through balance rather than dominance. No single ingredient was meant to overwhelm the others. This philosophy ultimately produced many of the techniques that became synonymous with Awadhi cooking.

How Did Dum Cooking Work?

The most important answer to this challenge was dum. A vessel would be sealed with flour dough. Charcoal was placed beneath the pot while live embers were positioned on the lid.

This created a closed cooking environment where steam continuously circulated through the dish. The result was not simply slower cooking. It was a system designed to trap, redistribute and intensify aroma throughout the food.

Why Did Awadhi Food Use Edible Perfumes?

One of the most distinctive features of classical Awadhi cuisine was the use of meetha ittar. These edible perfumes were made from ingredients such as:

• Kewra
• Rose
• Saffron
• Sandalwood

Unlike modern flavouring agents, they were not applied after cooking.

They were introduced during the final stages of dum cooking, allowing their aromas to integrate directly into the dish.

This is one reason authentic Awadhi food possesses a fragrance profile that differs from many other Indian cuisines.

How Were Perfumers Involved in Awadhi Cooking?

The development of meetha ittar was not solely the work of cooks. Historical accounts suggest that royal khansamas collaborated with Lucknow's attar makers, creating an unusual exchange between culinary and perfumery traditions. The result was a cuisine in which aroma functioned as a structural component rather than a decorative one. The boundary between cooking and perfumery became intentionally blurred.

Why Were Hakims Involved in Designing Food?

The court physicians of Awadh, known as Hakims, played an important role in shaping culinary practices. The famous Nehari is often linked to Hakimi prescriptions and restorative food traditions.

Ingredients were selected not only for flavour but also for their perceived physiological benefits.

Examples include:

This approach treated nourishment and flavour as interconnected objectives.

Did Wajid Ali Shah Inspire the Galouti Kebab?

According to widely cited historical accounts, the Galouti Kebab emerged during the reign of Wajid Ali Shah, the last Nawab of Awadh.

When the Nawab lost his teeth and could no longer comfortably eat traditional kebabs, his cooks reportedly developed an extremely tender mince preparation softened with raw papaya.

The goal was simple:

To preserve the experience of eating kebabs without requiring chewing.

Whether viewed as culinary innovation or courtly devotion, the story reflects the extraordinary precision of Nawabi food culture.

What Happened to Traditional Awadhi Cuisine After 1856?

The annexation of Awadh by the British in 1856 transformed the culinary ecosystem that had sustained Nawabi cuisine. Royal kitchens disappeared. Court patronage collapsed. Master cooks who once worked within palace systems were forced into commercial food businesses.

Many traditions survived. Many others became economically impossible. The casualty was not merely a set of recipes. It was an entire knowledge system.

What Was Lost?

Several elements gradually disappeared from mainstream practice:

• Meetha ittar as a culinary ingredient
• Hakimi nutritional logic
• Traditional sourcing standards
• Long-duration preparation methods
• Integrated relationships between cooks and perfumers

What remained were fragments of the larger system. Dum survived. Many spice traditions survived. But much of the original philosophy faded.

What Still Survives Today?

The story is not entirely one of loss. Traditional attar makers continue to operate in Lucknow. Kewra water, saffron extracts and classical aromatic preparations remain available. A small number of classically trained cooks continue to preserve older techniques. Historical works such as Dastarkhwan-e-Awadh and Jashn-e-Oudh continue to document the culinary traditions of the region.

FAQ

Did Nawabi cuisine include biryani?

Biryani existed within Awadhi food culture, but historical accounts suggest it was not the centrepiece of the formal Nawabi banquet tradition.

What was the Tora?

The Tora was the ceremonial Nawabi spread, centred around dishes such as Shahi Mutton Korma and Shami Kebab.

Why did Awadhi food use ittar?

Edible perfumes were incorporated during dum cooking to create layered aromas that became integrated into the dish itself.

What makes Awadhi cuisine different from Mughal cuisine?

Awadhi cuisine prioritises restraint, aroma and balance, whereas Mughal cuisine is often characterised by greater emphasis on intensity and richness.

Are traditional Awadhi cooking techniques still alive?

Some techniques survive, but many practices tied to palace patronage, attar-making collaborations and Hakimi culinary logic have largely disappeared.

Sources & Further Reading

• Dastarkhwan-e-Awadh
• Jashn-e-Oudh
• Bhandare & Khan (2022), study on perceptions of authenticity in Lucknowi cuisine
• Historical accounts of Wajid Ali Shah and Awadhi court culture
• Research on Hakimi culinary traditions and Nehari