Explore the Secrets Behind India's Forgotten Dishes as Revealed  by a Historian

Hidden in the kitchens of India are secrets to the tenderest shami kababs, seviyan and lahsan mirch ki chutney.

Cultural historian Dr Tarana Husain Khan delves into the stories of these forgotten recipes in an attempt to revive them and bring them back into our kitchens and conversations.

Her anthology ‘Forgotten Foods’ (2023) features recipes of historic South Asian dishes and culinary traditions across the subcontinent.

Tarana’s interest in forgotten recipes was sparked years ago on a visit to the Rampur Raza Library when she met a cataloguer who showed her some Persian cookbook manuscripts.

“When I got my hands on the 19th-century manuscripts, I was stunned at the nearly 300 recipes recorded there,” she shares.

There were variations of pulaos, kababs, qormas and sweets native to Rampur.

The more she learnt about South Asian cuisine, the more she was saddened by how these delicacies were being lost and replaced by modern palate choices.

This sparked the idea of Forgotten Foods, an attempt to ensure these dishes are not obliterated from history altogether.

The anthology is a coming together of historians, scholars, plant scientists, heritage practitioners, writers, and chefs who share personal stories behind the dishes whose recipes feature in the book.

It also explores the winding roads that some dishes had through history.

Fun fact: Ladakh was a stranger to rice until about seven decades ago. It was perceived as a luxury item. Now, it is a staple of the Ladakhi diet.

From qiwami seviyan (whose recipe Karachi-based writer Muneeza Shamsie chanced upon after her mother’s passing) to winter staple sarson ka saag (shared by Moneeza Hashmi, daughter of the legendary poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz) each recipe is a window into the past.