A regional eating tour, from nihari dawn to falooda midnight
The dastarkhwan is the cloth spread for a meal, and Pakistan's is enormous. Every province cooks a different country. Arrive hungry; this unit has no other prerequisite.
سموسہsamosa: samosatravelled from Central Asia, and then into English
پکوڑاpakoṛā: pakoragram-flour fritters, the food of a rainy afternoon
فالودہfālūda: faloodanoodles, ice cream and rose syrup, drunk near midnight
ہلدیhaldī: turmericthe yellow that stains everything it touches
مرچmirch: chillilāl mirch is red, harī mirch is green and worse
زیرہzīra: cuminthe seed you hear crackle when the oil is ready
دھنیاdhaniyā: corianderthe seed AND the fresh leaf, one word for both
ادرکadrak: gingeradrak lehsan, ginger-garlic, is said as one word
لہسنlehsan: garlicits partner, never far behind
پیازpiyāz: onionwhere every curry begins
ٹماٹرṭamāṭar: tomatoyour Sound School retroflex word, back in the kitchen
آٹاāṭā: flourthe wheat flour roṭī is made from. English took it as 'atta'
گھیghī: clarified butterEnglish borrowed this one whole, as 'ghee'
تیلtel: oiltel chhoṛnā, 'to release oil', is how you know the masala is done
گرم مصالحہgaram masāla: garam masala'warm spices', warming to the body, not hot on the tongue
کاٹناkāṭnā: to cutpiyāz kāṭnā, cutting onions, and crying about it
بھونناbhūnnā: to fry and brownthe technique the whole cuisine turns on
ابالناubālnā: to boilpānī ubālnā, to boil water
تلناtalnā: to deep-frywhat happens to samose and pakoṛe
چکھناchakhnā: to tastechakh kar dekheṉ, taste it and see
پکناpaknā: to be cookingpakānā is what YOU do; paknā is what the food does
بسم اللہ کریںbismillāh kareṉ: Begin (say bismillah)how a host tells the table to start eating
تھوڑا اورthoṛā aur: a little morewhat you say. What you get is a lot more
بس بس، بہت ہو گیاbas bas, bahut ho gayā: Enough, that's plenty!said with a hand over the plate. Rarely obeyed
مجھے تیز مرچ پسند نہیںmujhe tez mirch pasand nahīṉ: I don't like it too spicytez = sharp, fast, strong. Say it early
کھانا لاجواب تھاkhānā lājawāb thā: The food was superblājawāb, literally 'beyond answer'. The compliment that lands
اللہ کا شکرAllāh kā shukr: Thank Godsaid after eating, the way grace is said elsewhere
Good to know
✨ Punjab: nihari (slow-cooked overnight stew, eaten at DAWN, breakfast of emperors), paye, sarson kā sāg with makkī kī roṭī, and lassi in clay tumblers.
✨ Karachi & Sindh: the famous aloo-wali biryani, bun kebab from street carts, Sindhi sāī bhājī, and nimco by the paper bag.
✨ Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: chapli kebab (a spiced patty the size of your face, fried in sight of the Khyber), kabuli pulao, and namkeen gosht, meat, salt, fat, perfection.
✨ Balochistan: sajji, whole lamb salt-roasted on stakes around a fire, and kaak, bread baked hard on hot stones.
✨ Mithai is a love language: gulab jamun, jalebi (fried spirals of syrup), barfi, kheer. Good news travels in a box of mithai, job, engagement, exam result, all of it.
✨ Falooda: rose syrup, vermicelli, basil seeds, ice cream, is dessert, drink, and architecture at once.
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