Mughlai Cuisine in India.

The Mughal Empire started in India around 1526 after the defeat of Ibrahim Lodhi, Delhi sultanate in the First Battle of Panipat. Babur was the First Mughal who ruled till 1530. He was a sort of Secular and Religious Tolerant leader. He outlawed Slavery as well as the killing of Cows as a source of respect for Hindus. Trade with Persia and other neighbors perished during his time and with it came the Culture and Food of their region. Then Humayun took over after the death of his Father, Babur. He expanded the rule till Punjab and Indus Valley. In between he was forced to leave India and take refugee in Persia due to war but he returned India after the death of his rival. The Dynasty ruled till 1857 with Bahadur Shah II as their last Emperor. 


The Mughals were Direct descendants of the Mongolian emperor, Genghis Khan. Babur's mother had descended from the son of Genghis Khan and the Mongolian system had a complicated and complex history of the Son-in-law system in which the Son-in-law had to move in the wife's house and work with the father-in-law.  As in Hindi, Ghar jamai system. But only the Descents of Genghis khan could be a Khan(Chief Or Ruler), He can only be a noble person with high status and power. 

 Though the Mughals are now criticized for their inhuman practices with some myths of around 100-200 wives. They were moderate in means of some practices as compared to other rulers. Babur was the one who outlawed slavery and the Slave trade during the era as limited to Debt bondage and domestic servitude. The courtesan called Tawaif in the Mughal court was respected and treated with dignity. They were mainly for entertainment purposes of Poetry and Mujra a dance form.
The Mughals along with other Occupations had a great taste in food. It gave rise to New forms of Cuisine with were no present in their homeland as well as in the Indian subcontinent. The Mughals to an extent revolutionised the Indian Cuisine. In history, Aryans were known to as Vegetarians and the Agrarian practice of India also made them Vegetarian to an extent. Grains, Fruits, Vegetables and Dairy products were in most use. Aftermath in the invasion periods, the subcontinent came across many flavors and blends of various types of dishes. 


Greek, Roman and Arab traders brought many tastes and spices on their way, including the Saffron. Coffee too was brought by Arab traders. Persian Zoroastrians when they left Persia(Modern day Iran) had brought Biryani but it was the Mughals who made it more popular. The tandoori over was brought from Afghanistan during the era. The Khansamas or the Chef were known for their experiments and delicious delicacies in the Mughal Emperor. The use of yogurts, Dry fruits, Saffron made the meat more delicious. The Kashmiri cuisine Wazwaan was brought to India around the mid-14th century by Timur, the Father Descend of Babur. The skilled cooks were known as Wazaas who cooked meat into many dishes ranging from kababs to deserts. Some dishes are cooked overnight and are made into large copper vessels. Due to the costly nature of the Wazwaan, nowadays its just cooked during Kashmiri weddings and Functions. 

The Babur, First Emperor couldn't enjoy all the delicacies due to the limited time he remained alive. But after him, Humayun was the first one who reformed the cuisine and bought Dry fruits and Nuts into Sweets, Sauce and rice. The sharbat was truly loved by him and until today many types of Sharbats have been made served in the Parts of the country. Like his father, Humayun too renounced the Killing of Cow due to Hindu Religious practices and replaced it with goat and other animals. The Famous "Biryani" was too reformed during the Era.


 The word has been derived from the Persian word beriyan, which meant fried before cooking. The Dish was always developed and adjusted according to the Geographical purpose. The Mughal, Awadhi(which is derived from Mughal cuisine and upgraded to Dum-style) and the Other regions had developed their own style of Biryani. In modern India there are several more than 50 types of Biryanis each different from each other in the context of taste, aroma, flavors, cooking style and environment. There are many theories of the History of Biryani, Some say that it was brought by Mughals from Persia and some say that the Pilau system of rice was brought from Persia and it was upgraded by the chefs of Mughal kitchen. The Shift of Political capital to Delhi made the people of the Future Delhi enjoy them too. The Nizamuddin Dargah and the areas of Jama masjid are renowned for their Biryani. The Potato in Kolkata biryani has also many stories, one narrates that when Awadhs last Nawab Wajid Ali Shah was exiled he moved towards Calcutta and due to the low presence of Meat in the poorer households of Calcutta they used to replace potato instead of meat. This made the nawab taste buds to rise and he ordered to add the vegetable whenever the dish was prepared. The potato due to its low-yield that period was seen as an expensive vegetable. 


Emperor Akbar was known for his taste in food. He at once used to employ around 200 chefs in his kitchen. And the Number of dishes too used to be around 100 at a time. The dish of Murg Musalam in which the meat is cooked at a slow-flame for hours was invented during his time. The Skewers or Kababs were too made famous in the Mughal era. Though in the Mythological stories of Mahabharata the dish was portrayed, it was more developed during the Mughals. Just like Biryani the Kebabs are also of different types depending on the meat, Sauce, marination and the texture. The Galouti kebabs are mainly famous for their soft texture and due to it, they are enjoyed by all the different ages ranging from kids who don't have teeth and old people too. The theory is the same as the Awadhi Nawab Wajid Ali Shah due to his old age couldn't enjoy the kebabs he ordered the Chef or Khansamas to invent a soft kebab that requires no chewing and also without compromising the taste. There was a competition organized between the khansamah and them melt-in-mouth galouti kebab history began with it. The Tunday kebab has the same history, the chef while making some mixture fell from the roof and lost his arm but still he would make soft-kebabs and due to his broken arm he was known as tunda and it made the Tunday kebab. Kaleji kebab and Tangdi kebab along with many others form a well-known legacy of kebabs in Indian and Pakistan regions.


The Samosa which is found everywhere in the streets of North India is also a part of Mughal cuisine. It originated in the Middle East and Central Asia and from there it moved towards Asia and the African continent. It started evolving in India during the Late-Delhi sultanate though as we see in the Court-poetries of the period. But the Samosa was made by stuffed filling of Meat and later we replaced the filling of Potato instead of meat in India. The first Samosas were spicy and it was added into the family of pastries with the invaders bought along with the Naan-khatai and Khaari. For travelers it was of great use as they would easily carry them on their saddlebags and have them between their tours. Some recipes also include the addition of Almonds and other nuts along with Halwa.
The Sweet dish Jalebi which the whole part of India enjoys too has its origin during the early Mughal days by Persian and Arabian travelers. Zulaibiya is the Arabic word for Jalebi and in some parts of Nepal and India border, it is eaten as Jeri which can be derived from Mughal emperor Jahangir. Halwa and its types are also introduced by the Mughal Traders and Emperors. Gajar ka halwa was the favorite of many courtesans and nawabs. 


The Mughlai cuisine was known for its consumption of time and the involvement of Various Nuts, sauces and Berries too. Meat predominantly used in their dishes but the usage of pork and beef (During the early three rulers ) was somewhat banned. The Tandoor system and the Dum-system were upgraded and the Awadhi cuisine which was derived from the Mughal system and by making some changes and using the Dum-style cooking soo that the flavor and aroma remain inside an air-tight packed vessel. The food was always heavy to the stomach and they used Betel-leaf paan during that period was eaten on a large scale not just as a mouth freshener but also as a Digestive tool and Medicinal properties. The invention of Hookah or Shisha was made into the Mughal court by a Physician who warned them about the effects of smoking tobacco directly. He invented an instrument in which the smoke passes through the water and thus purifies and then to be inhaled through the mouth. Akbar's court was filled with the Hookah in a later period. In the next period the world saw the smoking of hookah as a status symbol and many Turkish and Arabic nations still practice it. In recent years, western nations like the USA has also some homes practicing Smoking through Hookah.


The legacy of Mughal Cuisine can be now only experienced in some restaurants, though it is now only mostly a mixture of Mughlai and Awadhi cuisine some experienced Bawarachis or Khansamas can only make us experience the Taste of Real Mughal Dishes.