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Hyderabad Wins UNESCO’s ‘Creative City For Gastronomy’ Tag & Twitter Celebrates With Biryani

bySwati Dubey
2nd November 2019
3 minute read

Hyderabad is world-famous for its Chaar Minar and Dum Biryani. But the hub of royal Mughlai cuisine also offers numerous delectable dishes namely Paaya, Keema Samosa, Dum Pukht, Maghaz Masala, Burani Raita, Kebabs, and many more. We, Indians are well-aware of the endless variety of delicious food Hyderabad offers but it has recently bagged coveted world-recognition too!

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Hyderabad has won the title of UNESCO’s Creative City For Gastronomy’. With this, it has become the second Indian city to feature on the list. Mumbai has bagged the title of ‘Creative City For Films’ this year.

Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister, K.T. Rama Rao shared the good news on his Twitter handle.

The food industry in the city reportedly employes around 12% population. According to to Hindu, Hyderabad consumes about 700 tonnes of chicken every day and 2,000 tonnes during festivals. These figures probably played a major role in bringing Hyderabad to the top on the list. After all, massive demand encourages the best competition in the culinary industry with a myriad of delectable recipes.

Chefs and food historians around the country have welcomed UNESCO’s decision of awarding the coveted title to the city.

“The city boasts of the famous ‘kacche gosht ki biryani’ and its meat ‘kormas’, ‘gosht ke kebab’ cooked in cold curd, ‘roti pe boti’, ‘sookha mutton’, ‘nihaari’ and ‘haleem’ are equally popular. The Deccan city is a “melting pot of northern influences and southern flavours”, Delhi Taj Mahal Hotel’s executive chef Arun Sundararaj told HT.

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My favourite type of samosa has to be qeema samosa – spicy qeema, onions, coriander and green chilies all tossed together and folded into a crispy flaky samosa patti. Just what you need with a cup of chai, with mint chutney on the side. It’s a dish that I always make in Ramadan (easy to freeze and essential for the Iftar table) but I always end up making a double batch so I can keep enjoying it whenever I want. Recipe link in bio. What’s your favourite type of samosa? Is it qeema or another type? . . . . . #mirchitales #mirchirecipes #samosa #keemasamosa #keema #pakistanicuisine #pakistanifoodbloggers #pakistanifood #desifood #indianfood #homemade #recipeblogger #hangry #snacks #feedfeed #forkfeed #food52 #food52gram #buzzfeedfood #huffposttaste #sydneyfoodblogger #foodblogger #pakistanirecipes #comfortfood #friedfood

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“Hyderabadi cuisine has borrowed from other culinary cultures like those of Mughals and evolved over the years with the use of local ingredients”, he added.

“The characteristic ingredients or spices of the cuisine include curry leaves, ginger, chili, tamarind, and all local seasonal vegetables. “Compared to the curries in northern India, which are lighter and smoother due to the use of pistachios or cashew, Hyderabadi curries are heavier because they often use ‘khus khus’, coconut or peanuts,” Sundararaj further said.

“Unique to Hyderabad is also the much revered “mirch ka saalan” that is served along with the Hyderabadi biryani. The city’s cuisine is extremely “evolved and intensive in taste”, Corporate Chef, ITC Hotels and Welcomhotel, Manish Bhasin told News 18.

“The Hyderabadi blend of spices cannot be found anywhere else in India. Besides elementary spices like ginger and tamarind, what renders the cuisine its unique flavour are ingredients like ‘ambada’, a sour leafy plant sorrel, dry roasted coconut and saffron. Hyderabad’s very own ‘potli ka masala’ is almost a game-changer,” said Delhi-based food historian Salma Husain.

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🌶️Achari🌶️Mutton🌶️Curry🌶️ l drool just at the mention of the word Achari🤤 which means 'Pickled' and brings to my mind this spicy, tangy and aromatic curry. Always used to make this with the store bought achari spice mix but now have tried making my own achari mix and wanted to share the recipe with you all! 🤗 You can find the step by step tutorial in my highlights👆 and I have also written the entire recipe here👇 TO MAKE ACHARI MASALA: 1 tsp Whole Blk Pepper 2-3 Whole Red Chillies 1 Tbsp Zeera/Cumin 1 Tbsp Coriander seeds 2 inch Cinnamon stick 1 tsp Kasuri Methi/Dry Fenugreek Leaves 1 Tsp Sauf/Fennel Seeds 1/2 tsp Nigella seeds 1/2 Methi dana 1 tbsp smoked Paprika 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp haldi 1 tsp red chilli pwdr FOR ACHARI MUTTON CURRY 2 lbs Mutton 1/2 cup Oil 1/2 cup Yogurt 1 tbsp each of Minced Ginger and Garlic 3-4 Medium sized tomatoes-Pureed Juice of 1 Whole Lemon 6-7 Serrano Chillies – Slitted with seeds removed To make the Achari Masala: (Roast the top 6 spices on the list on low flame for 2 mins and once they cool down gring them corsely and mix with all the other spices. This masala mix can also be stored in an airtight container for future use.) 1. Marinate the meat with yogurt,ginger, garlic and 3/4 of the achari masala for 2 rs to overnight. 2. Add lemon juice to the remaining 1/4 of masala and fill the slit serrano green chillies and keep aside.Puree the tomatoes and keep aside. 3.In a pot on medium high add oil and the marinated meat and cook on high for 10 mins before adding tomato puree and cooking for another 5 mins. 4. Add 1 cup water, turn the heat to medium and cook covered for 45min to 1 hr or until the meat is well done. 5. After the mutton is cooked through add the serrano chillies and cook covered on low for 10 mins. Achari Mutton is ready to serve!!!

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“It is made with sophistication and found nowhere else other than Hyderabad. They dry roast the spices and then grind it. Not only sophisticated, but it also requires a lot of time too,” she added.

Desi Twitter is quite happy with Hyderabad’s win. They are calling it a well-deserved victory.

Chuck dieting, let’s celebrate Hyderabad win with some Kebabs and Biryani!

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