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ON THE TRAIL OF A FORGOTTEN FLAVOUR - IRANI CHAI TO HI-TECH CITY
By M H AHSAN
When the toothy waiter in the latest Bollywood grosser ‘Cheeni Kum’ served a dish full of Hyderabadi Zafrani Pulao (pronouncing it in the weirdest South Indian accent possible) and Amitabh Bachchan rattled out its ingredients to perfection, it took many Hyderbadis around the world by surprise. While the Hyderabadi biryani is a popular dish on all menu cards and buffet tables, not many have even heard of a Zafrani rice speciality that is native to the city of Nizams.
So started our quest to learn more about this dish that played a lead role in the movie and which the heroine Tabu, a native of Hyderabad, was so proud of whipping up to its authentic flavour. Our hunt to know more about this dish took us to the traditional Muslim families of the city, far away from five star restaurants and hotels that boast of offering exclusive Hyderabadi cuisine.
And that’s where we learnt that the Hyderabadi Zafrani Pulao is as much a native of Hyderabad as the ‘kachche gosht ki biryani’, but while the latter gained popularity and made its way into cookbooks and restaurant menus, the pulao remained an essential part of wedding daawats of traditional Muslim families.
Wondering what the land of biryani has to do with pulao? Experts in Hyderabadi cuisine in the city say that both pulao and biryani in a way mean the same. While the word pulao was what old timers used for their rice specialities, the term biryani has not only caught pace but also overtaken the humble pulao only about 50 years ago.
While today a happy news is followed by the usual question “biryani kab khila rahe ho?” Earlier it was daawat with pulao that was a real treat. However, there are also connoisseurs in the city who say that there is a subtle difference between biryani and pulao based on its style of cooking.
In traditional Hyderabadi cuisine, there were two types of pulaos that were a mandatory part of the main course, a ‘safed pulao’ (white rice pulao topped with boiled egg) and the other zafrani (saffron) or Zarad (yellow) pulao (which was made with saffron to give a yellow tinge to the rice). The Hyderabadi Zafrani pulao is usually made of tender mutton, rice, garam masala and other spices red chillies, a little yogurt, ginger and garlic, lime, nuts and not forgetting the exotic zafran that is mixed with hot milk and ghee and is added in each layer of rice before the lovely orange strands are used as garnish on top.
In its authentic style, it is accompanied by chicken ‘salan’, ‘bagara baingan’ and ‘dahi ki chutney’. Vegetarians needn’t feel they are missing out on a delicacy because par boiled potatoes are an excellent substitute for mutton. While both the Kashmiri and Lucknowi cuisine have their own versions of the Zafrani pulao, the Hyderabadi version of the pulao is said to be different.
While cooked meat and semi cooked rice are used in the Kashmiri and Lucknowi styles of cooking, the Hyderabadi version is supposed to be the only one of its kind where the rice is cooked and the meat raw. Moreover, it is spicier and a slightly sour pulao, thanks to the Andhra influence and the corresponding use of red chilies and tamarind.
Mumtaz Khan, an expert in Hyderabadi cuisine who is instrumental in taking our delicacies to other parts of the world through food festivals, says: “Zafrani pulao tastes best when made in large quantities. What is important is the right proportion of ingredients and masala and the right way of preparing it.
“Earlier, the ‘phukwani’ was used by cooks to listen to the simmering of water to see if the meat is cooking fine. But such practices are not followed these days.” She distinctly remembers how each time the Zafrani pulao is made, its aroma filled the home and how guests came back the next day after a function to have the baasi pulao as the spices tasted divine then.
Quadar Ali Nasri, a connoisseur of Hyderabadi cuisine feels, “It’s not that the Zafrani pulao is not being made, but who can afford to make it in its authentic style with three kg mutton for one kilo of rice and lots of saffron? With the rising prices of saffron where one gram costs about Rs 85, people have started using colour to give it the yellow tinge and the zafrani touch has completely disappeared.”
And now, nobody seems to have even heard of it. It’s not just the Hyderabadi Zafrani Pulao that has been forgotten, there are over 40 rice varieties that were cooked regularly by the old timers in the city as part of their meals, which have gradually been overtaken by the popular biryani varieties.
Whether it’s the Sufiani pulao, where the chicken is soaked in milk and cardamom or Khubuli, a vegetarian treat with ‘channa dal’, there are many such hidden treasures of Hyderabadi cuisine that remains to be unearthed. Old timers in the city who feel that these rice wonders would disappear from the face of the city after they are gone hope that restaurants experiment with their menu and build a palate among people for other varieties of rice rather than just the popular types of biryani. But, if one were to surf the internet for recipes of Zafrani pulao, it’s described as a dessert (sweetened rice with saffron) with loads of nuts and ‘shudh’ ghee.
But Hyderabadi cuisine experts disagree with its name and vouch that Zafrani pulao is an entirely nonvegetarian specialty. Nahin Sultana Jafri, who teaches Hyderabadi cuisine in the city, explains: “People are just confusing the name when they refer to Zafrani pulao as a dessert.
It is actually Zarda, a North Indian term for a rice sweet with Zafran and nuts. It might look Zafrani but is not so. “In Hyderabad, this dessert is called Muzafir (which has chaawal and sevaiyan versions) and is essentially made during occasions when there is no pulao in the meal.
Like an old timer adds, ‘Korma Ki Achaadi’ and ‘Pulao Ki Pichaadi’ are the best parts of a meal because of its fat content, reminding us of the richness and variety Hyderabadi cuisine offers. We surely don’t need a movie to remind us of what was once so much a part of our food and culture. And remember, its not just ‘cheeni kum’, the Hyderabadi Zafrani pulao is a completely sugar free and spicy treat!
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