{"id":58,"date":"2017-03-22T21:40:19","date_gmt":"2017-03-22T16:10:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/?page_id=58"},"modified":"2026-03-19T09:24:13","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T03:54:13","slug":"the-foodies-guide-to-kashmir","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/?page_id=58","title":{"rendered":"The Original Foodies Guide to Kashmir"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/b><\/center><\/p>\n

If you are not lucky enough to experience the genuine flavour at dinner with a local family, any decent restaurant will offer a variety of Kashmiri dishes. A multitude of restaurants and cafes have mushroomed over the past few years offering travellers an abundance of dining options.<\/p>\n

Tip : Download a food delivery app like Swiggy<\/strong> or Gatoes<\/strong> and let their ratings guide your choice.<\/p>\n

Kashmiri Specialities<\/b><\/p>\n

Wazwan <\/i><\/p>\n

Wazwan is a multi-course lamb-based meal that forms the core of Kashmiri cuisine. The only authentic Wazwan<\/a><\/i> is served on a Trami<\/i> at a Kashmiri wedding. Restaurant versions are unauthentic.<\/p>\n

Hareesa <\/i><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Available only in winter. The best hareesa<\/a><\/i> is homemade. The takia<\/i> opposite the mosque at Aali Kadal serves the best commercially produced hareesa in town. <\/p>\n

The best way to experience hareesa is to have it fresh from the cooking pit very early on a freezing winter morning.<\/i><\/p>\n

Mutton\/Chicken Kanti <\/i><\/p>\n

Kanti<\/i> is the Kashmiri version of the tikka, served as a dish (with fried onion rings) rather than on a skewer. Available at any decent restaurant.<\/p>\n

Qahwa <\/i><\/p>\n

The best qahwa<\/i> (Kashmiri Green Tea) is homemade with saffron and chopped almonds. <\/p>\n

Noon Chai <\/i> <\/p>\n

Noon Chai<\/i> (Pink Salt Tea) is available at any local tea stall.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Fish <\/i><\/p>\n

Kashmir Trout<\/strong> offers fresh trout at their live trout centres<\/a><\/p>\n

Local Bread <\/b><\/p>\n

The traditional bakery of Kashmir has evolved under a strong Central Asian influence and, for a society whose staple food is rice, an amazing range of traditional breads are baked daily in wood-fired tandoors. <\/p>\n

Every locality has its own \u2018Kaandur\u2019 or professional baker who bakes different varieties at different times of the day using recipes evolved over centuries.
\nTip: The tastiest varieties are available in downtown Srinagar. <\/i><\/p>\n

Bread for Breakfast<\/i><\/p>\n

Tsot (girda)<\/i> is a medium-sized round bread.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Lavasa<\/i> is a large unleavened flat bread.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Bread for Tea<\/i><\/p>\n

Tsochvor<\/i> is a small round bread with a soft upper half sprinkled with til<\/em> or khaskhash<\/em> and a crisp lower crust.<\/p>\n


\nTip : Split the bread and feed the filling (goj) to a bulbul (the local nightingale). Butter the upper and lower halves and experience two varieties of bread for the price of one.<\/i><\/p>\n

Baqerkhani\/katlam<\/i> is a bread cooked in layers.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Kulcha<\/i> is a small hard dry, crumbly bread. <\/p>\n


\nTip : Dunk your Baqerkhani or kulcha in Noon-chai and use a spoon to scoop out the creamy mixture<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Speciality Breads<\/i><\/p>\n

Sheermal<\/i> is a dry, crumbly bread with a long shelf life. The best kind of sheermal is available in Pampore.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Khand Kulcha<\/i> is a sweet variety of kulcha. Try khand kulcha from Behram Sahib<\/b> in Anantnag.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Gyov Tsot<\/i> is a slightly larger Tsot cooked with ghee.<\/p>\n

Tilvor<\/i> is another king of bread cooked with ghee. <\/p>\n

Roat<\/i> is a kind of super-size bread gifted with Nabat Not<\/i>, a bowl made of sugar crystals on traditional occasions.<\/p>\n

Street Food<\/b><\/p>\n

Nadur monj <\/i><\/p>\n

Lotus stems fried pakoda<\/i>-style with fiery onion chutney are the Kashmir equivalent of french fries. They are common at roadside stalls along with fried potato slices and mattar<\/i>. <\/p>\n

Best at Kadi Kadal near Jamia Masjid<\/i> <\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

You can buy a bundle of Nadur from a local grocer, split the stems lengthwise and fry without batter till golden brown and crispy.<\/i><\/p>\n

Gaer <\/i><\/p>\n

Roasted chestnuts\/water chestnuts (singhara<\/i>) are seasonally available at roadside stalls.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Masala <\/i><\/p>\n

Kashmiri Black Dal with proprietary mixtures of salt and spices served in cones made of lavassa<\/i> bread. Commonly available at roadside stalls.<\/p>\n

Kulfi <\/i><\/p>\n

Frozen ice & milk sticks. Am Buda<\/b>'s kulfi<\/i> at Bohri Kadal was a regular feature of college summers. These days locals recommend the kulfi made by Gulfishan Bakery<\/b> at Lal Bazaar. <\/p>\n

Pambach<\/i><\/p>\n

Lotus seeds with a watery fresh raw-almond texture. Only available seasonally in and around the Dal Lake.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Makai<\/i><\/p>\n

Roasted corn-on-the-cob (makki, bhutta, challi<\/i>) at Makai Point <\/a> on the Boulevard, or at Narbal crossing <\/a> on the Gulmarg highway. <\/p>\n

Best rubbed over with lemon & salt<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Pickles <\/b><\/p>\n

Senoo Kashmir Pickles<\/b> at Habba Kadal sell an amazing variety of pickles including chicken, mutton, vegetable, fish, mango, cherry, karela, amla, apple, plum and garlic. Not as savoury as my grandmother's pickles, but quite popular. <\/p>\n

Pass the pickled apricot, please!<\/i><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Traditional Sweets<\/b><\/p>\n

Kashmiris are traditionally just not into sweets.<\/p>\n

Phirni <\/i><\/p>\n

Phirni<\/i> is a sweet dessert like kheer<\/i>, but based on suji<\/i> (semolina) rather than rice. The best phirni<\/i>, topped off with saffron threads and chopped almonds, is homemade. Most restaurant versions are rip-offs. <\/p>\n

Halwa<\/i><\/p>\n

Sticky sweet yellow halwa<\/i> is available outside Kashmiri shrines. Try it near the shrine of Dastgir Sahib at Sarai Bala <\/a>.<\/p>\n

Best when rolled up in a slice of the giant parantha available at the same shop<\/i>. <\/p>\n

Basrak<\/i> and Khand Gaazar<\/i> (literally sweet carrot) are traditional sweets available at roadside stalls.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Paan <\/i><\/p>\n

It is impossible to buy a good paan<\/i> in Kashmir for love or money.<\/del>
\nThere is a Banarasi Paan<\/strong> shop on M A Link Road at Munawarabad opposite Baari Carpets.<\/p>\n

<\/b><\/center><\/p>\n

Highway Delights<\/b><\/p>\n

The drive down to Srinagar from the nearest rail head at Jammu offers unforgettable mountain scenery plus the chance to experience some unique local flavours.<\/p>\n

Paneer pakodas<\/i> at Nandini <\/a> are good for an early travel snack.<\/p>\n

Pick up kaladi<\/i> (dried milk cheese) from roadside sellers around Udhampur and relish it golden-fried at your destination.<\/p>\n

The melt-in-your-mouth patisa<\/i> from Prem Sweets<\/b> is highly recommended. Also available at Jammu airport.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

A famous variety of Kalakand<\/i> is available at Chanderkot<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

There can be no better travel lunch than tadka-maarke Rajma-chawal<\/i> with anardana<\/i> chutney at Peera<\/strong>. <\/p>\n

Nomadic Flavours<\/b><\/p>\n

Excellent buffalo-milk Kaladis<\/i> , makki-di-roti<\/i>, and unsalted butter<\/i> can be obtained from nomadic Gujjars in the hills of Kashmir.<\/p>\n

Bonus Recipe<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the most memorable meals you can have in Kashmir is a trout you have hooked, gutted and cooked on-the-go. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

This page<\/a> has a trout recipe fit for a king (quite literally, since the author is the son of the last Maharaja of of Indore<\/i>.)<\/p>\n

Nothing finer, anywhere, indeed \u2026.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Note to travellers<\/b>: Well-stocked departmental stores like the centrally-located Pick n Choose<\/b> in Srinagar carry all kinds of baby essentials and specialty foods so you don't have to carry them along. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If you are not lucky enough to experience the genuine flavour at dinner with a local family, any decent restaurant will offer a variety of Kashmiri dishes. A multitude of restaurants and cafes have mushroomed over the past few years offering travellers an abundance of dining options. Tip : Download a food delivery app like […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-58","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/58","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=58"}],"version-history":[{"count":83,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/58\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1913,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/58\/revisions\/1913"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirnetwork.com\/justju\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=58"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}