Food and drink of Kayasthas 03: Shab Degh meat which was very tasty and liver of lentils

Often old people will be found saying that what used to be used for grinding spices on stone slabs and spices standing in the pans over the stove, is no longer there. Now everything is readymade, hence the taste which was earlier available in food is not available. Kitchen appliances were different then and different now. At that time, all those old appliances were definitely there in the kitchen of Kayasthas.

There were not many equipments in the kitchen then like nowadays. The grinding of spices was done on silbattas. The seal was stitched from time to time with a chisel. It had a different science. So that the spices can be ground properly on it. There were mortars ranging from iron to stone, in which spices, salt, jaggery and other food items were crushed.

The hand stone mill was used daily. Every kitchen had at least these tools made of stone. There used to be big churners for churning milk and other ingredients. Water was kept in vessels ranging from earthen pots to brass and bronze. Oil and ghee were usually kept in ceramic jars.

Kayastha were able to do all this in food and drink because they had emerged among the Hindu caste structure as a class which had a very liberal and experimental approach regarding their environment, food, lifestyle and culture. He also often became a victim of reproaches. However, this is not the topic of this article.

It is said that during the British era, when Delhi was becoming a big city as the capital of the country, some Mathur from Rajasthan came and settled here. Who introduced Delhi to Kayastha food.

At that time, good food was cooked in Kayastha houses of Delhi.
In Maheshwar Dayal’s book “Delhi which was a city” it was said, “Very good food was cooked in the Kayastha houses of Delhi. Among the Mathur Kayasthas of Delhi, a very tasty variety of meat was prepared, which was called Shab Degh. The meat was cooked on low flame for hours by mixing it with many vegetables and adding many special spices inside it. Fish koftas and adalas, pasandes were eaten daily.”

Read this also – Food and drink of Kayasthas1: How the kitchen of Lalas is decorated, what is cooked in it

Food of Kayasthas 02: From kebabs to new style of biryani which came out of their kitchen

Before proceeding further, let us know about Shab Deg. It is said that this is a Kashmiri dish, which Kashmiri Kayasthas innovated in their own way. The history of Kayasthas says that in the early centuries, there were Kayastha kings in many princely states and states of Kashmir. Once upon a time, some branches of Kayasthas used to live in Kashmir. Then a lot of work was done on food and drink also.

Shab Degh Kofta Curry Recipe that is slow cooked overnight
Shab Degh is a traditional Kashmiri kofta curry dish cooked with turnips in a heavy bottomed degh or handi over coal fire. Now this recipe has definitely become a forgotten thing but some Kayastha houses and Kashmiris have preserved it. Traditionally Shab Degh was cooked using a slow cooking method, where a large cauldron with all the ingredients was placed on the fire. It was left to ripen overnight. Usually served with rice, naan or sheermaal, this dish is rich in every way. This can also be called a special Kashmiri Kofta curry dish.

Did the saying ‘this mouth and lentils’ originate from the delicious dal of Kayasthas?
Maheshwar Dayal’s book says, “Arhar, urad and lentil dal were also prepared very well in the houses of Kayasthas. Each grain of pigeon pea and urad dal was clearly visible. In Kayastha houses, ground gram flour was also prepared as a vegetable. They used to prepare a round roll of gram flour, boil it, prepare it into round rolls, cut it into round pieces and grind them to make a juicy vegetable. It was considered so delicious that it was from here that the saying, ‘Ye muh aur masoor ki dal’ became famous.”

Lentil liver and lentil mince
In the book “Real Food of Delhi”, Preeti Narayan says, “Mathurs prepared vegetarian dishes on the lines of goat maang and liver. The lentil was soaked and its pithi was prepared, from which lentil liver and lentil mince were made. While koftas were made from any vegetable, banana pasada was made from raw green bananas.”

Potato Kulla and Mutton Kofta
In a TV program related to the food habits of Vinod Dua, I saw that while enjoying the cooking of Mathur Kayasthas living in Civil Lines of Delhi, he displayed many of their special dishes. In which there were dishes of Aloo Kulla (Stuffed Potatoes), Shami Kebab, Mutton Kofta and Chana Dal.

Kayasthas and Muslims mostly ate non-vegetarian food.
Nirmala Jain writes in the book “Delhi City by City”, “Barring a few castes, the majority of people in Delhi were vegetarian, hence most of the confusion happened in those dishes only. Muslim and Kayastha families predominated among the non-vegetarian communities. After partition, Sikhs and people of other communities coming from Punjab also joined them in large numbers. “Samish food outlets were confined mainly to Kayastha and Muslim families or to the street markets around Jama Masjid.”

Some Kayasthas also opened hotels in Old Delhi.
Vivek Shukla, an expert on Delhi and who regularly writes columns about Delhi in Navbharat Times, told me, “Delhi is still full of Mathur Kayasthas. “Almost everyone eats non-veg.” Another late friend of mine, Sanjeev Mathur, told, “My maternal grandfather had a famous hotel in Old Delhi at the time of independence. Whose memories are linked to Bhagat Singh, Chandra Shekhar Azad, INA, Baba Saheb etc. Not only this, there is a lot on the relationship between food and traditions.”

Tahiri, Taka Paise and Masarang
Responding to the food habits of Kayasthas, Ranjana Saxena said, “I am also a Kayastha and that too from Old Delhi. Even today we are enjoying the food and culture of our Kayastha Havelis. Like Tahiri, Taka Paisa, Keema Kofta, Masrangi and also Harira made for the mother.” (will continue)

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Tags: food, food business, Food Recipe, Prayagraj cuisine