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

This happened many years ago. Coming out of the locality of Kayasthas in Banaras, the smell of meat cooking outside every house was filling the nostrils. The cousin who was accompanying me looked at me and said angrily, “When I went out to the locality of Lalwan on Sunday, I came to know that mutton is cooked in every house.” This is really true.

A large number of Kayasthas live in the orderly market of Banaras. When you leave the localities here in the afternoon on Sunday, the smell coming from every house will tell you what is cooking inside. This is the condition of almost all the places in eastern Uttar Pradesh, where Kayasthas live in large numbers.

This is the reality. Even now in North India, if you go to a Kayastha’s house on Sunday, you can definitely find meat cooking in the kitchen. In eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand, Kayasthas are also called Lala. Part of the special identity of Kayasthas spread across the country is their food and drink. When meat is prepared in Kayastha’s house on Sunday, men generally take the responsibility of preparing it. I have seen all my relatives doing this work very well.

I come from a family where no one on my father’s side eats meat. On mother’s side, my grandfather was a staunch satsangi but my grandmother was very fond of it. In Jaunpur’s maternal grandmother’s house, every Sunday the grandmother’s kitchen was always shifted beyond the main kitchen, the utensils were also different. Because she used to cook meat that day. How did she make it? How delicious it was, this story continues. In which I will discuss about the kitchen and food habits of the Kayasthas of Eastern Uttar Pradesh.

Although many books have been published on the food habits of Kayasthas, one special book in it is “Mrs. Alice’s Table”. Its author is Anukthi Vishal. She has eloquently talked about all the dishes which are prepared from the Kayastha kitchen and serve on their dining tables. Let me also make it clear here that the dishes that I will mention are generally taken by the Kayasthas from the Mughals, the British and the regional cuisines, they themselves innovated some and developed some in their own way and adapted them into special flavours.

How did Kayastha kitchens flourish?
It is believed that the special tradition of delicious food in India has originated from the kitchens of Kayasthas. There are many types of surnames among Kayasthas. Mathur Kayasthas have contributed more in the real traditions and customs of food and drink. He did a lot of innovation regarding food. If the food in the kitchen of Kayasthas is a fusion of Mughal cuisine, then also their association with the British during the later British Raj. However, Srivastava, who lives in Eastern Uttar Pradesh, especially Allahabad, Lucknow, Banaras, Gorakhpur, Azamgarh and Jaunpur, does not consider himself any less.

One of my bosses often used to discuss the wonderful food of Kayasthas in meetings. He believed that Kayasthas should run a hotel because of their excellent food. He used to say that if Kayasthas revive the old food tradition, then no one can do this work better than them.

Working with the Mughals, the mines were further enriched.
Although the history of Kayasthas dates back to the first and second centuries, in the early centuries they ruled many states or princely states from Kashmir, but they could not find that place in the mainstream of history. However, the community of Kayasthas mainly came into limelight when the Mughals came to India. Then new methods of reading, writing, consolidation and court work started in Persian. Kayasthas quickly learned Persian and became employees and officers in the administration, finance departments and courts of the Mughal emperors.

What did the Mughals eat and drink?
There is a book by author Ashok Kumar Verma, “Social Background of Kayasthas”. She says, “When the Mughals came to India, the Kayasthas started living like Muslims. Their eating habits also became like those of Muslims. He used to eat everything except beef. Used to enjoy Mughal food. He was a drinker.” Moroccan traveler Ibn Babuta, who came to India in the 14th century, wrote in his travelogue i.e. Rihla, “The Mughals had a special fascination for wine. It is said about Akbar that he was a vegetarian and a ruler who stayed away from alcohol. Used to consume meat only occasionally. Aurangzeb had passed a law against the consumption of alcohol. However, his unmarried sister Jahanara Begum used to drink a lot of wine. Which used to reach him from abroad also.

Kayasthas have always been fond of food and drink
Times have changed. The traditions of eating and drinking are changing. Harivansh Rai Bachchan wrote in Dashdwar Se Sopan Tak, “My blood is filled with hala because of my seven generations, of course I have never even touched it.” Kayasthas have always been fond of food and drink. But he did all this with style. Even today, if you talk to old Kayastha families or those who belong to those families, they will tell you how the chambers of Kayasthas were decorated with excellent food, songs, music and classical tunes. Just as it is believed about Bengalis that in every Bengali house you will definitely find people who eat well, sing and read, something similar has been said about Kayasthas.

Ooh, what a delicious style of stuffed dishes!
The style of stuffings and all types of parathas that you see in food now, definitely originated from the kitchen of the Mughals, but its real Indianization was done by the Kayasthas. When the Mughals came to India, the original vegetables they found here included vegetables like bitter gourd, bottle gourd, ridge gourd, parwal and brinjal. His chief cook chose bitter gourd and parwal for Dastarkhwan because he thought it would appeal to the Mughal emperor and his family. But he did one more thing. By making an incision on these two vegetables, he emptied them from inside. Roasted meat was added to the minced meat and cooked in the tandoor.

Of course the taste was amazing. Kayasthas cooked it in their own way. He stuffed bitter gourd, brinjal and parwal with a mixture of spices like fennel, cloves, cardamom, celery, cumin and coriander and onions. Till a few decades ago, spices may or may not be available whole in any other house, but in the houses of Kayasthas, they were present in separate jars or small boxes. He had an idea of ​​the specialties of every spice.

Grinding on cob and then lightly roasting
Talking about fillings. The dry spices were ground on a mortar along with onion and garlic. The prepared paste was roasted on the pan. Then it was stuffed with bitter gourd, brinjal, parwal, potato, chilli etc. and fried for a long time in a pan with oil. The pan was covered in such a way that the fumes coming out of the roasted vegetables were absorbed. The flame was medium so that it does not burn. In between, a ladle was stirred on it with such gentleness that the flame was visible everywhere. Even today, if you taste these stuffed dishes prepared in the Kayastha kitchen, you will be amazed. The style of stuffed brinjal is such that as soon as it comes on the tongue, it will start mixing with the salty sweetness. It will give a delicacy and then its stuffed masala mixture will start dancing like a dance. Parwal stuffed will be a little flaky from outside and deliciously spicy from inside. Bitter gourd stuffed is a little soft from outside, a little bitter and delicious from inside.

In fact, for the first time in the country, Bharvas started in this style in the kitchens of Kayasthas. Every spice also had its own medical significance. It has even been said about the Mughals that whenever the chief chef of the Mughal kitchen was preparing any new dish, he would always consult the royal physician about the spices. (will continue)

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Tags: community kitchen, food, Food Recipe, Prayagraj cuisine