Dishes here
Butter chickenTandoor chicken in a rich tomato and butter sauce, a dish Delhi claims as its own. Have it in Daryaganj, where the story starts.Chole bhatureSpiced chickpeas with puffy fried bread, Delhi's big breakfast. It's heavy, so don't plan a long walk straight after.Amritsari kulchaCrisp, buttery flatbread stuffed with potato, paneer or mixed vegetables, baked in a tandoor. This is the one to fly for.Galouti kebabMinced meat kebab so fine it falls apart on your tongue, the dish Lucknow is proudest of. Eat it with a paratha in Chowk.Litti chokhaBaked wheat balls stuffed with sattu, roasted gram flour, served with smoky mashed vegetables. It's Bihar's signature dish, so try it from a street stall.LassiThick yogurt drink with a slab of cream on top, served in a tall steel glass. Treat it as a meal.JalebiFried batter spirals soaked in syrup, eaten hot alongside bedai to balance the spice.Mughlai parathaFlatbread layered with egg or meat, sold around Raja Ki Mandi. It comes from the city's Mughal food.PethaTranslucent sweets made from ash gourd and sugar, Agra's own. Buy a box to take with you.Amritsari fishRiver fish in a spiced gram flour batter, fried hot. Winter is the season, and you'll need to eat it outside the walled city.Pindi choleDark, spiced chickpeas, slow-cooked and eaten with kulcha or paratha at the old dhabas, the local roadside eateries.Makki di rotiMaize flatbread with slow-cooked mustard greens, the Punjabi winter plate. Ask for it at a dhaba, a roadside eatery, in the cold months.Stuffed paranthasGriddled Punjabi flatbreads filled with spiced vegetables, the breakfast to have before you walk up to the Takht, the main gurdwara.KhajaA flaky layered sweet, often compared to baklava. The best is said to come from Silao, near Rajgir, so ask if you're heading that way.ThukpaTibetan noodle soup, served in the cafes that feed Bodh Gaya's monks and travellers.TilkutA brittle sesame and sugar sweet that Gaya is famous for across Bihar. Buy some on your way through.Daulat ki chaatWinter-only milk foam, airy and sweet, sold in Old Delhi from street carts. If it's cold and you see it, stop.NihariSlow-cooked meat stew, eaten at breakfast or lunch around Jama Masjid in Old Delhi. Go hungry and go early.ParathaStuffed flatbread fried on a griddle. Paranthe Wali Gali, a lane in Chandni Chowk, has turned it into a street of its own.Bundelkhandi thaliA set plate of regional vegetables, dal, kadhi and bread. Ask for it by name rather than settle for a tourist menu.Dal panchmelFive lentils cooked together, an everyday dish on the thali here.Awadhi biryaniRice and meat cooked separately, then layered, so it's lighter and more fragrant than other biryanis.Khasta kachoriCrisp fried bread with chickpea and potato curries, the vegetarian breakfast in the old market lanes.Kulfi faloodaDense Indian ice cream with thin noodles. Finish your food walk with it in Aminabad.Nihari kulchaSlow-cooked meat stew with soft bread, eaten for breakfast in Chowk. It's a serious start to the day.Champaran meatMutton with mustard oil, ghee and garlic, slow-cooked in a sealed clay pot over charcoal. Also called ahuna or handi mutton. Order it with rice.Sattu parathaFlatbread stuffed with sattu, spiced roasted gram flour, and pan-fried. A filling breakfast with potato on the side.ThekuaA crisp, sweet disc of flour, ghee and sugar, offered in temples at the Chhath festival. It keeps well, so it's a good one for the train.Chura matarFlattened rice with spiced green peas, a winter snack from the old city.Kachori sabziFried stuffed bread with potato curry, the old city's breakfast. Have it early, with a hot jalebi after.