Festive treats for Bakrid with Zoya Hussain

There is a lot of food involved during Bakrid, the feast of sacrifice says the theatre and film actor Zoya Hussain who lists her personal food map for this Eid-al-Adha.

My earliest memories of the festival are of food. This included Iftari specialities for dinner, which was the most important meal. The platters of kejur and fruits, creamy channe ki dal, biryani, palak ke pakode would be laid out in an elaborate manner highlighting the feast for our hungry eyes.

Uttar Pradesh treats

My father hails from Lucknow and the home recipes were the most authentic meals my sister and I relished. The flavourful biryani was set off by the unique Muzaffar meethi seviyan. This dessert was dark brown-roasted vermicelli served in a sea of cream and fruits. Chawal doodh or gulethi was a delicate and simple dessert my father could never do without as comfort food. Uttar Pradesh’s famed kebabs found their way into our festival menu and a buffet of kebabs would be laid out for the Bakrid. The tables would groan with kakori kebabs, boti kebab, buna ghost kebab, and nihari or slow-cooked mutton stews and khagina anda burji or spiced and curried eggs.

Hyderabadi haute cuisine

At my mother’s home in Hyderabad, the Qubooli chane ki dal ki biryani had a flavour hard to match elsewhere. The dahi and imli ki chutney were paired with a variety of kebabs. Specialities included the Hyderabadi haleem, a wholesome stew of grains and mutton, which is a personal favourite and the smoky and creamy dum ka keema which is a Hyderabadi signature mince dish. Often on Bakrid, the adults would round their meal off with a meetha paan, a fragrant mouth freshener.

Do not miss a visit to the Old City to try the street food like niharis and lukhmi, a puff pastry or pocket square filled with mince and. Do drop into Paradise Restaurant for its famed biryanis.

Flavours of Mumbai

Sneak into the lanes of Mohammad Ali Road in the cosmopolitan city and you will be rewarded with great festive treats. Craving for phirni? You’re in the right spot to get your sugar highs and fill yourself with sheer kormas, chicken pasanda, and seekh kebabs.

Comfort food from Kashmir

Bakrid offers a varied tasting menu in Kashmir where I once landed for work. The Kashmiri harissa is a meaty winter warmer, often cooked overnight and teamed with girda, their traditional fermented bread.

Dubai delights

I found out that festival times are glitzy in this city on a recent visit. The malls are open until sunrise during the festival with glittering shop fronts and lights. Beyond the shopping the food is free and you can eat until you explode during the festival.

Author Zoya Hussain attributes her food tastes to the twin influences of her Lucknowi father and her Hyderabadi mother. Growing up in Delhi and working as a model and actor in Mumbai added variety to her food appreciation. Find her on Instagram.

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