Mughal Corridor

Mutton pasanda: flattened lamb strips in a yogurt-and-nut gravy, no tomato — the Old Delhi Kayastha dish from the Mughal court.

Shahi mutton korma: goat braised in yogurt and browned onions with almond paste and saffron, no tomato — the Mughlai wedding korma.

Mughlai raan: a whole leg of lamb marinated and slow-roasted to spoon-tender under a saffron-almond gravy — the Mughlai feast centrepiece.

Galouti kebab: finely minced lamb tenderised with papaya, smoked and tawa-fried into melting patties — Lucknow’s kebab for a toothless Nawab.

Kakori kebab: the finest minced mutton, tenderised and smoked, wrapped on skewers and grilled — Lucknow’s melt-in-the-mouth kebab, the King of Kebabs.

Lucknowi biryani: the Awadhi pakki dum biryani — meat and rice cooked apart, layered with saffron, kewra and rose, then steamed on dum.

Haleem: wheat, barley, lentils and meat slow-cooked and pounded to a thick mass, finished with fried onion and ginger — the Lahori Ramadan deg dish.

Mutton yakhni pulao: basmati cooked in a spiced mutton stock (yakhni), one pot, subtle and savoury — the Awadhi celebration pilaf, not a biryani.

Nihari: shank and marrow bones slow-cooked into a spiced stew thickened with atta — Old Delhi’s dawn dish, carried to Lahore and Karachi.