Sai Bhaji
Sai bhaji: spinach, chana dal and mixed greens slow-cooked into one softly spiced mass with an asafoetida and ghee tarka — the daily pot of Sindh.
Chicken Changezi
Chicken changezi: Old Delhi’s deep red, butter-rich chicken curry built on a browned onion, cashew and Kashmiri-chilli gravy, finished with cream.
Tandoori Chicken
Tandoori chicken at home with no tandoor: bone-in chicken slashed to the bone, marinated in spiced yoghurt and roasted in a fierce oven until charred.
Sheermal
Sheermal: the Lucknawi saffron milk bread of Awadh — a soft, mildly sweet enriched flatbread brushed with saffron milk and ghee, served with nihari and kebabs.
Chole Bhature
Chole bhature: dark, spiced Punjabi chickpeas with deep-fried puffed bhatura — the big Delhi street breakfast, served with onion, chilli and lassi.
Aloo Tikki
Old Delhi aloo tikki chaat: crisp chana-dal-stuffed potato patties topped with whisked yoghurt, tamarind and green chutney, sev and chaat masala.
Dahi Bhalla
Dahi bhalla: soft urad-dal fritters soaked and dunked in sweetened yoghurt with tamarind and green chutney, roasted cumin and sev — the Delhi-Punjabi chaat.
Amritsari Kulcha
Amritsari kulcha: a crisp, blistered maida flatbread stuffed with dry spiced potato, cooked on a tawa and buttered — served with Amritsari chole and onion.
Garlic Naan
Garlic naan at home with no tandoor: a soft, yeasted yoghurt dough studded with garlic and coriander, cooked on a hot tawa and brushed with garlic butter.