Food of Gujarat

The strict Jain vegetarianism has contributed to Gujarat’s distinct regional cuisine. Throughout the state you’ll find the Gujarati variation of the thali - it’s the traditional all-you-can-eat vegetarian meal with an even greater variety of dishes than usual. But with the drawback, if you’re not sweet-toothed, that it can be overpoweringly sweet.

Popular dishes include kadhi, a savoury curry of yoghurt and fried puffs, flavoured with spices and finely chopped vegetables. Undhyoo is a winter speciality of potatoes, sweet potatoes, broad beans and aubergines roasted in an earthenware pot which is buried ‘undhyoo’, upside down, under a fire. In Surat there’s a local variation on this which is more spicy and curry hot. Sev Ganthia is a crunchy fried chickpea flour snack which you buy from farsan stalls.

In winter, in Surat, you can try paunk, a curious combination of roasted cereals, or jowar garlic chutney and sugar. Then there’s khaman dhokla, a salty, steamed chickpea flour cake. Or doodhpak which is a sweetened, thickened milk-based dessert with nuts.

Srik-hand is a dessert made from yoghurt spiced with saffron, cardomon, nuts and candied fruit. Gharis are another rich sweet made of milk, clarified butter and dried fruits - it’s another speciality of Surat. In summer am rasis is a popular mango juice drink.