Eid ul-Adha 2022: Where to eat or order your Bakra Eid feast

In Old Delhi, head to Kallan Sweets opposite Jama Masjid for Moong Dal Halwa, Shahi Tukda and Gulab Jamun, or to Jalebiwala Jalebiwala (Chandni Chowk) for crisp jalebis with rabdi.

India’s several bazaars and food gullies have small, hole-in-the-wall eateries, many of which are storied and offer unmatched aromas and flavours on Eid.

In Delhi, Pehlwan Biryani, better known for some reason as Biryani Mirch Masala, is located opposite the famous Ameer Sweet House in Haveli Azam Khan. The biryani, cooked dum style, has, besides mutton, a mysterious masala which locals will vouch is “very addictive”.

Changezi Chicken at Al-Jawahar and Chicken Fried at Haji Mohammad Hussain, both in Old Delhi, are the other recommended spots, particularly for Nihari.

Cool Point close to Jama Masjid serves a traditional meetha menu of Sheermal, Shahi Tukda, Kheer, Phirni, and Badam Milk. Kallan Sweets opposite Jama Masjid began life as a small cart and has grown into a spacious shop selling Moong Dal Halwa, Shahi Tukda and Gulab Jamun. Chandni Chowk’s famous Jalebiwala Jalebiwala serves crisp jalebis with rabdi.

Haji Mohammad Hussain in Old Delhi.

Mumbai’s Byculla and Mohammed Ali neighbourhoods are equally home to old favourites which see crowds come in for an Eid meal. Noor Mohammadi Hotel is a gem next to Shalimar hotel in Bhendi Bazaar. Dishes such as succulent Shammi Kebab and spicy Nalli Nihari, for which mutton is cooked overnight, fly off the kitchen platform even before you blink.

In Grant Road it's Jafferbhai’s Delhi Durbar, famous for a Haleem cooked for eight hours using meat, wheat, and lentils, besides shahi tukda, or a sweet in which calorie-dense rabdi is placed over deep-fried bread.

In Bohri Mohalla’s Gujjar Street, Surti Bara Handi serves up an Iranian dish for which every part of the animal is used. You have 12 handis cooking up Paya, a stew with melted mutton, in the eatery.

Suleman Usmaan and Taj Ice Cream are your go-to-places for dessert on Mohammed Ali Road. The former puts out creamy firnis in flavours such as black currant, kesar and strawberry, besides the famous aflatoon, while the latter’s sweet alphonso and fresh sitaphal ice cream have a legion of followers.

At Royal Indian Hotel at Burra Bazar in Kolkata, a family of cooks that traces its history back to the cook of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, serves the softest Mutton Biryani and Mutton Chaap Fry, besides Shahi Tukda.

Oudh 1590 at Salt Lake is a fancier version of a hole-in-a-wall eatery and sells 14 different kinds of biryanis, including their famous Murgh Yakhni Biryani and Kheema Biryani. Interestingly, they also have Multain Khantal Biryani for vegans and vegetarians.

The century-old Haji Alauddin Sweets is famous for Kaju Kishmish Sewaiyaan and a rose-infused Gulaab Jamun.

Badaam milk

The best food is the one you order from home chefs or those who create exquisite experiences at their homes and other venues. Bengaluru’s Mumma Kitchen serves up Moplah cuisine of the Muslims of Malabar coast. Najma Abdullah, who runs the home delivery, is famous for mutton cutlets and Moplah Biryani made by layering cooked rice with chicken mixed with fresh herbs, raisins, and cashews.

Manzilat Fatima, who claims to be the direct descendent of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, cooks up an extravagant Eid meal for the residents of Kolkata. She also hosts people on the terrace of her home and her menu includes Ghutwan kebab (the mince for the kebab comes from the tendon of the leg of a goat) and the classic Kolkata biryani.

In Pune, Rizwana Yusuf’s Bohri Zaika offers a Bohri meal on Eid: Mutton Samosas, Khichda, Kadhi Chawal and Dal Chawal Palida (made with toor dal or pigeon lentils and besan or gram flour).

In Delhi, Shabeena Naseem brings to life her Awadhi roots to cook Bhuna Gosht (fried mutton or lamb) and Potli Pulao (long grained basmati rice is cooked with meat pieces and stock).

In Chennai, Tasneem Ayub’s Ammees Kitchen dishes out Mutton Shammi Kabab, Chicken Cutlets and Paneer Kofta Biryani for the city’s many vegetarians.

Mumbai’s The Bohri Kitchen has introduced the city to several Bohri delicacies such as Smoked Mutton Kheema Samosas, Chicken Adraki Shammi Kabab (with a whole load of fresh ginger) and the one with a spice kick, Mutton Chops in Red Masala, besides the underrated Dudhi Halwa made using the much-abused dudhi or bottle gourd.

At the luxury end is JW Marriott Mumbai Sahar’s Eid brunch in a Meal Box, which will include roasted lotus stem in Nadru ke Kabab, Kolkata Chicken Biryani and Tandoor Malai Tangdi.

Mutton biryani

Hyderabad-based food historian Quddus Abdul offers an insight into what really is cooking in the homes of people celebrating Eid: “If there’s one dish that could be associated with Eid, it’s Sheer Khurma. This popularity is because of the widespread availability of sewai (rice vermicelli) and its relative affordability. Whether it’s Delhi, Lucknow, or Hyderabad, sewai is available everywhere. The rest of the ingredients depend on what people like or can afford. There are some who put in chironji, others put in cashews or almonds; dates are perhaps the most affordable dry fruits that go into sheer kurma. On Eid, people cook up a storm: Mutton biryani, kababs, Paya, and an entire culinary landscape to explore – from Hyderabadi to Lucknawi and Bohri, with each having their own traditional way to cook biryani.”

Here is how to cook Awadhi Mutton Biryani.

Shamshuddin Ahmed, a cook of traditional Awadhi cuisine whose three generations have cooked for the elite and former Nawabs of Lucknow, offers up this recipe. These days, Ahmed cooks customised meals in the homes of people who invite him to cook on festivals, daawats and special occasions.

• Cinnamon sticks
• Cumin seeds: 2 tsp
• Coriander Seeds: 2 tsp
• Fennel seeds
• Black pepper: 1 tsp
• Black cardamom: 2 pods
• Star anise: 2
• Cloves: handful
• Mace: 2
• Green cardamom: 3 to 4

• Mutton: ½ to 1 kg
• Ginger garlic paste: ½ tsp
• Garam masala: a pinch
• Cashew paste: 1 tsp
• Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
• Chilli powder: To taste
• Curd: ½ cup

• Milk infused with saffron strand: 2 cups
• Salt to taste
• Ghee
• Oil

1. Roast all the dry species and finely grind them.

1. Add turmeric powder, chilli powder and ginger-garlic paste to the mutton.
2. Then, add curd, cashew paste and garam masala and blend it properly so that all the pieces of mutton are covered with the marinade.
3. Cover it with a lid and put it in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

1. Take marinated meat out of the refrigerator and bring it to room temperature. Season it with salt.
2. Grease a cooking pot or handi using mustard oil or ghee. Transfer all the meat to the pot and cook on a low flame.
3. Cover with a lid and let it simmer for another 30 minutes.
4. Layer the mutton with cooked rice and sprinkle saffron milk all over it. Add a pinch of salt, roasted onions, garam masala and ghee.
5. Cover the cooking pot or handi with a lid and place something heavy over it.
6. Make sure the flame is on a low setting. Cook for 30 minutes.
7. Serve with pickles and curd.