The time is ripe for Telangana's regional cuisine to take off, and it's so much more than Hyderabadi biryani, say chefs

It is not just about chillies, Telangana has a unique array of spices lending its dishes a very distinct taste, said chef Lamba.For Chef Marathe, the least explored regions, culinarily, like Karim Nagar and Warangal present a great opportunity in showcasing Telangana to the world.

For far too long, Telangana delicacies were sorted under 'Andhra cuisine' that standing up on their own came with challenges, especially with the splendour of Nizami dishes, particularly the flagbearer Hyderabadi biryani, making other dishes of the region almost invisible to the world. But that is now changing, say members of the Telangana Chefs’ Association.

''In the last four years, there has been a tremendous turnaround for local cuisines all over the world. Telangana is no exception,'' said chef Amey Marathe, vice president of TCA and consultant at Telangana Spice Kitchen. As part of its fourth anniversary, the TCA organised a series of events in Hyderabad on Monday. The day also saw a competition that is aimed at encouraging culinary college students to create their own dishes using local ingredients. ''The response had been tremendous. These young people really got innovative with local ingredients,'' said Dharmender Lamba, president of TCA.

This was not always the case, said the chefs. ''There was a time when you could not find many qualified chefs who took an interest in local cuisines. But now people are very curious about local dishes. For instance, these days ragi java, a traditional Telangana preparation of ragi and curd, is being feted as a superfood. So naturally, chefs too are looking for local delicacies that they can master,'' Naveen Nagaraj, corporate chef at Tatva, said.

The culinary experts said the pandemic had a role to play in this. ''During lockdowns, people were forced to cook with what was available, and this kind of caught on,'' said chef Marathe. Chef Lamba said pandemic trends such as home chefs starting food businesses and the popping up of cloud kitchens have changed the game for the industry and shown the world how far local recipes can go if given the right platform.

The chefs also felt the recent focus on millets is a boon to Telangana as the semi-arid region is home to many varieties of millets, and many local dishes are made using the ancient grains. ''Telangana cuisine as such is little known to the world. This also presents tremendous opportunities. But first there is a need to educate people about the subtle differences in the dishes made in different regions of Telangana, even within the state,'' said chef Shankar Krishnamurthy, founder of the Fusion 9 restaurants.

''A lot of times, it is believed that Telangana dishes are all about being spicy. It is not just about chillies, Telangana has a unique array of spices lending its dishes a very distinct taste,'' said chef Lamba.

For Chef Marathe, the least explored regions, culinarily, like Karim Nagar and Warangal present a great opportunity in showcasing Telangana to the world. ''Given the differences in geographical conditions, Telangana has a wide range of lentils and chillies that add layers to Telangana cuisine,'' he said.

As Telangana was part of Andhra Pradesh until 10 years ago, comparisons of their cuisines are par for the course. ''We have more meat-based dishes. Every part of the animal is consumed here. Andhra, I would say, is fierier. Compared to Andhra, people need to get used to Telangana’s dishes, since we cook even offal, adding a distinct taste to dishes. But people are discovering how flavourful they can be,'' Krishnamurthy said.