The food of Hyderabad, India, is an organic hybrid of the Arabic, Persian, Turkish and South Indian cultural crops that have been planted and harvested for centuries. It could be argued that the strongest genes in what is now known as “traditional Hyderabadi cuisine” stem from the extravagant customs of the region’s Qutb Shahi and Asaf Jahi dynasties. This royal lineage provides the sophistication of flavour and gracious spirit at the core of Hyderabadi gastronomy. This blog is a tribute to that legacy – and a guide for you to Dine Like The Sultans.

– Shaha Husain

The DLTS Story

Hyderabad is home. Born in a city with an enchanting history and rich traditions, it was not difficult to be proud of my heritage. My parents, Athar Hussein and Shahzadi Begum, may have insisted on top quality British-model schools for their six children, but at home our bonds were forged in a swirl of the joyous feasts, Islamic observances, Hindu festivals, cross-cultural music and art that were the essential elements of our landscape. My four sisters, my little brother and I partook of it all and loved it all. Especially the food. But while we greedily lapped up the perfectly prepared meals, we often did not pay close attention to the effort that was put into them. We were too busy being kids.

Then we lost our mother. I was just 8, and I was the eldest of the lot. Our father never remarried. Instead, he spoilt us. Ami Jan, my maternal grandmother, eventually took charge. It is her food I remember the most. On big family occasions, while the cook prepared a few courses, Ami Jan focused on one or two of her specialties, but I never watched her cook for more than a few minutes at a time. My mind was always elsewhere – until the heady aromas of a lavish dinner floated across the house. 

Of course, my lack of interest in how the food I devoured was actually made did not serve me well. After my wedding, I found myself in London, married to a man I hardly knew. I was 18 and amazingly ignorant about how ignorant I was. Until I wasn’t. I was now suddenly expected to work. It was the shock of my life: no servants, no guidance and no “normal” stoves: they were gas fired and burned with blue flames. Back home everything was cooked over coal and wood.  

The stove was not too hard to figure out, but sadly I wasn’t a quick study in every aspect of the kitchen. I washed lentils with detergent turning the dal into a sudsy stew. And I managed to boil eggs black. Even though I never burnt down the house, I was still an unmitigated disaster. Somehow, I scraped myself out from that scorched corner of my cooking past. 

So while Dine Like the Sultans is dedicated to exploring the splendour of traditional Hyderabadi cuisine and its regal history, the blog and my forthcoming book (insha’allah) also reveal my personal relationship with the food of my home and my own culinary journey. A journey that includes childhood memories of lavish feasts, an arranged marriage, those early kitchen disasters as a new wife, cooking instruction at the hands of a local master and the founding of my own well-respected food business. It is all part of a life immersed in Hyderabadi food and culture – and propelled forward with lots of help.

With all those ingredients in the mix, I modestly envision DLTS as a guidebook and perhaps even a source of inspiration. It is my way of paying it forward. I would love nothing more to help you along your way to cooking great food. Whether you are a novice cook, a newbie to Indian cooking or simply someone who is still searching for a truly authentic recipe for Hyderabadi biryani, I aim to have you believing that you too can recreate the sometimes complex but always very satisfying flavours of a region in India that has been underexposed for far too long. 

Collaborators

Acknowledgements

sul·​tan | ˈsʌl.tən |

NOUN a ruler, king or sovereign, especially in the past, of a Muslim state or country.

ORIGIN mid 16th century: French, or medieval Latin ‘sultanus,’ from Arabic ‘sulṭān.’