Eating out in Jaipur is a delight. After picking up a bargain shopping in Jaipur, check out our Jaipur Restaurant Guide below to find the best places to enjoy the wonderful Jaipur food and cuisine. We also have general information about the food and cuisine in India.

Food & Cuisine in Jaipur

Rajasthani cuisine offers a splendid array of unique dishes which are colourful and spicy, much like the people of this state and their rich culture. Corn, wheat and ghee form the basic ingredients of the Rajasthani food, irrespective of whether the dish is sweet or spicy. Sweets form an integral part of Rajasthani cuisine, and in fact are served throughout the day as part of any meal or snack. Visitors are treated courteously and the local people are very hospitable.

As part of Rajasthani tradition, the guests are served food with a lot of care. Letting guests serve themselves is considered a discourtesy on the part of the host. So be ready to live it up!

The medium of cooking for almost all Rajasthani food is pure ‘ghee' or clarified butter. Rajasthani curries are bright red in colour, but they are not as spicy as they look. A popular sweet dish called ‘lapsi' is prepared by sautéing ‘dalia' or broken wheat in ghee, which is later sweetened.

Rajasthani food is primarily a combination of ‘daal', ‘baati' and ‘churma'. However, in Jaipur, you can choose from a wide variety of options. Gram flour is a major ingredient and is used in abundance for making delicacies such as ‘Gatte-ki-sabzi', ‘Kadhi' and ‘pakodi'. Rajasthani cuisine also makes ample use of beans from native plants like ‘sangri', ‘ker' etc and dried lentils. Lentils are also ground to a powder to make Mangodi and Papad.

Typical breads that are famous in Rajasthan include ‘baati', ‘lacchedar parantha' and ‘besan ki missi puri'. Corn and a grain known as ‘bajra' are used widely all over the state for preparing ‘rabdi', ‘khichdi' and ‘roti'.

Rajasthan is also famous for its delicious ‘chutneys'. There are a variety of chutneys which can be eaten with a full course meal. These are normally made from onion-garlic paste and use spices that are locally available, such as turmeric, coriander and mint.

Contrary to popular belief, not all Rajasthanis are vegetarians. There is a lot of variety for non-vegetarians as well. The dishes which are a must for any tourist to Rajasthan are the ‘laal maas' or red meat, which is a hot and spicy dish, and a white curry, which is made from meat cooked in coconut with almonds and cashew nuts. A unique preparation of the Maharaja of Salwar is the ‘junglee maas'. ‘Junglee maas' was a popular dish among the Maharajas. The prize catch after a hunt was cooked in ghee, red chillies and salt, due to the unavailability of exotic ingredients in the kitchens at the camping site. However, this dish is now modified to include poultry, kid or lamb and even pork.

Culinary Delights of Rajasthan include:

• Chapati / Roti with subji (native bread with a side dish)
• Dal Batti Churma (baked wheat balls with spicy lentils, sesame seeds and other spices)
• Ghewar (a cheese based recipe)
• Mawa Kachori (sweet snack)
• Jhajariya (sweet dish made of milk and corn)
• Besan Chakki (sweet made using gram flour)
• Butter Milk with cumin