Alwan-e-Nemat review: A smorgasbord of feasts from Mughal Emperor Jehangir’s kitchen

Yet, close reading of ancient manuscripts on food challenge this notion leading to the recognition of the latent information about geographical and social aspects of cultures hidden in the documentation of food. Readers get a glimpse of this in the 11 books translated by Salma Yusuf Husain, on the cuisine of the Mughals, the latest of which is Alwan-e-Nemat: A Journey Through Jehangir’s Kitchen (Penguin Random House India).

Salma Yusuf Husain’s trips to Afghanistan early in her career as a Persian language translator led her to learning about the history of Afghan food and how it was connected to Mughal cuisine. This sparked her interest in Mughal cuisine and led her to search for written records about the culinary culture of the times. Husain visited various Central Asian countries, besides Turkey and Iran, in her quest to find connections between their foodways and the cuisine of the Mughals.

She finally found what she was looking for at the National Archives in New Delhi, for whom she translated rare Persian texts into English. Husain often went through the catalogue of books from the Mughal period at the archives, always keeping an eye open for any work that mentioned the cuisine of the Mughals. Her untiring search bore fruit when she came across a seventeenth century manuscript, Alwan-e-Nemat, a cookbook with information from Mughal emperor Jahangir’s imperial kitchen.

First cookbook with recipes from the Mughal era

The manuscript called Alwan-e-Nemat (Colours of the Table) in the National Archives was one of three copies of the original manuscript said to be written during Jehangir’s rule. Calligraphed on 155 pages of cream-coloured paper with a painted blue margin, the other two copies of the manuscript are preserved at India Office Library in London and the National Museum of India. Besides being the first cookbook with recipes from the Mughal era, Alwan-e-Nemat is also the only manuscript that highlights the unique contribution of Empress Nur Jehan to culinary arts.

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The original manuscript contains 374 recipes divided into 40 chapters with exhaustive details on cooking and serving food during Mughal times. In her commentary about the original manuscript, Husain writes, “It is also interesting to note the Alwan-e-Nemat’s introductory chapter deals with detailed introduction about etiquette and table manners of those days, which are relevant even today.”

The format of the manuscript may have been inspired by medieval Arabian cookbooks like the tenth century Annals of the Caliph’s Kitchen by Ibn Sayyar al Warraq, Ibn Razin Al Tujibi’s The Exile’s Cookbook, Persian cookbooks from the Safavid era and others, which contained not only recipes but also anecdotes, dietary and health information, besides information on handwashing, etiquettes of eating and other related topics.

In the book now published as Alwan-e-Nemat: A Journey Through Jehangir’s Kitchen, Husain provides readers a selection of 120 recipes from the original manuscript translated into English. The author who spent 18 months translating the manuscript writes in her introduction, “The manuscript highlights the contribution of Empress Nur Jehan in the field of culinary art especially in the garnishing and colouring of food.” Staying true to the name of the book which means, Colours of the Table, there are recipes for coloured yoghurt, edible flowers made out of coloured rice flower, and techniques to colour ghee, oil, and flours. Food was coloured using flowers, herbs, leafy vegetables, eggs and it was also made fragrant through the use of flower essences, musk, rose water.

Influence of other cultures on Mughals’ culinary repertoire

The recipes in the book show how the Mughals embraced influences from other cultures and religions and incorporated them into their culinary repertoire. Husain writes, “Alwan-e-Nemat brings to light the fact that with time, Mughal emperors gradually became more and more Indian in their food habits and enjoyment of Indian cuisine.” Reflecting Jahangir’s love for Gujarati cuisine, the book contains recipes for foods from the region like Khandvi and Khichdis, one of which goes with the name of Khichdi Gujarati, baked bread mixed with dry fruits and coconut called Malidah Gujarati. That Khichdi was one of the favourite foods of Jehangir comes across in the eight different recipes for the porridge, including one that’s sweet and non-vegetarian ones made with lamb, rice and lentils. Mughal foods primarily traced its lineage to Persian, Arabic, and Afghani food cultures as seen in recipes for sambosa, Haleem, Khagina, Halwas.

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The recipes underline how the Mughals used only a few spices like pepper, cinnamon, cloves, ginger and coriander. Dry fruits, herbs, and even vegetables were used to ensure balanced and tasty meals unhindered by the strong flavour of spices. The Mughal expertise in combining opposing flavours comes across interesting recipes such as one for a murabba made out of bittergourd, a fish and banana curry recipe that combines the heat of pepper with the sweetness of raisins, cinnamon, almonds, and onion. Other interesting recipes include Poori Ghosht or puris filled with meat, a do pyaza made out of kachnaar buds, pulaos made out of banana, oranges, and a sweet lamb-based pulao.

There’s also a recipe for a pulao that resembles a Mughal version of lasagne with layers of fried bread, meat and rice. A dal recipe by the name of Dal-i-be Aab translates to Lentils cooked on gravel which Husain has adapted to suit modern cooking styles while another recipe titled Dal-e-Mirch calls for crushing black pepper and cooking it like lentils. The multiplicity of cooking methods in individual recipes--frying, steaming, baking, points to the sophistication and complexities of the cuisine.

In her introduction to the book, the author makes a mention about Nur Jehan’s interest in culinary arts and her particular attentiveness in enhancing the appeal of food through colours and fragrances. This piques one’s interest to read the original manuscript filled with details about etiquette, manners, methods of processing food and other related information. Such a translation would ensure a place for Alwan-e-Nemat among the collection of historical cookbooks coming out from various parts of the world, giving readers, academicians, historians interested in the culinary history and culture, an intimate glimpse of the functioning of Mughal kitchens besides the cuisine of the time. In its present form, Alwan-e-Nemat is definitely a collectible for readers keen to learn about the foods that were made during Jehangir’s time.