Kota travel guide

Kota kachori

Kota's famous spiced lentil kachori—crispy fried pastry shell encasing a filling of split peas spiked with distinctive Kota-specific spices; the pastry is thinner and crispier than Jodhpur's; eaten standing at road stalls with a watery yellow curry; specific and non-exportable

Rajasthani thali

The most spectacular meal in Indian vegetarian cooking—multiple small bowls of dal, curry, rice, roti, papad, pickles, buttermilk and sweets on a large metal platter; Rajasthani thali restaurants refill every bowl indefinitely; the experience is overwhelming

Dal bati churma

Rajasthan's iconic desert meal—hard wheat rolls (bati) baked over camel dung fire, dunked in a five-lentil dal, eaten with churma (crushed wheat with ghee and jaggery); the full meal is served at Rajasthani thali restaurants throughout the state

Gatte ki sabzi

Rajasthan's clever vegetarian curry—chickpea flour dumplings boiled then simmered in a yogurt-based gravy with coriander and dried red chilies; the dumplings absorb flavor while staying firm; made in homes across Rajasthan daily for generations

Lassi

Punjab's legendary yogurt drink—churned with sugar or salt, topped with a thick layer of cream and sometimes kesar (saffron) or rose petals; Amritsar and Ludhiana versions are poured into clay kulhads; heavy enough to be a meal in the summer heat