Aditya Bal's Rajasthan trip to revive India’s culinary heritage

Celebrity chef

Aditya Bal

recently came to Rajasthan and extensively travelled different cities of the state to shoot for tv show

‘Lost Recipes’ season 2

. Bal, known for his love for food was travelling in search of recipes and food preparations that have quietly been forgotten over time. He will walk down the forgotten road of culinary traditions that have been lost, forgotten, or simply neglected.

Sharing his the experience of travelling to Rajasthan, Aditya says, “Well, visiting Rajasthan has always been an unforgettable experience and even though we always end up traveling somehow to the hotter summer month. The soul of the place is its people, their warmth and friendliness and the great beauty of the land has always been memorable and a special experience. The journey has been wonderful and super exciting while shooting for Lost Recipes season 2 as we got to see incredible parts of Rajasthan and the people as well. I have also been traveling to Rajasthan for holidays and shot at locations like Ramgarh, Marwa fort and Sambhar Lake.”

During the shoot, he got to explore very rustic and traditional Rajasthani recipes. He says, ‘I am sure most people haven't heard of these recipes, we have made ‘Shekhawati’ recipe that centered around shikaar and the forest and the war. We also moved towards ‘Marwari’ recipes, traditional Marwari veg recipes that showcased different side. These are unique set of recipe that has rich history in the people and places.” When we talk about Rajasthani khana, daal-baati and gatte ki sabji are the dishes that comes to our mind. But Bal believes that Rajasthani cuisine is more than that. “I believe, Rajasthan is clearly not about Daal Baati churma. It does not only have vast dishes but it’s cuisine is based on climatic, and geographic conditions too. There are situations where people need to carry food for long distance traveling and a lot of cuisine needs to be preserved in a hot climate. Knowing the harsh condition today I don’t think Daal Batti churma is overrated. I think it’s a dish that too many cannot encapsulate the very strong element of Rajasthani cuisine.”