Lucknow's Awadhi Refinement: The
Dum Pukht
And Nawabi Techniques

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Quick Summary

During the 18th-century, the Nawabs of Awadh transformed the region (Awadh, present-day Lucknow) into a cultural and culinary hub, blending Mughal, Persian, and Indian traditions. From this blend emerged the Awadhi cuisine, or rather, Nawabi cuisine, with Nawabi becoming synonymous with royalty. And Nawabi (or Awadhi) cuisine became posterchild for culinary innovation and rich, sophisticated flavours. Among the many techniques and dishes that Awadh gifted India, few became as famous or loved as the Dum Pukht.

Deep Dive

With the decline of the Mughal Empire, the royal chefs migrated within the country. Many found a home in Awadh, where the Nawabs, with Lucknow as their capital from the late 18th century, championed culinary innovation, encouraging elaborate feasts and unique cooking methods. Soon, Lucknow’s royal kitchens became a cultural melting point of three different traditions, focusing on subtle flavours, complex aromas, and visual appeal. Thus came the dum pukht cooking style and Nawabi cooking techniques, with their refined use of spices and rose water.

The Awadhi Dum Pukht Technique

Dum Pukht is a trademark style of slow-cooking meats, vegetables, and rice that originated in pre-partition India, but is prevalent in Asian cuisines even today.

What’s the technique?

Dum means breath or steam, while pukht translates to ‘cooking process’. Dum Pukht, thus, translates to cook with steam/under pressure until perfected. Under this technique, well-marinated meat (or vegetables) is slow-cooked over a low flame, often in a dough-sealed container. Traditionally, the meat or vegetables were cooked in a sealed handi (metal or clay). It was usually round and heavy-bottomed (to withstand long exposure to slow fire/flame). The slow roasting allowed maximum flavour to be extracted from each herb and spice used. Sealing the lid of the pot allowed the meat/vegetable to mature, cooking slowly in its own juices. This helped the food retain its natural aroma. The cooking dough used to cover the pot retained the dish’s flavour, and became a slow-cooked bread that at times was consumed with the dish.

Traditional dum pukht wasn’t just slow cooking from below. Hot charcoal (or embers) was also placed on the lid to create gentle, even heat from all sides, almost like an early “oven”. In fact, while people associate dum only with “slow cooking, it’s actually about controlled steam pressure inside a sealed pot, which concentrates aromas and locks in natural juices rather than drying food out.

The origins of Dum Pukht

Different stories describe the origin of this cooking technique. One of the most commonly shared tales talks about the reign of Nawab Asaf-ud-daulah (1748–1797). During a period of famine, he employed thousands to work for food. The chefs decided to make a simple one-dish meal and thus filled large cauldrons with rice, meat, vegetables, and spices. The cauldron was sealed and cooked on slow fire. The ensuing aroma tempted the Nawab, prompting him to have his royal cook recreate the dish. This indicates that the dish wasn’t a royal innovation but rather a common-fare item elevated with royal tweaks (of fragrances, marination, and layering). However, in another tale, dum pukht is considered to be an adaptation of an ancient Persian cooking technique where dishes were cooked in sand.

Noteworthy Dum Pukht Dishes

The most common dishes cooked in the dum pukht style, even today, are biryani (a rice-based dish) and curries of meat, veggies, and even seafood. Here are the common examples:

Biryani: Lamb or mutton biryani is made by layering rice, vegetables, spices, and raw, marinated meat in a dough-sealed handi and slow-cooking it on a low fire to allow the flavours and textures to blend. The dum pukht biryani is often topped with rose water for an aromatic, luxurious finish that indicates its Nawabi origins. The dish can also be made with just vegetables for a vegetarian fare.

Curries

Mutton Handi/Chicken Handi: Succulent pieces of meat slow-cooked in a spicy gravy in the handi.
Dum Ke Aloo: Potatoes stuffed with nuts/seeds, cooked in a thick yoghurt gravy on dum.
Nihari/Haleem: Traditional slow-cooked meat stews that benefit from the dum method.
Maash Qaliya/Dal Dum Pukht: Lentil dishes, like moong dal with spinach or arhar dal with garlic, slow-cooked for depth.
Jhinge ka Salan/Mahi Sarson: Seafood (prawns, fish) simmered in spiced yoghurt or mustard paste.

Nawabi Cooking: Core Techniques And Elements

Beyond slow-cooking meat, Nawabi cooking, rooted in Awadhi royalty, emphasises two other cooking techniques, Galawat and Bhunai. Additionally, elements of layering, rich sauce bases, and fragrant essences are integral to most dishes.

Galawat or tenderising: Using ingredients like raw papaya paste to break down meat fibres, creating an incredibly soft texture. This technique is commonly used to make galaouti kebabs, known to melt in your mouth. Lucknowi cuisine was obsessed with mouthfeel. Techniques like galawat (tenderising) and ultra-fine grinding of pastes weren’t for convenience; they were deliberate tools to achieve melt-in-mouth textures seen in kebabs and gravies.
Bhunai or roasting: Slow, deep roasting of spices and ingredients in ghee or oil to build smoky, complex flavour bases.
Aromatics: Essential use of saffron, rose water, kewra (pandanus) water, cardamom, and cloves for signature fragrance. Rose water and kewra are used with delicate precision—not to overpower, but to perfume dishes, creating an unmistakable sensory experience.

These elements and techniques are what help yield royal, flavourful, melt-in-your-mouth results that mark Lucknow’s nawabi cuisine.