I love desi food and before I became a housewife I considered cooking desi recipes almost impossible. The reasons behind this misunderstanding were
- It takes a lot of time to cook desi food
- Even if you do manage to ignore the time constraint, it can’t be edible
So when I made my first desi dish and it was not that bad, I came to a conclusion that “I can also cook desi food”. So I started looking for dsei recipes on the internet.
To my amazement there is not much Pakistani websites and blogs as compared to Indian food websites and blogs. Though India and Pakistan share some of the recipes but where to find the rest? Cooking is a science and it is evolving with time. New experiments bring new flavors and recipes.
Wikipedia describes pakistani cuisine as, “The Cuisine of Pakistan can be described as a refined blend of Afghan, Indian, Iranian, Central Asia, and Middle East cuisine. Pakistani cuisine is known for its richness and flavour.
Therefore I have to have recipes with a Pakistani flavor to fulfill my cravings. So I’ll have a look at a handful of desi food recipes websites with a Pakistani touch.
Desi Cookbook
Perhaps the oldest website on this topic as compared to the other website mentioned in this article for review. Started in mid 90’s, it contains the very traditional desi food recipes. The recipes are authentic as I have tried most of them at home.
But the recipes are limited and the food glossary section is not something you could look up to.
Khana Pakana
A huge collection of Indian and Pakistani recipes in both the languages of English and Urdu. the website has traditional as well as contemporary dishes to check out. If you are like me and sometimes find it difficult to follow written instruction hard to follow, then there is a section of video recipes. There is also a sizable KP community where you can interact with cooking lovers. There is an interesting contest going on at the website in which you can participate by submitting your original recipes and win cash prizes.
I like this website due to variety of recipes available at one place and there is also good food dictionary available for perusal.
The only thing I miss here is the neatness
Fauzia’s Pakistani Recipes
The focus of this website is not entirely Pakistani dishes but there are other recipes from other parts of the world also available. The website is nicely built having all the links nicely put at the right places at the front page.
Other than recipes I like their section of helpful sites. These helpful sites include Glossary(English/Urdu Word Translations), random cooking tips, Pakistani restaurants worldwide, request a recipe(temporarily unavailable). There is another section noteworthy to mention, Articles on Cooking. I find ‘Spice in dishes’ a good read.
The only drawback is its incompatibility with browsers other than Internet Explorer.
Cooking with BJ
Recipes are divided into five sections at the website but the main thrust is upon Pakistani cuisine.
The Baking category is under construction at the moment.
Recipes include preparation time, serving size and cooking time. The most important thing is all the recipes that I had tried at home are authentic. The author, Bushra J. Butt emphasizes that to cook good food it is necessary to measure ingredients properly. There is a conversion chart for readers’ convenience.
There is another section which I like the most and that is tips(totkas) but as the website is still under construction so this section has not been active yet but I am most anxiously waiting and keeping an eye on it.
These are a few of the websites that I find useful. I hope next time I’ll write on this topic there’ll be much more to write about. If you have your favorites, then please mention them in your comments and share with us.
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This is such an enjoyable article. I am not into cooking but since I’ll become a housewife not very far from now, I know I should make an effort to learn cooking. Hope to see more of your post!
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