Winter foods! 5 delicacies you must try this season

After rains for over six months, winter in India does not arrive silently - it marches in with the aroma of warm ghee, simmering broths, melting cream and crunchy street delights.

The chill in the air merits a hot meal and some dishes turn out as superstars. We view food more as a culture, token of love and an answer to cravings.

Winters just give us one more reason to indulge.

Here are five Indian dishes that spell winter in capital letters!

Thukpa - the only hot thing about the Himalayas Hungry and finding yourself in a snow-draped bazaar in Leh or a windy lane in Sikkim? You’ll find comfort in a steaming bowl of Thukpa. It is the mountain folks’ solution to keeping the icy winds at bay and get some instant warmth. The recipe begins with garlic hissing in hot oil followed by onions carrots and greens. Add some hand-pulled noodles to a bubbling stock rich with ginger and some boiled veggies. Seasoned with Himalayan spices it arrives at your table piping hot. You can make it easily and quickly at home.

Daulat ki Chaat – best part about daybreak When winter descends upon the Gangetic plains a magical dish appears at dawn and disappears before noon - Daulat ki Chaat. It is food that tastes like winter air itself - fluffy cool and sweet. Vendors begin before sunrise whisking milk cream with dew collected on cold nights. Add a generous pinch of saffron some powdered sugar and a dusting of crushed pistachios. It then rests under the open sky catching the chill and forming a cloud-like froth. You don’t chew or bite it - it just melts in your mouth. A luxury only winter can offer.

Daulat ki Chaat

Ram Laddu — Delhi’s best-kept secret is now out Delhi winters breed cravings and Ram Laddus are the crunchy answer. No they’re not your regular sweet laddus - they’re deep-fried balls of moong and chana dal turned into crisp golden fritters. At street corners you’ll spot vendors dishing them fresh from hot oil smashing them slightly mixed with dollops of mint and date chutney and a generous dash of grated radish to go with it. The cold fog mixes with the heat of the fritters… the warmth travels from your fingertips straight to your heart.

Ram Laddu

Raab — western India’s soulful drink In the desert days may be sweltering hot but winter chills arrive quietly and bite deep. That’s when Raab comes to the rescue - a creamy earthy winter tonic from Rajasthan and Gujarat. Bajra (pearl millet) flour is slow-cooked in buttermilk or curd until thick and soothing then infused with jaggery or spices. The longer it simmers the richer it becomes. Farmers sip it before heading into the early morning chill - it warms from within and keeps energy steady throughout the day. In winters make hay while the sun shines literally. That hay could well be made in the kitchen and delicious too.

Rabb

Gond ke Laddu — mother’s winter indulgence A hero of winters is Gond ke Laddu - a sweet treat disguised as health food. Edible gum (gond) when deep-fried turns into snowy nuggets. They are mixed into a warm blend of whole wheat flour roasted in ghee along with an assortment of roasted nuts coconut jaggery and cardamom. The dough is rolled into soft laddus that strengthen joints improve immunity and satisfy every sweet tooth.

Gond

Delicacies for the winter

What’s more they stay fresh for a long time too and hence travel far and wide. North Karnataka’s Kardant is a delightful cousin of these laddus sans the flour and comes in a brick shape.