The Fascinating Traditions of a Kashmiri Wazwan Feast

🍽️Chefs in Kashmir prepare a traditional feast called wazwan, consisting of a 25-course meal for 700 wedding guests.

🍖The wazwan involves cooking 1,000 kilograms of meat over two days in 125 pots.

👨‍🍳Muhammad Sharif Khan, known as the wusta waza, is the head chef responsible for leading the preparation of the wazwan.

🥘Key dishes in the wazwan include goshtaba, a mutton meatball cooked in a curd gravy, and tabak maaz, a twice-cooked mutton rib dish.

🌱The wazwan has its origins in the 14th century when chefs and recipes from Samarkand, Uzbekistan, were brought to Kashmir. It has since incorporated local ingredients and evolved into its current form.

How long does it take to prepare a wazwan?

—The preparation of a wazwan takes two days, as it involves cooking a 25-course meal for 700 wedding guests.

How much meat is used in a wazwan?

—A wazwan requires 1,000 kilograms of meat to be cooked in 125 pots.

What are some key dishes in a wazwan?

—Some key dishes in a wazwan include goshtaba, a mutton meatball cooked in a curd gravy, and tabak maaz, a twice-cooked mutton rib dish.

Who is the head chef of a wazwan?

—The head chef of a wazwan is Muhammad Sharif Khan, also known as the wusta waza.

What is the origin of the wazwan?

—The wazwan's origins can be traced back to the 14th century when chefs and recipes from Samarkand, Uzbekistan, were brought to Kashmir. Over time, the wazwan incorporated local ingredients and evolved into its current form.

00:01Chefs in Kashmir are preparing a traditional feast called wazwan for a wedding with 700 guests.

01:02The first day of wazwan preparation involves chopping vegetables and cleaning pots.

02:15Truckloads of wood are unloaded to fuel the hundreds of pots used in the wazwan.

04:27Goshtaba, a mutton meatball dish, takes about three hours to cook in a curd gravy.

05:21Rista, another meatball dish, is cooked in a water-based gravy with local spices.

06:00Tabak maaz, a twice-cooked mutton rib dish, is seasoned with various spices and braised in ghee.

06:55The wazwan is served four times throughout the weekend, and guests are expected to save some to take home.

07:48The wazwan has its roots in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, and evolved in Kashmir over the centuries.