In a vastly diverse country like India, every region has something typical to offer whether it is in clothes, or in food or in its music, dance and art.

Punjab, the land of milk and honey, boasts of a robust climate where the agricultural revolution has reaped rich dividends. The land of plenty, in keeping with the Zeitgeist, has a cuisine which caters to the characteristic needs of the people.

Punjabi cuisine is not subtle in its flavour. There are no intricate marinades or exotic sauces but it has full-bodied masalas (spices) cooked with liberal amount o desi ghee (clarified butter) always served with a liberal helping of butter or cream. Milk and its products are an essential part of everyday cookery; curd and buttermilk are also an essential concomitant with every Punjabi meal.

Predominantly wheat eating people the Punjabis cook rice only on special occasions. It's never eaten plain or steamed, for steamed rice implies that somebody is sick. Rice is eaten always with a bagar (flavouring) of cummin or fried onions with Rajma or Kadhi, Rajma with rice or rice With Kadhi is eaten on holidays or on festive days. In winter rice is cooked with jaggary known as gurwala chawal or with peas called matarwale chawal or as a delicacy called Rao Ki Kheer which is rice cooked on very slow fire for hours together with sugar cane juice.

In Punjab itself, there are differences in flavours and style. For example, people around Amritsar prefer well-fried stuffed paraunthas and milk sweets. The people of Doaba region eat more of them; in the Malwa region Bajra (ground maize) khitchadi (kedgree) is a delicacy. There are of course certain dishes which are part and parcel of Punjab and their very mention conjures up the rich flavour of the state. Mah ki Dal, Sarson Ka Saag and Makkee Ki Roti, meat curry like Roghan Josh and stuffed paraunthas can be found in no other state except Punjab. The food is suitable for those who burn up a lot of calories while working in the fields and tilling their small acres. For the urban folk, however, eating even one dish is enough because life in the cities is so sedentary. The main masala in a Punjabi dish consists of onion, garlic, ginger and a lot of tomatoes fried in pure ghee.

An average day's meal would generally comprise :

BREAKFAST
Stuffed Alloo Matar (potatoes and peas) Paraunthas and a glass of butter milk.

LUNCH
Saron Da Saag and Makki Di Roti with onion chutney.

DINNER
Mah Di Dal, Bhunna Gosht, Tandoori Roti and Dahi Raita.

The Recepies of some famous Punjabi Delicacies are given as under :

STUFFED ALLOO MATAR PARAUNTHA

200 gms boiled potatoes
100 gms boiled peas
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon Ajwain (carom seed)
1 teaspoon grated ginger
Ghee for frying
500 gms well-kneaded flour dough.

Knead 500 gms of wheat flour with water and make a thick dough.Mash together thoroughly boiled potatoes, peas, salt, ajwain (carom seed) and grated ginger. Make a ball of the dough, shape it into the required number of flat small round sort of pancakes, fill each with a generous amount of stuffing, close the edges of each and roll each one of them again into a flat round shape. On a hot tawa (griddle) cook each parauntha, one at a time, basting each with pure ghee on both sides.

SARON DA SAAG

1 kg sarson or mustard leaves
350 gms palak (spinach)
150 gms methi (fenugreek)
100 gins makki ka atta (corn pounded into flour)
2 big onions finely chopped
500 gms tomatoes finely chopped.

Pluck mustard leaves, palak and methi leaves from off the stalks. Wash them well in running water. Chop finely. Add finely chopped ginger and pressure cook it for 45 minutes on a low fire.

Remove from the fire and pound the saag in the pressure cooker pan till it is well mixed. Put it back on a low flame and gradually add makki ka atta stirring constantly untill all flour is mixed in the saag. Before serving make a bagar in hot ghee, which means first brown the garlic, then add onions, fry till they are golden brown. Add more onions and cook till a thick puree is formed. Add the saag to it and serve hot with dollops of fresh homemade butter.

Serve with Makki Ki Roti: roti made of pounded corn flour.

Mah Di DAL

250 gms urad dal (black lentil)
1000 ml water 1 tablespoon mustard oil
1/2 teaspoon methi (fenugreek) powder
1/2 teaspoon dhania (coriander)
Salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon haldi (turmeric) powder
2" ginger finely cut

For the Bagar
2 finely chopped onions
2 finely cut green coriander leaves
2 tablespoons ghee
12 cloves garlic
250 gms tomatoes
1 teaspoon garam masala

Coriander leaves to garnish and 1/2 cup of creamWash the dal well. Put water, dal, haldi, salt, ginger, methi and dhania powder in the pressure cooker and cook for 1/2 hour. Then remove the lid and add 200 ml butter milk and cook on a low fire for another 1/2 hour.Put 2 tablespoons of ghee in a karai (wok). First put in garlic, then finely cut green chillies, then the onions and fry well.Add finely chopped tomatoes, a pinch of sugar and 1/4 teaspoon of salt. Now add the well-cooked dal. Boil 2-3 times. Place it in a serving dish; add cream and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.