The Kashmiri muslim community banquet, ‘waazwan’, named for the ‘waaza’ or professional cooks, who prepare it, begins with the appearance of an unlikely procession. A team of about twenty or thirty chefs and assistants forms the team to cook waazwan. Their recipes are kept secret, locked away in their heads. The wazwan is led as a festival in its own & it is like a dream of every Muslim to have a wazwan organized. Consumption of mutton has a very high regard in wazwan. Comprising of thirty-six courses, fifteen to thirty dishes of Wazwan are varieties of meat. Many of the delicacies are cooked through the entire night under the expert supervision of a Vasta Waza or head chef, assisted by an entourage of wazas under him. Kashmir’s most formal meal, Wazwan is not only a ritual but also a ceremony. Traditionally, no spoons, forks or knives are used for eating food. Eaten with fingers, getting invited to a Wazwan is a rare luxury that one can enjoy these days.
A traditional wazwan celebration
1.The animals are slaughtered according to the Muslim custom and then butchered expertly on the spot. According to ‘waaza’ there are seventy two parts of an animal and a most of them are cooked. Organ meats such as kidneys, hearts, liver will be served for the host family for lunch.
- Tents are set up, one as the kitchen and one as the dining pavilion. Earnest young men will cut meat into cubes, mince it and pound it repeatedly into a smooth paste. All of this; is done with mallets and cleavers over several hours.
- When cooking is finished, long white sheets called ‘dastarkhans’, are spread on the carpeted floor of dining pavilion. Guests come in quietly and take their places, the men segregated from women. Jugs of water and basins are brought in so hands may be washed. A beautiful Tasht – t – Nari may also be presented and the guests to wash their hands as ritual.
- It is time for food. This comes in covered ‘tramis’ plates that are large enough to seat four people around them. The cover (sarposh) is removed; the name of God invoked with the cry of ‘bismillah’ and the eating begins. The centre of the trami, heaped with rice, quartered by four seekh kababs and contains four pieces of methi korma, one tabak maaz, one safed murg, one zafrani murg, and the first few courses. The lids of tramis are whisked-off to release the most deliciously appetizing aromas of Wazwan. Yogurt is served in large clay bowls and sweet pumpkin chutney in saucers.
- Other tramis may also follow who are also centered with a mojnd of rice in the center and other dishes surround it. One has to carve out his portion by cleanly using the finger tips to get the most exciting taste of ‘rista’ – spongy meatballs, ‘raganjosh’ – meatcubes cooked with yoghurt red chillies and saffron, ‘palag korma’ – tiny meatballs in a spinach sauce , ‘ruangan tsaman’ – fresh cheese chunks cooked with tomatoes, or goshtaba – large silky meatballs.