Feature Stories - The Locavore

9 min

Books on Food

Ingredients, Cooking Techniques, Utensils: How Trade Routes Influenced Kerala’s Food As We Know It

Tanya Abraham

Among the many ingredients introduced by the Portuguese upon their arrival in India in the 15th century, vinegar was a prime influencer of Kerala cooking, writes Tanya Abraham in Eating With History, a book tracing the influence of ancient trade and colonisation on the cuisines of Kerala.

6 min

Culture

Rum-and-Plum Cakes & Bread for Shahi Tukda: Bengal Bakery is Loved by All of Lucknow

Sonakshi Srivastava

As Christmas arrives, Abdul sahab’s rum-and-plum cakes are sought after by all of Lucknow. Now the third-generation owner of Bengal Bakery, his traditional baking and tahzīb perfectly embody the city’s…

8 min

Books on Food

They Eat Meat!

Hansda Sowvendra Shekhar

“Vadodara is a strongly Hindu city, People here believe in purity. I am not too sure what this purity is, but all I know is that people here don’t eat nonveg. Nor do they approve of people who eat non-veg.”

11 min

Personal Essay

Rail Gaadi, Rail Gaadi: My Experiences with Railway Food

Aarthi Parthasarathy

Having spent much of her childhood on trains, Aarthi Parthasarthy—a self-proclaimed “railway kid”—reflects on her family’s favourite stations for tasty food, her father’s knowledge of the intricate catering system, and just how much train food has changed since she was little.

10 min

Culture

What Makes Joida a Hotspot for Tuber Diversity?

Mukta Patil

Sumeet Kaur, founder of Spudnik Farms and tuber enthusiast, talks to Mukta Patil about these resilient root vegetables, how the Kunbi community preserve and worship them, and making mudali bharta at home.

8 min

From the Fields

A Better Future, Fuelled by Cups of Good Coffee

Yashvi Shah

Attempting to bridge the growing gaps between producers and consumers of coffee, Grounds For Change addresses matters of traceability, fairness, and taste. Yashvi Shah offers a glimpse into the daily realities of coffee growers M Kethegowda and M Sannarangegowda, who were central to the project’s vision.

7 min

Books on Food

Memories on a Plate: Documenting Stories From 100 Indian Kitchens

Nivaala and The Alipore Post

Memories on a Plate, a crowd-sourced initiative by Nivaala and The Alipore Post, seeks to build a bigger kitchen—one with room for memory, identity, grief, and a wide spectrum of emotions that deepen our relationships with food.

8 min

From the Fields

A Legacy of Making Preserves and Coolers on a Forest-Farm in Pauri Garhwal

Throvnica Chandrasekar

Divya Chowfin, the co-founder of Himalayan Haat, speaks to Throvnica Chandrasekar about farming within a natural ecosystem, running a business from the mountains, and why their bestselling Malta Cooler is also a family favourite.

11 min

The Locavore Champions

“The act of foraging is meant to be a collective process”

Oishika Roy

Farmer and seed-saver Sunil Bhoye tells Oishika Roy about how seeds can be preserved by storing them in earthen pots and bamboo stems, and passing his knowledge of wild foods on to his daughter through the Wild Food Festival.

8 min

Personal Essay

A thousand kilometres from Gaya, I learned to love the taste of its baskarel

Priyanka Bhadani

Baskarel smells strong—sharp, pungent, earthy—when soaked in water. When ground and deep-fried upon mixing with gram flour, it’s crunchy, salty, a little spicy. Priyanka Bhadani reveals her younger self’s loathing—and now fondness—for the distinct flavours of baskarel.

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