
Chitral, Pakistan
Kalli
کالی
Chitrali soup of wheat flour and butter cooked with dried meat or vegetables, eaten in the mountain winter.
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Explore 109 foods connected to Pakistan, from everyday staples to rare local specialties.

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Chitral, Pakistan
کالی
Chitrali soup of wheat flour and butter cooked with dried meat or vegetables, eaten in the mountain winter.

Jammu and Kashmir, India
کشمیری چائے
Green tea whisked long with bicarbonate of soda until it turns red, then cut with milk to a rose pink and topped with pistachio.

Jammu and Kashmir, India
ہریسہ
Mutton pounded with wheat and cooked overnight into a smooth, pale paste, topped with hot ghee and eaten in the winter before dawn.

Jammu and Kashmir, India
कश्मीरी पुलाव
A sweet and fragrant rice dish from Kashmir with dried fruits, nuts, and saffron. It is mild and colorful.

Karachi, Pakistan
کٹا کٹ
Goat brain, kidney, heart and testicle chopped continuously on a hot griddle with two cleavers, cooked with tomato, ginger and chilli.

Balochistan, Pakistan
کھڈا کباب
Whole lamb or mutton cooked in a sealed pit, falling-off-the-bone tender.

India
खीर
A rice pudding of milk, sugar and cardamom, served at festivals.

Punjab, Pakistan
کھیوڑہ گلابی نمک
Rock salt mined at Khewra in Punjab is sold as pink crystals or ground seasoning.

Bangladesh
खिचड़ा
A slow-cooked dish of wheat, lentils, and meat, similar to haleem but with whole grains. Popular during Ramadan in India.

Sindh, Pakistan
ڪوڪ پلو
A Sindhi dish of the palla (hilsa) fish, prized for its oiliness and bones.

India
कुल्फी
Milk is reduced, sweetened, and frozen without churning into a dense Indian ice cream.

Chiniot, Pakistan
کنا
Mutton slow-cooked in a sealed clay pot with wheat flour thickening the gravy — a Chiniot speciality closely related to nihari.

Pakistan
لبِ شیریں
A layered Pakistani dessert of vermicelli, cream, jelly and fruits in milk.

Afghanistan
لاندی
Whole sheep salted and hung to dry in the cold Pashtun winter, then cut down through the season for stews and rice.

Lahore, Pakistan
لاہوری چرغہ
Whole chicken marinated in yoghurt, vinegar and spice, steamed until cooked through, then deep-fried whole so the skin blisters.

Bangladesh
Mango Lassi
A thick, chilled yogurt drink, sweet or salted, sometimes flavoured with mango.

Punjab, India
मक्की की रोटी
A flatbread made from maize flour, a winter staple in Punjab. It is traditionally served with sarson ka saag and a dollop of white butter.

Pakistan
ملائی بوٹی
Chicken cubes marinated in cream, cheese, white pepper and green chilli, skewered and grilled so they stay pale and soft.

India
ملائی لڈو
Balls of thickened milk solids sweetened with sugar and cardamom, softer and wetter than a gram-flour laddu.

India
मसाला चाय
Spiced black tea brewed with milk, ginger, cardamom, and cloves. It is India's most beloved beverage, served on every street corner.

Pakistan
میتھی گوشت
Lamb cooked with fresh fenugreek leaves, slightly bitter and deeply savoury.

Sindh, Pakistan
مٺو لولو
Sindhi griddle bread sweetened with jaggery and flavoured with fennel and cardamom, fried in ghee until dark.

Pakistan
مونگ دال حلوہ
A slow-cooked dessert of moong dal, ghee and sugar, rich and grainy.

Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan
مومتو
Gilgit-Baltistan dumplings of minced meat and onion, steamed and served with yoghurt, black pepper, vinegar and chilli sauce.

Lahore, Pakistan
مرغ چھولے
Chickpeas stewed with shredded chicken in a thin, dark, heavily peppered gravy and eaten with naan at breakfast.

Balochistan, Pakistan
مٹن روش
Lamb boiled in salted water alone until it falls off the bone, served with the reduced broth and nothing else.

India
नान
A leavened, tandoor-baked flatbread with a soft, chewy texture. It is one of India's most recognizable breads abroad, traditionally brushed with butter or ghee and served with curries

India
नमक पारे
A North Indian savory fried pastry made from flour and carom seeds. It is a Diwali snack.

Peshawar, Pakistan
نمکین کڑاہی
Lamb or beef cooked in a karahi with animal fat, salt, green chilli and tomato only, with no spice blend at all.

Delhi, India
निहारी
A slow-cooked stew of meat and bone marrow, traditionally eaten for breakfast in Delhi and Lucknow. It is simmered overnight and served with naan.

Punjab, India
باسمتی چاول
Long-grain aromatic rice grown in the Punjab plains between the Ravi and Chenab, aged before milling to lengthen the grain.

Pakistan
پالک گوشت
Lamb cooked with spinach, a green, garlicky curry.

Sindh, Pakistan
Palli
Winter chickpea greens are cooked down with aromatics as a leafy Sindhi saag.

India
पानी पूरी
A chaat of hollow crispy puris filled with spiced potatoes and tangy tamarind water. It is one of India's most beloved street snacks.

India
پنجیری
Wholemeal flour roasted in ghee with sugar, gum arabic, melon seeds and nuts, eaten by the spoonful in winter and after childbirth.

India
पापड़
A thin, crispy, sun-dried flatbread made from lentil or rice flour. It is roasted or fried and served with meals.