LRTPublicityLouise Rhind-Tutt

For centuries the Grand Trunk Road has linked the eastern and western regions of the Indian subcontinent,  running from Bengal, across north India, into Pakistan and up to Afghanistan. Today it is still a major route, the axis of India’s heavily populated north.

Food of the Grand Trunk Road is a fascinating look at the food, culture and traditions that have sprung up along the road, promising recipes that reflect the eating traditions of the real India. The book follows Hardeep Singh Kohli’s travels along this age-old route, starting in Calcutta, linking with Lucknow, Aligargh and Delhi before curling north into the Punjab region of northwest India.

The recipes are provided by Anirudh Arora, head chef at Moti Mahal in London, who has devoted his career to researching the long-forgotten recipes of rural India as found along the old Grand Trunk Road. Nostalgic favourites include bhalla papdi chaat, a dish discovered in the streets of North India featuring crisp-fried pastry and chickpeas with a tamarind and mint chutney.