Rediscovering Telangana: A culinary journey with Terrāi

Some of Rohit Kasuganti’s fondest memories of food are associated with his ancestral village in Yellapur situated in the Warangal district of Telangana. Surrounded by bountiful farms, he remembers his grandmother preparing hearty meals of pulusu, a tangy rasam-like stew often packed with farm fresh vegetables or moong fritters, soft steamed rice dumplings called kudumulu, and smoky roasted corn harvested from the fields. Earlier this month, the 34-year-old restaurateur along with his wife Anisha Deevakonda launched Terrāi, a dining concept that champions the culinary heritage of Telangana in the state capital of Hyderabad. The ethos of the brand carefully borrows from Kasuganti’s childhood spent in the countryside, with a menu that spotlights the diverse produce and cooking techniques of the region.

Ask anyone about their favourite thing to eat in Hyderabad, and the response is most likely to be biryani. While the local cuisine is heavily influenced by the culinary culture of the Nizams, eating out in the city rarely offers a perspective to the distinct cooking styles of Telangana. Considering it was granted statehood in 2014, for a relatively new state, the food culture of the region was primarily overshadowed by Andhra cuisine. “People somehow felt lost because although the dishes looked similar, the ingredients were quite different,” explains Kasuganti. He emphasises ancient grains such as millets are deeply connected to Telangana’s agricultural foodways due to the arid weather conditions unlike coastal Andhra Pradesh where the staple is rice. The difference also lies in the minimal use of spices in his cuisine compared to Andhra food, which is typically known for its fiery flavours.

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As a young boy, Kasuganti grew up watching his father run a modest eatery serving home-cooked meals of Telangana’s various communities back home in the district town of Karimnagar. He learned the ropes of the restaurant business from him, and finally after completing his MBA, launched Telangana Spice Kitchen (TSK) in Hyderabad’s popular neighbourhood Jubilee Hills in 2018. Today, TSK is known for serving the foods of the region in a fine dining format, and has expanded to multiple outlets. “The direction for us was to represent the cuisine of our state, to bring the foods that we eat in our homes and what is cooked by tribal communities to the forefront backed by R&D. That’s how the idea of Terrāi was born,” he says.

In a fast-evolving dining landscape, Terrāi follows a similar approach when it comes to the menu. Deevakonda, who has previously worked with startups, and is the creative force behind the brand, says, “While we wanted to celebrate the traditional and nostalgic flavours of our cuisine, we were excited to make them more progressive. The plan was to redesign the native ingredients and present them in an aesthetic and refined manner.” Corporate chef Rizwan Khader has therefore developed a menu that pays homage to Telangana’s home-style cooking with some tweaks. For instance, pachadis, which are essentially chutneys made of vegetables, pounded and tempered with basic spices, are served with jowar and ragi chips. A soupy horse gram rasam is accompanied with puffed rice cookie. Lamb and country chicken, staples of the meat-loving community, are elevated as comforting stews and broths. And the iconic Roohafza drink mohabbat-e-sharbat gets a fun twist in the form of tres leches.

Kasuganti’s informed views come from years of extensive research travelling across the region, eating in village homes and documenting the distinct tribal food culture of Telangana. Over the last one year, the team visited Zaheerabad, Warangal, Adilabad, Siddipet and Nizamabad for R&D, discovering rare recipes, which includes a dish prepared with mutton and okra. In Ankapur, they stumbled upon rustic clay pot cooking, which he says, “Is so unique because only four to five ingredients are used to bring out the maximum flavours.” The dish Ankapur Chicken on the Terrāi menu is cooked in a similar fashion in a clay pot to enhance the smoky taste and aroma. Trials are also on for tea-time nibbles popularly eaten during festivals, or in the evenings such as sakinalu, a ring-shaped snack made of rice flour, sarva pindi or savoury pancakes, and steamed and stir-fried rice flour dumplings called rail palaharam, to name a few.

Terrāi has collaborated with the Deccan Development Society (DDS), a 40-year-old co-operative society that promotes sustainable development, and supports local farmers and organic produce ensuring food sovereignty, and seed conservation, among others. The restaurant is currently sourcing millets, pulses and uncultivated leafy greens and vegetables (that grow as weeds and are not cultivated by farmers) native to the state.

In a sea of restaurants serving Asian, Italian and of course biryani, what continues to be underexplored in Hyderabad is the diverse food culture of the regional communities. However, first-time visitors must book a meal at Spicy Venue, a brand known for dishing out a mix of Andhra and Telangana classics for over two decades. Apart from the quail fry and an irresistible apricot delight (a luscious pudding made of apricots), what stands out is the legendary MLA Potlam Biryani, in which a biryani made of kheema and prawns comes encased in an omelette. For meat lovers, Kasuganti recommends Nayaab near Charminar, which offers a glimpse into the breakfast culture of the city with dishes like haleem, paaya, bheja masala and kheema. On the other end of the spectrum is Manam Cafe (inside the Manam Chocolate Karkhana in Banjara Hills), a casual bistro serving globally-inspired regional food — think Gongura Aglio Olio and Kasundi Fried Chicken. Finally, one cannot leave without eating the biryani. But, where? “Skip Paradise, and go to Shadab instead,” says Kasuganti.

Rituparna Roy is a Mumbai-based independent features writer.

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