Flavour of the hills: Pratibha Rantas food diaries – EXCLUSIVE

I’m madly in love with Himachali food, and I wear that love on my sleeve. The flavours of the hills are not just tastes, they’re emotions, memories and a connection to my roots. Born and raised in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, food for me has always been a way to nurture the body and soul. Unlike most people, I never saw food as something indulgent, it was sustenance, energy and tradition woven together. But when it comes to Himachali food, oh, it’s so much more than survival, it’s pure magic.

The Essence of Himachali Cuisine

Himachali food is warmth personified. The chilly mountain air makes every dish feel like a warm hug. Take our chutneys, for instance, we make them from dry fruit. Another dish we make is by blending jaggery and flour into a hearty dough called Baadi. Before eating, we drizzle ghee over it, turning it into a melt-in-your-mouth delight. Our meals are brimming with halwa, saag, buttery milk and other wholesome dishes. But my ultimate love? Siddu. Imagine biting into a steamed, stuffed dough, topped generously with ghee. That feeling, so comforting, so rich, transports me back to winter mornings in Shimla. Siddu isn’t just food; it’s an experience you can only fully appreciate in the crisp chill of the hills. Try eating it in Mumbai but you’ll see, it just doesn’t work.

Himachali Dham: A Sacred Feast

Another culinary treasure is Himachali Dham, our version of a traditional thali. It’s not just a meal; it’s a celebration, a ritual. Think rajma, mixed dal and rice, served as a divine offering during festivals like Shivratri. I can still taste the smoky pahadi potatoes roasted over an open flame and mashed with simplicity and love. This food fuels the soul, especially for a lifestyle that involves endless walking, working and trekking across our breathtaking hills.

Growing Up in Shimla: A Foodie’s Paradise

Food in Shimla was never about restaurants or take-outs, it was about homemade meals and community picnics. I grew up savouring piping hot rotis cooked on a traditional chulha, paired with my mother’s unforgettable phool gobhi ki sabzi and kadhi. We have our own farm, where we grow vibrant greens like palak, methi and more exotic varieties of saag. And let me tell you, there’s nothing like drinking fresh milk straight from our family cow. It’s health and nostalgia in a glass. Even our fast food had a unique charm. I didn’t even know what pizzas, burgers and pastas were as a child. My school memories are full of pani puris sold by an uncle outside the gate and buttery pastries from Trishul Bakers. Indian Coffee House and Wake and Bake were our special hangouts, where food came with a side of laughter and camaraderie.

Mumbai vs. Shimla: A Tale of Two Kitchens

Moving to Mumbai was like entering a different culinary universe. While I adore trying new things, from vada pav with its fiery red chutney to tangy thecha, nothing compares to the simplicity of home-cooked Himachali meals. The milk here gave me acne and the spices felt foreign to my palate. But I learnt to adapt, even embrace Maharashtrian varan bhat (rice) cooked by a local didi who now helps in my kitchen. But, I miss the warmth of food cooked with love back home. My mom’s perfectly soft rotis, the earthy taste of saag and the aroma of dishes cooked over a chulha remain irreplaceable.

Food Adventures on the Go

Every place I visit, I seek out its local flavours. During the shoot of Laapata Ladies in Jaipur, I fell in love with Rajasthani thalis comprising dal baati, churma and gatte ki sabzi. In Ladakh, I devoured thukpa and momos. And in Poland, mashed potatoes brought an unexpected wave of nostalgia. Wherever I go, food becomes a bridge connecting me back to my pahadi roots. I like the thali served at Maharaja Bhog a lot as it reminds me of my Jaipur sojourn.

My Kitchen Experiments

Cooking is not my forte but I can whip up a decent aloo paratha or salad. My simple salad recipe-paneer, boiled broccoli, mushrooms and corn sautéed in ghee with black salt and pepper, is my go-to comfort food when I’m too tired to cook. I’m also a fan of experimenting, like making fried rice inspired by YouTube tutorials.

Sets appeal

I prefer the food served on the sets. Sometimes, I ask the chef to prepare chilla for me. We were shooting for Laapata Ladies in Seoni, near Bhopal. There, I had chilla with onions and tomatoes added to it. I had the chilla with my choice of vegetables and pickles. The flavour of the food there was something else. During the shoot of Heeramandi, the evening snacks would come from the house of Sanjay Leela Bhansali sir. Since he is a Gujarati, his tiffin would have thepla and dhokla. We all used to have it at
4 PM. That was some amazing-tasting food.

My Love Language: Food

If you want to win my heart, forget fancy restaurants. Take me to the mountains, serve me authentic pahadi food and let the tranquility of nature do the rest. A bowl of dal chawal, a plate of momos, or a simple pani puri from a street vendor can mean more to me than the most extravagant meal in a five-star hotel. I visit restaurants that are associated with nature. There should be greenery. There is a restaurant in Mumbai, in Versova, called Backyard Brew. I love going there. It has an open space and there are many plants around, which gives a good feel. When friends are together, every place feels good. I don’t check the price of food in restaurants; whatever I like, I order. Why bother about the price? When I first came to Mumbai, I blew my parents’ money in one week. Now, I prefer only to have home-cooked meals. At the end of the day, food is more than flavours or calories. It’s about heritage, love and the stories it tells. And for me, Himachali food is the most beautiful story of them all.

Rapid Fire

What do you order every time you go to your favourite restaurant?

Chinese: noodles, momos. I tried triple Schezwan fried rice after coming to Mumbai,and I liked it immensely. I absolutely love Schezwan chutney.

What’s your Idea for a romantic date?

If someone wants to please me, they should not feed me food from a 5-star hotel, but Pahadi food — and that too after taking me to the mountains. There is so much noise in the city. There can be nothing more romantic than
being in the mountains.

Have you cooked anything special?

I don’t know how to express love through food. I’ve realised that I cannot make anyone happy by cooking food. I wish I could meet someone who will cook delicious food for me.

Do you have a sweet tooth?

No, I have a sour tooth. I love sour food. I love pani puri and raw mango. In fact, once I went to Poland with my friends and gave raw mango to taste to some foreigners. In terms of sweets, I love gajak.

Are you a midnight snacker?

No. I don’t prefer eating after 7 pm. But if I am hungry, I eat fruit.

What’s important for you, ambience or service?

Ambience. If the ambience is good, even bad service is tolerable.

Which is that one dish you can eat every single day?

Dal chawal.

Favourite food destination in Mumbai?

The pani puri shop in Lokhandwala.

What’s the Worst food you’ve ever eaten?

Once, I went to a restaurant in Goa with my friends. I had ordered peri-peri fries which didn’t turn out to be good.Pratibha Ranta opens up about her favourite food. Continue reading …Read More