A specially curated menu celebrating India’s Himalayan culinary heritage was served at a state banquet hosted by President Droupadi Murmu at the Rashtrapati Bhavan on Tuesday in honour of European Union leaders Antonio Costa and Ursula von der Leyen.
European Council President Costa and European Commission President von der Leyen were the chief guests at India’s 77th Republic Day celebrations.
The banquet menu paid tribute to the diverse food traditions of the Himalayan belt, drawing inspiration from Kashmir, Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the Northeast, while presenting them through a contemporary fine-dining lens.
The meal opened with jakhiya aloo—a traditional Uttarakhand potato preparation tempered with aromatic wild mustard seeds—served alongside tangy green tomato chutney.
This was paired with jhangora ki kheer, a creamy dessert made from barnyard millet, delicately balanced with meah loon (a Himalayan mineral salt) and white chocolate.
The soup course featured sunderkala thichoni, a rustic buckwheat noodle dish from Uttarakhand with strong Tibetan influences, highlighting the region’s reliance on hardy mountain grains.
Accompaniments included a silky yak cheese custard paired with bhaang mathri—a crisp savoury biscuit infused with hemp seeds—along with bichhu buti patta (stinging nettle leaves) glazed with mustard and bottle gourd (lauki).
A winter carrot kadhi, a yoghurt-based preparation finished with warming spices, rounded out the course.
The main course showcased prized Himalayan ingredients such as guchhi (wild morel mushrooms) and Solan mushrooms, cooked with poppy seeds and burnt tomato sauce.
These were served with Himachali swarnu rice, a fragrant local grain, and accompanied by a trio of chutneys made from rai leaf, Kashmiri walnut, roasted tomato and akhuni—a fermented soybean condiment from the Northeast.
Desserts continued the regional journey with a Himalayan ragi and Kashmiri apple cake infused with timru (Himalayan Sichuan pepper) and sea buckthorn cream. This was followed by coffee custard with dates and raw cacao, and Himalayan honey-dressed persimmon.
According to the menu, the dishes were curated in collaboration with chefs Prateek Sadhu and Kamlesh Negi, reflecting Rashtrapati Bhavan’s ongoing emphasis on promoting India’s rich and diverse culinary traditions.
The visit of Costa and von der Leyen assumed added significance as it marked the first time that the two top leaders of the European Union attended India’s Republic Day celebrations as chief guests.
The visit also coincided with India and the European Union sealing a landmark free trade agreement on Tuesday, described by officials as the “mother of all deals”.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the EU leadership unveiled an expansive agenda to deepen cooperation in trade and defence and to strengthen engagement towards a rules-based global order.
By spotlighting regional ingredients, indigenous techniques and age-old food wisdom at a global diplomatic gathering, India once again underscored its pride in its cultural heritage—using its cuisine as a powerful expression of identity, tradition and soft diplomacy on the world stage.