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As much as I like Kaju Katli, By virtue of me being Hyderabadi, my choices are above and beyond debate. Thread -
(1/n)
(1/n)
Qubani ka meetha -A Dry Apricot sweet that didn’t enjoy much attention in the North but became one of the royal dishes when Mughals moved south. Hyderabadi weddings are Incomplete without it. Tastes best when hot and coupled with Vanilla Ice cream. (2/n)
Sheer Khurma- With Vermicelli, dates and milk as primary ingredients, this dish originated in Afghanistan but the popular version of it evolved in Hyderabad. It’s an integral part of Eid celebrations. (3/n)
Kaddu ki Kheer - Pudding made from Squash. This dish is also included in most wedding menus in Hyderabad.(4/n)
Gil e firdaus (Clay of Paradise) a thick variant of Kheer which uses bottle gourd instead. The Hyderabadi derivative takes the kheer to unmatched pinnacles. Sometimes even white pumpkin is used instead/along side bottle gourd.(5/n)
Jouzi Halwa - Made primarily with oat milk and nutmeg this dish travelled all the way from Turkey to Hyderabad through a 11yr old boy(who went onto become the favourite Halwai of the Last Nizam). It takes 16 hours to make one batch of this sweet. (6/n)
Mauz Ka Mitha - This banana sweet might be the simplest of all the dishes in this thread but is one of my favorites. It is prepared with bananas, milk, ghee, sugar, and nuts.(7/n)
Shahjahani ka meetha (or Tamatar ka halwa)- This sweet is one of the hidden treasures of Hyderabad. This unusual dish is made using less tangy tomatoes or salad tomatoes and mawa. It's bizarre but somehow works. (8/n)
Anokhi Kheer - The Dessert of the masses during the time of Nizams. Traditionally kheer has rice or some other similar ingredient in it but the uniqueness of this particular kheer lies in the fact that it uses onions instead of the usual rice as the main ingredient with milk.
Badam ki Jali- There are just 3-4 shops that sell this local sweet, which finds its roots in erstwhile Madras. Baked and tender, Badam ki jali is made with almonds and cashews. (10/n)
Mulberry Cream/Malai - My go-to late-night Desert. Tbh, I would like to believe that it has been adopted into Hyderabadi Cuisine even if the origins don't lie here. Even though Mulberry is the most popular, one can get many variations of it including Litchi and Mango. (11/n)
Burhanpur Khowa Jalebi- The last dish in this thread is ironically not from Hyderabad but as the name suggests is from Burhanpur, Madhya Pradesh. Though it's popular and easily available in the North, it's still niche here in Hyderabad. (12/n)
