Foods Ruchi Kumar Has Tried

A flour made from orchid roots makes for a popular Turkish drink.

Locals joke that you should be able to “float a horseshoe” on the thick brew.

The spicy, sour mango sauce is beloved from India to Israel.

Somewhere between butter and cream cheese, kaymak adds a fatty, creamy richness to everything.

This savory “head and hooves” soup makes a hearty breakfast in Iran.

Saffron, rose water, and pistachios combine in a fragrant, sweet-savory treat.

In Turkey, drinkers head off hangovers with creamy tripe soup.

This hand-pulled cotton candy treat from Iran looks like threads of unspun silk.

A sweet-and-sour fruit soup from Iran makes for a comforting one-pot meal.

Turkish legends trace these raw meatballs to the time of the prophet Abraham.

A sweet and simple pudding traditionally made in a joyous, spring ritual.

It's the fat-fueled energy drink of the Tibetan Plateau.

This triple-distilled cashew fruit liquor is a source of Goan pride.

Sri Lanka's crispy, bowl-shaped pancake comes with an egg at the bottom.

This cotton candy-like garnish is made of dried, candied meat.

Goa's signature baked pudding cake is multicultural and multilayered.

In Hyderabad, vendors sizzle up spicy fried brains.

This sweet and salty Indian drink keeps an endangered soda bottle in business.

The city of the Taj Mahal hosts another wonder: Crystallized pumpkin candy.