It’s Ramzan and that time of the year when people in Hyderabad stop thinking about calories and instead enjoy elaborate meals throughout the day. There is food and more food all over the city, and with home deliveries becoming a norm, there is a huge spike in the amount of food eaten. According to an analysis by Swiggy, there has been a 33 percent spike in haleem orders as compared to last year, and about 8 lakh biryanis were ordered since the beginning of the Ramzan season.

It does sound like a lot of food indeed. But the food-loving Hyderabadis haven’t stopped there. In the 20 days since Ramzan season began, people have been gorging on traditional favorites such as chicken biryani, haleem, niharis, samosas, rabdi, malpua... and the list goes on.

Many, in fact, break their fast with haleem, and this year, the popular types of haleem have been mutton haleem, special haleem, and chicken haleem or murgh haleem. Incidentally, nihari too was ordered about 30 times more than last year.

Iftar time (usually between 5 pm and 7 pm) is the time when the orders are more, and there is a whole variety of foods that people order like paneer butter masala, chicken 65, and masala dosa. Meanwhile, the most popular Iftar snacks include samosa, bhajiya, rabdi, firni, malpua, and dishes made with dates. Orders were also high for gulab jamun, rasmalai, double ka meetha, tender coconut ice cream, and idlis. Swiggy says it received around 4.5 lakh orders in the city between 5 pm and 7 pm.