Cheeses of Udhampur and Ramnagar
The home of kalari, the Dogra cheese pressed in leaf cups, sun-dried and fried in its own fat for kalari kulcha.
Made, aged and sold here
Best time: October to March, the cool season in the Jammu hills.
Udhampur district, in the hills north of Jammu, is the home of kalari, the dense cheese of the Dogra people. It is most closely linked with the town of Ramnagar. Kalari was a way to keep milk through the hot summer. Today it is also the star of kalari kulcha, a Jammu street food in which the cheese is fried until golden and tucked into a soft bread.
How kalari is made
Kalari is made from raw full-fat cow or buffalo milk, sometimes goat, split with soured milk. The curd is packed into donas, small bowls made from leaves, and dried in the sun so the whey drains out and the cheese firms. It keeps its own fat, so it is fried in a dry pan without oil until it browns and blisters, then salted and eaten hot.
Kalari kulcha and the Dogra kitchen
In Jammu and Udhampur, street cooks fry kalari on a flat griddle and serve it in a kulcha with onion, tomato and chutney. At home it is eaten as a snack with tea or alongside rajma and rice. The Dogra hills also make milk cake and other dairy sweets, and the drive up from Jammu passes many roadside stalls selling them.
A trail idea for Udhampur and Ramnagar
- Ramnagar The hill town most closely linked with kalari making.
- Udhampur bazaar Look for kalari stacked in its leaf cups at dairy stalls.
- Jammu old city Try kalari kulcha from a street griddle.
- Patnitop A pine-forested hill stop on the road north.
Written by the EveryCheese desk with AI assistance. Background: "Udhampur" on Wikipedia. Opening hours, markets, caves and tours change; check locally before travelling. If something is wrong, tell us.
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