Nihari (Hindi: निहारी; Bengali: নিহারী; Urdu: نہاری) is a stew originating in Lucknow, the capital of 18th-century Awadh under the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent.

[3] It was originally meant to be consumed as a heavy, high-energy breakfast dish on an empty stomach by working-class citizens, particularly in colder climates and seasons.

However, the dish later gained a significant amount of popularity and eventually became a staple of the royal cuisine of Mughal-era nawabs.

[5][6] Nihari is a traditional dish among the Indian Muslim communities of Lucknow, Delhi, Hyderabad and Bhopal.

Some nihari outlets in Old Delhi claim to have kept an unbroken cycle of taar going for more than a century.