The delicious aroma of crisp, roasted sawaiyan or vermicelli going into a pot of boiling hot milk is my oldest memory of waking up on Eidul Fitr morning. It would set the mood for the rest of the activities that were to follow such as getting ready, saying one's prayers, helping mom out in the kitchen with the rest of the delicacies as the boys and men of the house went to say their prayers at the nearby mosque and then wishing everyone with the hope of breaking the Eidi collection record.

Though feasting after the month of fasting includes all kinds of snacks and dishes like chaat, dahi baray, sandwiches, kebabs, pulao, biryani, korma and what not, no Eidul Fitr celebration is complete without that big bowl of sawaiyan or sheer khurma. It is the most well-known traditional Eid delicacy, not just in Pakistan but the entire subcontinent.

It may be called 'shemai' in Bangladesh, or 'shai mai' like the Burmese Muslims do in Myanmar but the dessert, made of sweet vermicelli with milk and dry fruit, such as fried cashews, coconut shreds, raisins, etc., is more or less the same sawaiyan or sheer khurma that we are familiar with here.

But moving away from our tradition, let's see what Muslims living in the rest of the world like to serve during this Eid. Besides the “shai mai”, Burmese Muslims also like to bake a semolina (sooji) cake or pudding with eggs, cream, coconut cream, sugar and raisins as the other ingredients.

Semolina or sooji ka halwa is also a popular Eid dessert in Myanmar besides the main course, which may comprise 'danbauk' or Burmese biryani, 'htawbat htamin' (rice made with butter and eaten with chicken curry), 'mohinga' (rice vermicelli in fish soup), 'khow suey' (noodles with mince meat and coconut milk), 'samusa thohk' (samosa salad with onions, cabbage, fresh mint, potato curry, masala, chilli powder, salt and lime) and 'jauk-kyaw' (jelly set in two layers with coconut milk).

In South Africa as well as the United Kingdom they take to the Pakistani and Indian tradition of serving visitors with kheer (rice pudding), kulfi, khubani ka meetha (sweet dish made from apricots and cream), cakes, samosas, pies and tarts with tandoori food and rice dishes as the main course.

In the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Fuwallat-al-Eid is a custom centred on welcoming your guests with specially prepared Eid food comprising mostly sweets. In Iran, too, you have the famous Iranian 'gazz', a kind of candy prepared from the sap of angebin, pistachio, almond, rose water and egg white.

In Turkey, where they lay much emphasis on honouring senior citizens by kissing their right hand, it is also customary for the children to visit their neighbours to wish them a Happy Eid for which they get a lot of chocolates and candy in return. One popular traditional sweet that is also distributed on Eid day there is 'baklava', which is pastry filled with chopped nuts, fruit syrup or honey.

Moving to Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei Darussalam, special dishes such as 'ketupat' (rice dumpling), 'dodol' (kind of toffee) and 'lemang' (made from bamboo rice and coconut milk) are all part of the Eid tradition there. Malaysians also like to prepare flavoured rice cooked in coconut leaves on the day. 'Muruku', a savoury South-Indian snack prepared during the Deepavali festival in India, is another Eidul Fitr delicacy in Malaysia.

The largest Muslim country of the world, Indonesia, is known to have an abundance of a rich, thousand-layer spice cake on Eidul Fitr. Demanding much expertise in the making, this traditional food, handed down to them by Dutch colonists of many years ago, is known as 'lapis legit'.

'Canbaabur' is another Eid delicacy made of bread laden with eggs, sugar and spices that used to be very popular among Muslims in Somalia as the first day's feast up until a few years ago. 'Irachi pathiri', a flaky pastry filled with meat is part of Eid tradition in Kerala, India.

In Iraq, they make a pastry filled with dates on Eid, called 'klaicha'. Something similar called 'mamoul' that is filled with dates and ground walnuts, which also resembles a cookie, is served in Lebanon and Syria, too.

In Palestine, there is a tradition of preparing 'ghraybeh' (butter cookies with almonds or pine nuts).

Moroccans like to have a buttered couscous called 'laasida' as their Eid breakfast.

In contrast to most other countries where beef, mutton or chicken are part of the main course, Egypt focuses more on seafood.

So there you have it. Although traditions may differ with the variety in dishes, Eidul Fitr is celebrated with elaborate preparations for serving delicious food all over the world.