India Food
By Oliver Wakefield
The food in India is just as diverse as its people and cultures. When you’re traveling in India you start to get the impression that it’s not just one big country. It seems almost like it’s made up of thousands of individual countries each with its own traditions, culture but most noticeably, flavor!
Indian cuisine
The sometimes overwhelming aroma of India is the light scent of roses and lavender flowing on the warm air mixing with the heavy fragrance of spices coming from every home. Oils and spices are a vital part of pretty much every aspect of Indian food and are used to enhance the taste of a dish. Exact blending methods and combinations of flavors have been passed down through families for thousands of years so you’re unlikely to eat two meals that are the same. The English word ‘curry’ translates to Hindi as ‘Kari’ which basically means ’spice sauce’.
Indian cuisine has many depths to it and each unique dish can be identified by different cooking techniques, by its region and by its chef. India’s various religions and cultures have played a major part in modern day Indian food. For nearly two millenia, mass immigration and religious and cultural fusing along with its massive geographical differences (climate, altitude, etc) have had a huge influence on the evolution of food in India.
Trade routes from the Middle East, China and South East Asia (Thailand, Cambodia etc) brought a whole new range of ingredients to light. Various occupation such as the Portuguese and British brought a touch of the Mediterranean to Indian cooking.
North Indian food
North Indian cuisine has some of the most exotic foods available in India and some say that if you are going to India for just the food, then the north is the place to be.
The staple of north Indian food consists predominately of Lentils, Vegetables and Roti (round, flat wheat bread). North Indian cuisine is also noted for its high use of dairy products. Milk, paneer, butter and yogurt are all used as either an ingredient in the cooking process or served as a side dish.
The Thali is a good example of a standard meal in North India and would usually consist of Roti, Rice and a selection of side dishes. Sometimes you will only get a couple consisting of a chutney and a Dal (Lentil gravy) but if your lucky or go to a restaurant specializing in Thalis you can get up to 12 side dishes with things like Fried vegetables, curd, mango puree, chutneys, pickles, the list goes on. A typical dessert would be a choice of sweet meats which originated in Bengal. Things like Rasagulla (cheese balls dipped in syrup), Sandesh (Coconut and sugar balls) and Gulab Jamuns (cream, sugar, flour and saffron).
Cuisine in the north utilities the use of the ‘Tawa’ (griddle) for baking the flat breads such as Roti and Paranthas and the ‘Tandoor” which is a large round oven used for baking Naan bread and Tandoori chicken.
The North also eat more meat than the rest of the country, Goat and lamb are popular, obviously no steak (holy cows) and pork is rare because of the large Muslim population.
The Samosa has been a large part of North Indian lives for centuries and can now be found all over India and the rest of the world. Each street seller or chef will have there own secret recipes but popular ingredients consist of fried or mashed potato with spices or minced meat, cheese, mushroom or chick peas.
Because of the large Muslim population in North India, Kebabs and other meat dishes have become very popular.
South Indian food
South Indian food can be distinguished by its use of rice as a staple food instead of wheat. Generous usage of spices and coconuts are common in cooking. The states that make up south India have very different ideas as to what makes a good dish but I could never find a favorite!
What impressed me the most about the south Indian cuisine was the imagination of it all, things like jack fruit, banana leaves, Aubergine, fish and meat are all used to create dishes which result in a fascinating display of colors, smells and flavors.
Spices are used heavily in south India, things like pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg are found everywhere and also attracted the attention of various invaders like the French and English. Idlis (Black lentils and rice cake), Dosa’s (pancake type thing made out of rice) and Sambhar (heavily spiced stew) are found everywhere you go especially in the morning.
The smell of freshly cooked potato Dosa’s drifting through the tea covered valleys of Munnar, carried on the morning air is a smell that will stay with me for the rest of my life (Mysore is most famous for it’s Masala Dosa’s and is really worth checking out).
Oils, Curry Leaves, red chillies and mustard seeds are more variations of flavours that you can expect especially in Kerala. Kerala is next to the sea and has a thriving fishing industry. Its possible to walk up and down the beach in Cochin and buy your fish straight from the fisherman. You can take it to pretty much any restaurant to be cooked which is a great way of saving a bit of money as well!
Andhra Pradesh has some of the spiciest cuisine in south India and is famous for it’s Briyanis (spicy rice dish with meat and vegetables). Pickles, pappads and chutneys are served alongside and help make this dish something special and highly recommended by me. Other popular dishes found all over South India include meat curry, and loads of seafood, things like mussels, prawns, shark and mackerel are incredibly popular.
East Indian food
When I say East Indian food I am predominantly suggesting the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur, Tripura, Mizoram.
Where its available fish is the most popular dish in East India cooking but because of the large amount of rainfall, rice is also very common. The further north you go all they way up to Bengal the more fish is used as a staple but the states further inland have who rarely get the opportunity of fish have to be more imaginative with the use of rice. Many types of rice have been created over the years and all involve different colors, textures and flavors.
In the North East of India, in Bengal the chefs are almost perfectionists when it comes to cooking and the result is something special. Not too spicy and not too faint, most meals will involve spices such as Cumin (green and Black), green chillies, mustard seed, curd, cashew nuts and poppy seeds. They are made into curries and eaten with various types of rice. Bangledesh’s food is a delicate mix of North Indian, Bengali and has a definite hint of Pakistani cuisine.
A typical East Indian Dish will usually consist of a a rice dish with fish and various plates of mixed vegetables such as Dalma. Deep fried vegetables, usually mashed are common and for pudding Pitha which is a rice based dessert which originated in East Indian but can now be found all over.
West Indian food
West Indian food has probably one of the most diverse ingredient ranges out of all of them and its many influences from the colonial occupations by the Portuguese and British makes it quite an Interesting area.
Goa is the best example I can give of West Indian cuisine and has some of the tastiest food I have ever eaten. Apart from tourism, fishing is the biggest industry here and Seafood is one of the main food sources. Along with intense herbs and spices, an abundance of coconuts and rice makes Goan food somewhat extraordinary. In certain areas, the influence of the Portuguese occupation on the food is very prominent.
Goa was used as the international port of India for centuries. All the trade coming into Indian and leaving India came through Goa and so the food in Goa has a real international feel to it. Couple this with the huge tourism industry and the food has had some seriously heavy influences on it over the years.
Maharashtra is the home of Mumbai and is a massive state. It has two major geographical sections to it, the coast and the mountains. The coastal region is much the same as goa but the mountains have a real taste of there own. Mild to extremely spicy, a typical meal would consist of wheat, rice, lentils, vegetables and fruit.
Gujarat, which is above Maharashtra is one of the strictest states in India, no drinking is aloud and the majority of all food is vegetarian. A standard Gujarati Thali would consist of Rotis, dal, rice and a dish made of vegetables and spices which is either sweet or spicy (Shaak). Gujarati food is well know for being sweet, spicy and salty at the same time which is sounds strange but it is actually quite a treat.
Oliver Wakefield from http://www.all-about-India.com. For the Experience
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