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Most people's experience with Indian food can be summed up in three words: curry, curry, curry. But Indian cuisine is as varied as India's geography, climate, religion, and culture. From the meaty, warm tandoori dishes of Northern India to the mostly vegetarian, saucy Southern dals (legume-based dishes), no two of India's regions are alike.
The four Indian culinary regions
As with any country, India's culinary regions are known for their own delicacies. However, you may have a tough time finding a restaurant that serves these delicacies in the home region. Culturally, Indians usually leave the regional cooking at home and venture out for what they don't make at home. So a family in the southern state of Goa would not go to a restaurant down the street to try a Goan vindaloo curry. They would prefer their own family recipe, but would dine in a restaurant to sample the northern tandoori delicacies.
Following is a brief overview of the various culinary regions in India.
- Northern India (roughly made up of the six states of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir): This area boasts the most familiar mix of regional dishes, including the ever-popular tandoori-style cooking. The typical Indian restaurant in the West owes most of its menu selections to this region, including koftas (spicy meatballs), kormas (meats braised in creamy sauces of yogurts and fruits), and the luxuriously chewy, leavened bread, naan. Garam masala is a typical spice blend used here, more warming than fiery. Basmati rice is the favorite choice in the north, but breads are the primary starch in this wheat-growing region.
- Southern India, composed of the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Goa, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala: Southern Indian cuisine is characterized by fiery spice blends, such as vindaloo, and a reliance on legumes, including lentils and chickpeas. Although the southern diet is primarily vegetarian, the people here may add meat for celebrations and special occasions. Rice grows well here, and the fragrant jasmine variety is present in almost every dish during a meal, even dessert!
- Eastern India, including the states of Orissa, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur Nagaland, and Arunachal Pradesh. The region is famous for Darjeeling tea and Mother Teresa. This hot, humid region along the Bay of Bengal has cultivated as many as 50 different varieties of rice. Coconuts and bananas are popular ingredients; coconut milk often substitutes for cow's or goat's milk.
- Western India (Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Maharashtra): Dairy products, including yogurt, buttermilk, cow's milk, and goat's milk, are staples in the western diet. Along the coastline of the Arabian Sea, you can sample the popular "Bombay Duck," which is actually a small, transparent fish. You'll also find a dizzying array of pickles, served with every meal.
What all these regions share is a reliance on locally available foods. For example, in the south, rice grows in abundance. The southern population tends to prepare more liquid curries and sauces because rice is a highly absorbent, always present element at virtually every meal. In the north, where wheat grows, the sauces are thicker and served with unleavened flat bread, or parantha. Additionally, southern farmers enjoy heavy rainfall and a seemingly endless array of vegetables, making a vegetarian diet very common. While their northern neighbors at the foothills of the Himalayas add lamb to their diet, their coastal cousins enjoy fish and other seafood regularly.
 | The influence of religion on eating habits can't be ignored. Hindus and Sikhs do not eat beef, as they regard the cow as a sacred animal. Specific sects of Hinduism are strict vegetarians and won't eat food that even resembles meat (such as tomatoes, beets, and watermelon) or foods that are often associated with meat (such as onions and garlic). Other religions within India (primarily Muslims and Jews) are prohibited from eating pork. |
The principles of Indian cooking
Indian cooking is characterized by flavors and aromas unlike any other cuisine. Those flavors and aromas come from the varied spices, combinations and preparations, and a reliance on simple ingredients. Indian cooks let the spices do the work and flavor their foods. And no two Indian cooks cook exactly alike, so there's really no wrong way to do it! How's that for empowerment!
Keep in mind a few basic principles, and you will be cooking like an Indian pro in no time.
Spices rule, guests drool
Despite the variety in climate, geography, and culinary traditions, one unifying element of Indian cooking is its reliance on herbs, spices, and spice blends. Their fragrance and aromatic properties are essential to Indian cuisine. A single spice can be treated a number of different ways (whole, ground, fried, roasted, or roasted and then ground) before being added to a dish, giving the finished product significantly different flavors and aromas. Additionally, different parts of an herb (the root, seeds, or leaves) can be used to add distinctively different flavors and aromas to the finished dish.
Buy fresh, seasonal, local ingredients
One reason for the differences among the styles of Indian cooking is the availability of ingredients. Use that same principle to your advantage. Shop farmer's markets when weather permits to find the best zucchini for your chutney or the best cauliflower for your pakoras. Try whole foods markets to find a wide variety of rice and legumes available to purchase in bulk. If you put good stuff in, you get good stuff out!
Keep it simple
| Although Indian food isn't difficult to prepare, it can be time-consuming. You don't have to create everything from scratch to have an authentic Indian meal. Don't be afraid to try some store-bought spice blends, marinades, chutneys, and cheese to use with the recipes in this book. Even if you can't find an Indian grocer close to home, many gourmet shops and even mainstream supermarkets have expanded their Asian offerings to include more than soy sauce and chow mein noodles. |
Maintain balance during menu planning
Indian meals maintain a balance between wet and dry dishes, like the balance between wet, saucy curries and dry rice. They also soothe warm, spicy dishes with cooling raitas (flavored, savory yogurts) and chutneys.
| Traditionally, Indian meals are served family style. All items, including desserts, are present at the table simultaneously, served on large platters called thalis, or sometimes on banana leaves (very handy, and much more environmentally friendly than paper plates). And although a few serving utensils are present, guests eat almost everything with their hands (well, actually, just the right hand; the left is reserved for other necessary functions). |
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