Indian food is known to be one of the most rich and delicious cuisines in the whole world. When you are traveling, you are bound to encounter some Indian food at the restaurants. Most people do not know how to make Indian food and therefore do not know much about it.
Health benefits:
Indian food is one of the healthiest in the world. It is made with very little oil and never animal fat. This means that it is not likely to result in high cholesterol blood content. This means that it is quite excellent for people who want to stay healthy and not experience cardiac diseases. This food is also made using a lot of spices and herbs. Most of these are known to have not only excellent taste, but they also have medicinal benefits. Some of the spices, such as turmeric, help in boosting the immune system. This means that by eating Indian food regularly, you are able to keep diseases at bay and live a healthy life.
Main courses:
Unlike other international cuisines which involve a lot of courses, Indian cuisine centers around one main course. This is either rice or bread. The variations in the dishes are brought about by the side servings which are numerous. Indian rice is made through different recipes so you do not feel like you are eating the same main dish every day. For example, you can have pulao rice, masala rice or turmeric rice. There are also a variety of Indian breads such as roti, naan or chapatti. These breads are sometimes made from whole grains and without any adding any fat making them healthy but still tasty.
Meats:
Indian food includes a wide range of meats apart from beef. However, most of the dishes are vegetarian with protein being obtained from other sources. Some of the popular protein sources for Indian foods include lentils, dried beans, chickpeas and black-eyed peas. This is one of the reasons why Indian food is considered to be quite healthy due to the extensive variety of vegetarian dishes.
Spices:
Indian foods are made using a lot of spices. Indian curries are quite hot and you may not be able to eat them if you are not used to having pepper in your food. Never the less, you can always make a special request to the chef to make your food without the pepper. This will take away a bit of the hotness but the other spices used will still maintain the flavor. Therefore, it is always advisable that you enquire from the server how spicy a dish is before ordering for it.
Variety in recipes:
Indian food is never prepared in the same way. Due to the wide variety of spices, you will find that each hotel and chef have their own secret recipes. Therefore, the same dish will taste quite different from one restaurant to another. This is one of the most intriguing things about Indian food and continues to make it a favorite. Next time you are going through ESTA ensure that you include Indian restaurants in your itinerary.
Indian Food Recipe: Badam Ka Sheera Ingredients Blanched Almonds – ½ cup Milk – 9 tbsp. Ghee – 3 tbsp. Cardamom Powder – 1/4tsp. Saffron – few strands Almond slivers – for garnish Serves : 2 Procedure Mix saffron and 1 tbsp. Milk and keep aside. Blend almond and 3 tbsp. Of milk to a smooth paste. In a non-stick pan heat ghee over medium flame, add the almond paste, cook for 4 minutes. Keep stirring Add 5 tbsp of milk with 2tbsp. Of water and cook for another 2 minutes. Now, add sugar, cardamom powder, saffron milk mixture and mix well. Cook for 2 minutes or until it turns golden brown. Garnish with almond slivers and serve hot. Image credit: https://www.tarladalal.com/Almond-Sheera-30848r
Fried Fish Recipe Fried fish is a regular dish made all over the world in different ways and has its different versions that are all palatable. It goes well with chips or if you want something Indian then try it with dal and rice. Fish is consumed in India far and wide. The delicious Indian masalas used in making fish and eaten with the rice makes it a wonderful combination. It’s a staple in the coastline belt of India. Ingredients: 1 Kg fresh fish fillets 1 – egg white, beaten 1 cup – bread crumbs 2 tbsp – melted butter Salt as per taste ¼ tsp – pepper powder How to cook: Preheat oven at 350 degree C. Mix egg, salt and pepper Dip the fillets in egg Roll in bread crumbs On a baking tray put the fish to bake after greasing it Pour melted butter over fillets Bake for 10 mins or till it’s done
Indian Food Recipe: Mutton Roganjosh Mutton Roganjosh Recipe Ingredients Mutton – 1kg. mustard/refined oil – 1cup Red chilli powder – 3 tsp. fennel powder – 3 tsp. ginger powder – 2tsp. cumin powder – 2 tsp. black cardamom – 3 Asafoetida – 1 tsp. Green cardamom – 4 Cinnamon sticks – 2 Bay leaves – 2 Cloves – 2 saffron (optional) – ⅓ tsp. Yoghurt – 1 cup A pinch of salt Procedure Heat the oil in a pressure cooker. Now add cinnamon, bay leaves, green cardamom, cloves, a teaspoon of salt, asafoetida, and mutton. Fry the mutton until it turns brown in colour. Now add 1 cup of water, red chilli powder and saffron. Mix the yoghurt nicely and pour into the pressure cooker and mix well. Keep cooking and stirring until it appears red in colour. Now add 2 cups of water, fennel powder, ginger powder and pressure cook for 2 -3 minutes. Crush the green and black cardamom and add it to the cooker. Sprinkle some cumin powder cook for few more minutes. Serve hot. Image Credit: By gahdjun – Flicr, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3033005
Kheer Recipe Kheer is a milk pudding. This includes vermicelli, rice or broken wheat along with nuts and raisins that give it a crunchy taste and with saffron it gets its color. It’s typically a South Indian dish but very famous with its different versions all over India. It is essentially served as a dessert Ingredients: 1 cup – milk. ½ cup –rice (washed and soaked for 20 mins). 8 green cardamoms peeled and powdered. 20 strands of saffron (soaked in 2 to 3 tbsp. of hot milk). 6-7 tbsp. sugar. 14 almonds. 12 pistachios. Methodology: Let the milk simmer for some time after boiling it. Coarsely grind the rice after draining out the water Add rice to the milk stirring nonstop so that rice doesn’t stick to the vessel. Add saffron and powdered cardamoms. Till the milk thickens let it boil. Add sugar and till it dissolves keep it on the flame. Remove and garnish with Almonds and pistachios. Serve hot or cold.
Indian Food Recipe: Tava Paneer Ingredients Paneer – ½ cups Sliced mushrooms – ½ cup Boiled green peas ½ cup Boiled potato cubes – ½ cup Chat masala – 2tsp. Dried fenugreek leaves – 2tsp. Oil – 2 tbsp. Chopped onions – ½ cup Chilli powder – ½ tsp. Chopped green chillies – ½ tsp. Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp. Finely chopped coriander – 1tbsp. Salt – to taste Serves: 3 Procedure In a mixing bowl combine potatoes, paneer, peas, mushroom, chat masala, fenugreek leaves and salt, mix well and keep aside. On a medium flame heat a non-stick tava, add the oil and saute onions for 1 minute. Add chilli powder, turmeric powder and green chillies and saute. Now add the prepared veggie mix and coriander as well, saute for 2 more minutes. Garnish with coriander and serve. Image credit: https://hebbarskitchen.com/tawa-paneer-recipe-paneer-tawa-masala
Arunachal Pradesh street food differs from tribe to tribe. As one move toward the eastern side of Arunachal people are dependent on bamboo and other leafy vegetables which are strictly boiled. Fried food is not as popular as people like to eat either boiled or smoked food. Apong is a type of rice beer, which is traditionally prepared by tribes of Arunachal Pradesh.India. Apong is prepared by fermenting rice. The two types are Nogi Apong and Poro Apong.The two apongs differ in their taste and colour. Chura Sabji is a kind of curry made of fermented cheese made by either yak milk or cow’s milk and not to forget the most important the flakes and a few pieces of the King chilly which makes it spicy but delicious. Lukhter is another delicacy of the Arunachal Pradesh.Lukter is a combination of cooked dry meat and chilli flakes from the King chilly or Bhut Jolokia. Like the norm goes with Aunachal, this is a side dish meant to be eaten with rice. Pehak is made by use of fermented Soybean and King chilly. In this dish, the king chilli is used as the main ingredient. It is also used as a side dish with rice. The pickle is hot and very spicy that gives the rice a very unique hot flavor. Pehak is very popular among Arunachalis. Pictures sourced from various sources on internet. Please contact for credits.
Uttapam Recipe Uttapam is made from the blend of Urad dal and rice. This combination is excellent and vital for health and has greater nutritious values like vitamin B, folic acid and other protein. In India this south Indian dish can be served during brunch, lunch or dinner. The cuisine was initially discovered in 1st Century A.D. The same is eaten all across India especially in hotels which serve South Indian Cuisine. Ingredients:- Dosa Batter- 1 Cup. Tomato- 1. Small onion- 1. Broken Cashew nuts- 5-7 pieces. Green chillies 1-2. Coriander leaves- 1 bunch. Cooking Method : Wash and chop all the ingredients then mix it batter. Add salt as per taste. Now take a non stick pan and heat it. Cover the pan by adding teaspoon of oil. Now slowly flip it and let other side get cooked. It should smell nice and crisp. Serve it hot with the combination of coconut chutney.
The food of Kerala is a blend of both vegetarian and non-vegetarian options. It includes a variety of items like fish, poultry and red meat. Rice, fish and coconut are the three most common ingredients of Keralite food. Banana chips and Kerala go hand in hand.Most of the tourists prefer banana chips as their snacks as they are easily available and can be tried at any time of the day. Banana chips are dried slices of bananas.They can be covered with sugar or honey to have a sweet taste, or they can be fried in oil and spices to have a salty or spicy taste. Cheera Parippu Thoran or spinach stir fry with coconut is for health conscious people who are looking for a dish that is healthy and is very less in calorie count.The dish is made using leafy vegetables. It makes the best side dish which one can either try with roti, rice. It is a rich source of minerals, vitamins, and iron. Ela Ada is one of those dishes which represent the best and authentic flavors of South India.The dish comprises of rice, coconut, jaggery, etc.One can try this dish for either breakfast or can even as an evening snack. Idiyappam is also known as Noolappam in Kerala cuisine. Idiyappam is made of rice flour, salt and water with a number of thin strands entwined together to make the lovely texture that this dish bears. It is this texture that makes it versatile. It tastes best with Egg Curry. Parippu vada or masala dal vada is a savoury fried snack in Kerala. It is made from legumes and is best consumed for breakfast. Sambar and coconut chutney are the standard accompaniments for Parippu vadas. Puttu and Kadala curry is a famous breakfast recipe out of the many Kerala. Puttu is a cylindrical steamed rice cake that is cooked in a mould with grated coconut. It is served with kadala curry(black chickpeas).It tastes best when served with poori or with roti. Semiya Payasam or popularly known as Vermicelli rice is one of the most famous and popular sweet dishes of Kerala.It is prepared only for some special festivals and occasions. It is served in mud pots which makes the dish even tastier and attractive for the tourists. It is served with lots of nuts and is made using milk, rice, etc. thus is one healthy dish to try.
