Indian Cuisine: Regional Variety Instead of a Single Curry
Indian cuisine is far more varied than the common picture of one dish in a yellow sauce suggests. It differs greatly from region to region. What gets called simply curry in Germany is, in India, a very general term for dishes with a sauce. What defines this cuisine, and how do you find your way around it? Here are the basics: the foundation of most meals, typical spices and a drink almost everyone knows.
What Is Indian Cuisine?
There is no one Indian cuisine. Every region has its own dishes, spice combinations and ways of preparing food. Speaking of a single Indian flavor is therefore a simplification. In India the word curry does not name a particular dish but a broad group of dishes with a sauce, which can differ greatly from one another.
Still, some elements come back in many households. The foundation is lentils and other legumes cooked as dal, along with rice. Breads such as roti, naan or paratha join them. Dal and bread are therefore an easy way in if you want to get to know everyday Indian cooking.
Indian Spices: What Shapes the Flavor?
Spices above all determine the character of the dishes. Typical ones are cumin, coriander, turmeric, cardamom, mustard seed and chili. Each spice does a different job: one gives color, another aroma, another heat. Indian spices are also combined into blends. The best known is garam masala.
The selection and amounts depend on the region and on the dish. The same spice can play the lead role in one dish and be used sparingly in another. In Germany, Indian spices are available in Asian grocery stores and well-stocked supermarkets, so you do not have to search long for them.
Vegetarian Cooking and Chai: Two Important Topics
In large parts of India there is a rich vegetarian cuisine. For anyone used to meat dishes with sauce, that is an important point: meatless dishes are an essential part of Indian cooking. Dal, rice and breads show this well.
Finally, a look at chai, tea boiled with milk and spices. It shows that Indian spices are used not only in main dishes but in drinks as well.
The best way to get to know Indian cuisine is region by region and step by step: from dal and bread through the main spices to chai.