Cooking Indian food

Indian food is flavorsome, beautiful and diverse. If you have always considered Indian food to be only ‘curry’, you definitely don’t know anything about it. Indian cuisine has a huge variety of dishes to suit almost any palate. From its rich biriyanis, flavorsome pulaos and amazing seafood delicacies, to its trove of simple dishes for daily meals, India has everything. If you are thinking of getting started with cooking Indian food, there is no better time to start than now. Getting your basics right about Indian cuisine is the first thing to do. This article will help you get a few things cleared out.

Diversity is what is the most remarkable about Indian cuisine

India is a huge country and people favour different kinds of dishes in each part. For instance, while in the North, the people love their cottage cheese, yogurt, milk, ghee (clarified butter) and beans, the South is more inclined towards coconuts, tamarind, pepper and chillies. East Indians love their fish and mustard oil. This is all while the more cosmopolitan West has created a cuisine that’s unique. It is one which takes the best of the country in fusion with food from different parts of the world. So before you start, it is a good idea to start with basics like simple staple foods. These are foods like rice, rotis (fresh bread), dal (lentils) and sabzi (simple vegetable dish). Have a think too as to what you’d order in an Indian restaurant too.

Freshness and cooking from scratch is the basis of most Indian foods

Indians love fresh ingredients and on any given day, Indian bazaars are filled with people stocking up on fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and fish for meals to be cooked on that particular day. Indians mostly cook with fresh ingredients and do most things from scratch. So if you really love the country’s Indian cuisine, it is a great idea if you cook with fresh ingredients. You will be amazed at how wonderfully simple vegetables can be turned into beautiful flavorsome dishes with the minimal use of oil and masalas!

Staples of Indian cuisine

Yes, Indians love rich Indian dishes and desserts, but the truth is that no one eats them regularly. Such foods are reserved for special occasions. Most Indian households cook simple meals. A typical Indian meal consists of rice or rotis, dal, sabzi and yogurt. People who favor non-vegetarian food will usually eat rice or rotis, dal and a chicken or a fish curry. Such staple foods are easy to cook, healthy and easily digestible.

The ‘Masalas’

Indians love their spices. Now that may scare off even the most experienced of cooks if he happens to be of a different country. The idea is to get your basics right and stop believing that all Indian food contains ‘curry powder’! A lot of Indian dishes can be cooked with little or no masalas as well.

Get yourself organized

There was a time when it was difficult finding ingredients for cooking Indian food. But not anymore. Most supermarkets have international food counters. They are counters that store Indian spices and sauces. Also, there must be a local Indian store near where you live. Go pick up stuff and cook up an Indian storm, literally. You will have a great deal of fun too.