How to Cook Cultural Indian Foods

Curry is the most commonly known Indian dish.

Indian foods have increased in popularity substantially since the 1700s, ever since England colonized the country. Chicken tikka masala was once called Britain's national dish by its foreign secretary at the time, according to BBC Magazine, but it has been westernized with many versions using common ingredients combined with curry powder. Traditional cultural Indian foods have a medley of flavors and are simple to recreate with time and practice if the right ingredients are utilized. Many of these ingredients can be found in Southeast Asian or Indian grocery stores, with the more common ones, such as curry powder and coconut milk, available at most large supermarkets.

Things You'll Need

• Indian cookbook or recipes

Instructions

1. Find out what region of India the dish you want to prepare is from, for this will determine the major ingredients used. There are four major culinary regions -- North, South, East and West. Look up recipes for that particular dish in an Indian cookbook or online -- see the references at the end of this article for good resources. Not all dishes contain curry powder, as most believe. Garam masala, a medley of spices mixed together in a powder, is the most common ingredient.

2. Prepare the food so that it meets the Indian six-taste requirement. Sweet, salty, bitter, sour, astringent and spicy tastes should be achieved by the dish. However aim to have at least four of the six if you are new to cooking Indian cuisine.

3. Choose recipes that suit your diet. Not all Indian dishes are greasy and fatty, as some may believe, and the amount of oil called for in a recipe usually can be reduced by three-quarters. Also, dishes vary in spiciness; not all are hot. Choose a dish that suits both you and those who will be eating the food.

4. Add meat to the dish, if desired. Meat usually is not required for many Indian dishes, as a great deal of the country's population is vegetarian.

5. Make roti or naan bread to go with the dish. This is often used as a utensil, allowing the eater to scoop up sauces and food with a torn-off piece.

Tips & Warnings

• Spice can be added or lessened in a recipe according to the tastes of those you are serving the dish to.

References

• IndianFoodRecipes.com: About Indian Food and Cooking
• BBC News: How Britain Got the Hots for Curry
• CuisineCuisine.com: Introduction to Indian Cuisine

Resources

• Cuisine Cuisine
• Recipe Delights: Top Indian Cookbooks