The ‘Indian food’ is considered as a world cuisine today, with a diverse character in itself. One, who truly knows the Indian cuisine, can never point out a particular variety. This is because it has evolved through various civilizations and inter-cultural preferences for over 500 years. Hence, the food preferences are as diverse as the land, culture and its languages.
The Indian cuisine is dominated by the religion and geographical conditions as well as the history of the region. For example, vegetarian culture is widely practiced in many Hindu, Buddhist and Jain communities. Let us take look at the diversity of Indian cuisine in various regions.
EAST INDIAN CUISINE
- The first thing that comes to mind of a dessert lover like me are the sweets like sandesh and rasagolla.
- The East Indian food is cooked in rich curries and with plenty of spices. One popular spice used here are the Poppy seeds. Other commonly used spices are Mustard seeds, Cumin seeds, Black Cumin, Turmeric, etc.
- People prefer Rice over roti or naan.
- From Hilsa to Prawns—Bengali people are very fond of seafood especially, fish for both lunch and dinner.
SOUTH INDIAN CUISINE
- Just like Eastern region, the South Indians love to use lots of spices.
- South Indian staple food happens to be Rice and curries.
- Most of the south Indian food is cooked in coconut oil which imparts a delicious aroma to their cuisine.
- Food is generally served on banana leaves in traditional households and many restaurants.
- A few popular food preparations would be the unique Sāmbhar, Rasam, Fish curries often enjoyed with Dosa, Uttapam and Idli. Payassam is a common dessert.
- A liberal use of mixed pickles, spices, tamarind chutneys and yoghurt is a pary of their daily meals.
- In the regions like Hyderabad, the Awadhi Biriyani is extremely popular.
NORTH INDIAN CUISINE
- It is marked by a liberal use of dairy products, like ghee, butter and paneer.
- North Indians mostly enjoy sabzee and dal with breads like: paratha,naan, kulcha and roti over Rice.
- Meat is also widely popular among the Punjabi community and they often indulge in Chicken, Mutton and Pork.
- The desserts generally include halwa, laddu,kheer and jalebi.
- The tradition of kebab and meat dishes had originated from the Muslims’ incursions into the country during the Mughal period.
WESTERN INDIAN CUISINE
- The Western cuisine of India is comprised of different types Maharashtrian, Goan food and Gujarati dishes, primarily.
- The Goan cuisine makes use of in fish, crabs, prawns and coconut,a lot. Goan cuisine is less spicy due to the influence of Portuguese culture as compared to South Indian cuisine.
- Maharashtrian cuisine includes use of Jowar, Bajra as well as Wheat and Rice as staple grains. Popular exclusive Maharashtrian dishes include modak, aluchi patal bhaji and Thalipeeth.
- A Thali in a typical Gujarati household includes daal, shaak or saag, rotli, Gujarati kadhi and Rice. Popular dishes/snacks are dhokla, thepla, khakhra etc.
Indian cuisine is diverse and vast. It is not possible to describe the dishes of one state in totality but we are sure, this write up does make your taste buds dance to the sheet variety of food in India.
Utpal Khot
Copyright © Utpal K
1. If you share this post, please give due credit to the author Utpal Khot
2. Please DO NOT PLAGIARIZE. Please DO NOT Cut/Copy/Paste this post
© Utpal K., all rights reserved.
Copyright Notice: No part of this Blog may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical including photocopying or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the Blog Author Utpal Khot who holds the copyright
