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Traditional foods of India: Variety in the cuisine
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Saturday, 30 July, 2022, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Bakul Govil
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India is the land of variety whether it’s in the culture, language, attire, or in food. The history suggests that the country was based on farming and those local crops support the formulation of cuisine, even today most of the Indian population is vegetarian.
Earlier, the non-vegetarianism was limited to certain communities or only coastal areas but, now the food habits have changed and that happened because of different invasions over the country. The results of those invasions are the today’s beautiful and variety in the cuisine.
There are different grains we consume to crave our carbs requirement. In Northern region, wheat and rice are famous, bajra and jowar in Western, ragi, rice and lentils in South. The grain which is grown locally became the staple diet of that region. There are many varieties of rice grown in India and can be eaten in different forms like steamed, biryani, khichdi, idli, appam, idiappam.
The many similarities between the culinary regions of India are highlighted with an exquisite use of spices and flavourings. These range from cardamom, cumin, cloves, fennel seeds and garlic to ginger, chilles, fenugreek, saffron and turmic. Spice mixtures or masalas are a crucial element of Indian cuisine. Whether fresh or dried, masalas make use of local ingredients and are prepared daily along with grains, pulses and vegetables.
While meat, poultry, fish and seafood dishes are offered throughout India, most vegetarian specialities are found in the central and southern regions. For an added dimension of flavour, a variety of fruits are served fresh or pickled, such as chutney and relish. Dairy products, such as clarified butter (ghee), cheese (paneer), yogurt, milk and buttermilk (moru) are used as ingredients and condiments. Raita is popular chilled yogurt condiment garnished with chopped fruit or vegetables and spices.
Dal preparations (dried legumes and pulses) are at the centre of Indian meals. When combined with grains, they provide an inexpensive source of essential protein. Dals are prepared whole and pureed and are generally served with vegetables and meat, where accepted. In the northern regions, thick and hearty stew-like dals are eaten with bread, while the thinner preparations of the south are best suited for rice.
Channa dal or gram lentils are the most widely grown dal in India. Used both as protein and starch, garbanzos and lentils supply the base for breads, crepes and thickeners for curries. Other types of dals commonly eaten include peas, kidney beans, mung beans and split peas.
Meals in this region consist mostly of chapattis (rotis), accompanied Dal (pulses), vegetables and curds (Yoghurt). Rice is also taken but in lesser quantity. Side dishes consist of chutney (preserves), as well as achar (pickles). There are the Mughlai and Kashmiri cuisines, which represent the Central Asian influence. People from this region also consume a lot of milk-based sweets.
In the north, breakfast often consists of Paranthas rolled (chapattis made of ghee) and puris (small chapatis fried in oil). Maharashtrians love eating fish and meat. Fish is often stuffed or fried lightly. Meat, on the other hand is braised and spiced up with sour and sweet ingredients. Many Punjabis also eat meat. They have lamb and chicken dishes laced with spicy mustard, sweet or onion cream sauces. They also have sweet lassi (buttermilk), and fresh paneer.
Mostly rice is consumed and most of the dishes are made up of rice. The consumption of rice is heavy along with vegetables and dal as well as chutney. For breakfast they have Idlis (steamed rice cakes), and Dosas (a type of pancake), which are made of rice and dal. Upma (a type of porridge), which is also rice based, is also very popular. Sambar (type of liquid soup), is consumed with most of the breakfast items. Coconut is consumed a lot. It is used in chutneys as well as in curries in Kerala. The staple food of south is rice.
In West Bengal fish is consumed a lot. It is the staple food. Fish and rice are very popular. Sweets are also consumed in plenty. The fish is sauteed in yoghurt and marinated in spices, which consist of aniseeds, cumin seeds, mustard, black cumin seed and fenugreek. Mustard oil is used. Most of the sweets are cheese or milk based such as Rashgolla, Gulab Jamun and Shondesh. Bengali sweets are quite often served with sticky syrup which is sweet.
In Rajasthan and Gujarat plenty of achar and a variety of dals are consumed as not many vegetables are available. In Gujarat food is generally vegetarian. The staple grain is millet, wheat being secondary. Other stuff consumed is sesame, peanuts and several vegetables. Pulses are very essential as a source of protein for the Gujaratis, whether taken as a side dish or as soup known as Dal. “Khichdi” is also very popular, which consists of mild rice and lentils.
Now I would like to end with the eating styles, else it’s a never-ending topic. Eating styles vary according to location, religious affiliation, and dining occasion.
The type of event - an everyday meal or a large feast involving many peoples, greatly affects the style of services and the number of dishes served. Traditionally, women are responsible for preparing and serving meals. It is customary for the men and guests to receive their first, followed by the children and women. In India, presenting food to family and guest is considered both a pleasure and a privilege. A typical meal includes a staple preparation (rice, bread or both), dal, vegetables, curry, side dishes and condiments such as Poppadum’s, raitas and relish.
Everything is served at the same time on individual serving trays known as thalis. Thalis are ideal for daily meals and small gatherings, but for larger celebrations, banana leaves and earthenware bowls are commonly used and thrown away after the meal. Each tray, or banana leaf, holds a portion of rice and/or bread and several small bowls of each dish. Because most people eat with the fingers of their right, it is consisted unclean or impure to share food amongst individual thalis.
At the end of the meal, diners are presented with a bowl of water to wash their hands and an assortment of ingredients to make Paan. Commonly chewed after meals as a breath freshener and digestive aid, Paan consists of betel leaves, betel nuts and lime paste in its basic form.
(The author is assistant professor, School of Hotel Management & Tourism, Lovely Professional University)
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