Think Indian Food, and what comes to mind? Biryanis, Butter Chicken, Chicken Tikka Masala, (Yes! Tom Cruise ordered it twice at an Indian restaurant in London), Mutton Korma, Gulab Jamun, Jalebi. True blue followers of Indian food will swear by the vast variety of dishes that India has to offer. Not just in one category, but across a wide spectrum of categories in Indian food. In India, where the soil, temperature, water changes, so does the agricultural produce too. Hence, we get to savour various ingredients, differing in the intensity of flavours, colour and size too.
Yes, while some may find Indian food fiery, the way we like it here is with spices, don’t we? Also, Indian spices are quite versatile, in that they are used in both savoury and sweet dishes.
Another aspect of Indian food is the influence of various dynasties that ruled India and the events that led to the development of certain dishes. Some such would be the Chaat dishes, Biryani and Gulab Jamun.
All said and done, Indian food has interesting varieties to offer to everyone, even for those who abstain from onion-garlic and no, it’s not fasting food.
Let’s take a look at some of the most iconic dishes.
Butter Chicken
Butter Chicken, a super yummy delicious recipe, is among the favorites of most food lovers who love non-veg. This creamy, tomato gravy based chicken recipe is loaded with butter. Tastes best when had with buttery garlic naan, plain roti or paratha. Owing to its mouth-watering taste, the accidental preparation is now not just served as a main course, but also used as a stuffing in rolls and wraps, as a topping on pizzas, prepared with biryanis and served with poutines too.
Biryani
What can be said about one of the most exquisite rice preparations? Biryani is not just about cooking rice and marinated vegetables or meats together. It takes special skills to cook a fine pot or a handi of biryani. While formal training does help, it is usually the training passed down by khansamas who served as cooks in royal courts to their future generations. So, very few cooks know the art of making the perfect biryani as such training is often kept secret.
While initially, biryani preparations used meats, we now have vegetarian options and Jain ones too. While non-veg biryanis are already popular, how about trying another interesting combination in the vegetarian category? Like the Babycorn and Mushroom Biryani.
Korma
When speaking of Korma, kormas are essentially gravy-based, mostly meat dishes, with a few options that have a few varieties of vegetables. Usually made with mutton or chicken, the Bhopali Mutton Korma is a special mutton preparation. Apart from the taste, the preparation of this delicacy is also unique.
While these are some of the dishes that one identifies with India, Dal Makhani, Puran Poli, Roghan Josh, Rassam, Motichoor Laddo, Shorshe Diye Macher Jhal are some other dishes and the list is endless. With so many amazing, delicious options, it is indeed difficult to come up with ONE national dish for India.
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