Headline: The Taste of India
Standfirst: There is more to Indian food then what is available in the food court. A history, reason or feeling hidden behind every kind of Indian food, that is not known to many of us. Learn what are the reasons behind many north-indian dishes and get to know some of the famous dishes that you might have never heard of.
Once known to be a jewel of incomparable worth on the crown of the British Empire, today India is easily deemed to be one of the hugest diamond the world’s “flavoured cuisine jeweller” has ever seen. India baskets a huge variety of remarkable dishes, mouth-watering appetizers, finger-licking snacks and irresistible desserts that now cater to millions of fans on an international scale, as Indian restaurants are available in almost every possible corner of the world.
There is a saying that the Indian cuisine is as diverse as an entire continent due to some of the regional styles the food is cooked: Gujarati, Rajasthani, Marathi, Punjabi, Bengali and South Indian. The combination of a pinch of culture, religion and all the ingredients obtainable, the India cuisine guarantees satisfaction to spice-lovers, “salty” folks and those with a sweet-tooth.
Let’s take a deeper look at what some of the popular north Indian dishes and snacks India has to offer, along with some historical information that played a role in the making of the following cuisines. In addition, there are also Must-Try dishes that are strongly recommended. So fasten up the belts as it’s going to be one wild, tempting ride!
Gujarat
The food in Gujarat is mainly vegetarian because of the strong influence of Jainism and Hinduism. There are only certain streets in Gujarat where meat is sold in vans to mainly the Muslims residing there. According to Patel Ankit Natverbhai, manager of one of the McDonalds outlet in Ahmadabad, “all McDonald outlets in Gujarat have a variety of vegetarian meals to offer such as McVege burger and McSpicy Potato”. Furthermore, the way most Gujarati dishes are prepared is very different from other parts of India. Almost all gujarati dishes taste distinctively salty, spicy and sweet at the same time. Even biryani would have a tablespoon of sugar added to its ingredients. Chief Chef of Honest Restaurant, Mr. Malhar Broker, comments “gujarati dishes are similar to gujarati people as they believe if you want success you must have a sweet approach to the way you get your task done. The same goes in food. If you want to enjoy a good meal, you must be able to taste all the flavours in the same dish”.
Must-Try
Pani Puri: This is a famous snack in Gujarat, that is mainly sold by the roadside on portable wooden carts. It consists of a hollow, round “puri”, crisp fried bread, and “pani”, flavoured water usually made from tamarid. The puri is stuffed with different vegetarian fillings such as chickpeas or spicy cooked potatoes and you would need to dip it into the sweet-sour pani before putting it in your mouth. This appetizer is also available in ready-made packages at Mustafa, but unfortunately is nothing compared to what you’d get in India.
Gujarati Thali: Gujarati Thali is available at every Gujarati food outlet in India and Singapore as it is the pride of Gujarati main course meal. A typical “thali”, a selection of dishes served on a steel tray with small bowls, include Rotli (extremely flattened bread made out of kneaded wheat flour), kadhi or dhal, sabzi (different combinations of vegetables and spices) and rice. The Gujarati thali is believe to satisfy all cravings as a single steel tray comprises of many salty, spicy and sweet dishes. One of the places you can try good gujarati thali in Singapore is from Annalakshmi a gujarati restaurant in Little Indian.
Rajasthan
The famous desert land of India, Rajasthan is also well-known for its spicy, varied and unique cuisine. Most of the food in Rajasthan is vegetarian due to the huge population of Jains and Marwaris (different communities). However, the Rajputs, (royal leaders of Rajasthan) believe that “a meal is never complete without meat”. “This is why you would find dishes such as Soolas (grilled meat), Murgh mokul (Chicken) and venison kababs (deer meat) in a state where 70% of its population are vegetarians”, expressed a tourist guide Mr. Mukul Jain. Rajasthani vegetarian dishes avoid certain vegetables such as garlic, brinjal and cauliflower due to religious reasons. Nevertheless, their specialties are said to be more fiery and finger-licking good.
Must-Try
Dhal Bhaati: Dhal is basically prepared from dried grains that is first boiled and then cooked with spices, chilies, ginger and other dried preservatives. Baati is wheat that is kneaded with salt and turmeric and baked till no part of the bread is raw. Once baked, Baati is coated with clarified butter. It is very easy to eat dhal baati. Simply break baati into pieces and dip it in dhal before putting it in your mouth.
Annalakshmi (mentioned above) is the only restaurant in Singapore that offers a purely rajasthani dinner buffet every Saturday. Price $12.00. The dishes there are much similar to those found in Rajasthan.
Punjab
Famous for Bhangra, Punjabis are said to be the “party-people” of India. Food and entertainment is of high priority to them. If you want to know how to cherish food, you should visit Punjab. Some Punjabis give more devotion to preparing food then to their Gods. Mr. Jaspreet Sidhu Singh, leader of the Sikh community in Chandigarh, expresses that “most Punjabis are very healthy and strongly built because of the nutritious food they eat”. Punjabi food is always rich with pure ghee (clarified butter), yogurt, milk and spices. Most Punjabis are meat lovers and like to prepare their meat in various methods such as bar-be-qued, fried, steamed or baked. Their food is tentatively more spicy than other regions of India. Usually Punjabis like to drink buttermilk as a substitute for water while they are eating food. This is because buttermilk helps in making the food less spicy.
Must-Try
Tandori Chicken: Consists of roasted chicken marinated with yogurt and special masala. In Punjab, the chicken is roasted in special clay oven that adds aroma to the food. In Singapore usually the clay oven is replaced by grill. As Punjabis are not very fond of rice, this is normally eaten with naan, baked wheat bread.
Standfirst: There is more to Indian food then what is available in the food court. A history, reason or feeling hidden behind every kind of Indian food, that is not known to many of us. Learn what are the reasons behind many north-indian dishes and get to know some of the famous dishes that you might have never heard of.
Once known to be a jewel of incomparable worth on the crown of the British Empire, today India is easily deemed to be one of the hugest diamond the world’s “flavoured cuisine jeweller” has ever seen. India baskets a huge variety of remarkable dishes, mouth-watering appetizers, finger-licking snacks and irresistible desserts that now cater to millions of fans on an international scale, as Indian restaurants are available in almost every possible corner of the world.
There is a saying that the Indian cuisine is as diverse as an entire continent due to some of the regional styles the food is cooked: Gujarati, Rajasthani, Marathi, Punjabi, Bengali and South Indian. The combination of a pinch of culture, religion and all the ingredients obtainable, the India cuisine guarantees satisfaction to spice-lovers, “salty” folks and those with a sweet-tooth.
Let’s take a deeper look at what some of the popular north Indian dishes and snacks India has to offer, along with some historical information that played a role in the making of the following cuisines. In addition, there are also Must-Try dishes that are strongly recommended. So fasten up the belts as it’s going to be one wild, tempting ride!
Gujarat
The food in Gujarat is mainly vegetarian because of the strong influence of Jainism and Hinduism. There are only certain streets in Gujarat where meat is sold in vans to mainly the Muslims residing there. According to Patel Ankit Natverbhai, manager of one of the McDonalds outlet in Ahmadabad, “all McDonald outlets in Gujarat have a variety of vegetarian meals to offer such as McVege burger and McSpicy Potato”. Furthermore, the way most Gujarati dishes are prepared is very different from other parts of India. Almost all gujarati dishes taste distinctively salty, spicy and sweet at the same time. Even biryani would have a tablespoon of sugar added to its ingredients. Chief Chef of Honest Restaurant, Mr. Malhar Broker, comments “gujarati dishes are similar to gujarati people as they believe if you want success you must have a sweet approach to the way you get your task done. The same goes in food. If you want to enjoy a good meal, you must be able to taste all the flavours in the same dish”.
Must-Try
Pani Puri: This is a famous snack in Gujarat, that is mainly sold by the roadside on portable wooden carts. It consists of a hollow, round “puri”, crisp fried bread, and “pani”, flavoured water usually made from tamarid. The puri is stuffed with different vegetarian fillings such as chickpeas or spicy cooked potatoes and you would need to dip it into the sweet-sour pani before putting it in your mouth. This appetizer is also available in ready-made packages at Mustafa, but unfortunately is nothing compared to what you’d get in India.
Gujarati Thali: Gujarati Thali is available at every Gujarati food outlet in India and Singapore as it is the pride of Gujarati main course meal. A typical “thali”, a selection of dishes served on a steel tray with small bowls, include Rotli (extremely flattened bread made out of kneaded wheat flour), kadhi or dhal, sabzi (different combinations of vegetables and spices) and rice. The Gujarati thali is believe to satisfy all cravings as a single steel tray comprises of many salty, spicy and sweet dishes. One of the places you can try good gujarati thali in Singapore is from Annalakshmi a gujarati restaurant in Little Indian.
Rajasthan
The famous desert land of India, Rajasthan is also well-known for its spicy, varied and unique cuisine. Most of the food in Rajasthan is vegetarian due to the huge population of Jains and Marwaris (different communities). However, the Rajputs, (royal leaders of Rajasthan) believe that “a meal is never complete without meat”. “This is why you would find dishes such as Soolas (grilled meat), Murgh mokul (Chicken) and venison kababs (deer meat) in a state where 70% of its population are vegetarians”, expressed a tourist guide Mr. Mukul Jain. Rajasthani vegetarian dishes avoid certain vegetables such as garlic, brinjal and cauliflower due to religious reasons. Nevertheless, their specialties are said to be more fiery and finger-licking good.
Must-Try
Dhal Bhaati: Dhal is basically prepared from dried grains that is first boiled and then cooked with spices, chilies, ginger and other dried preservatives. Baati is wheat that is kneaded with salt and turmeric and baked till no part of the bread is raw. Once baked, Baati is coated with clarified butter. It is very easy to eat dhal baati. Simply break baati into pieces and dip it in dhal before putting it in your mouth.
Annalakshmi (mentioned above) is the only restaurant in Singapore that offers a purely rajasthani dinner buffet every Saturday. Price $12.00. The dishes there are much similar to those found in Rajasthan.
Punjab
Famous for Bhangra, Punjabis are said to be the “party-people” of India. Food and entertainment is of high priority to them. If you want to know how to cherish food, you should visit Punjab. Some Punjabis give more devotion to preparing food then to their Gods. Mr. Jaspreet Sidhu Singh, leader of the Sikh community in Chandigarh, expresses that “most Punjabis are very healthy and strongly built because of the nutritious food they eat”. Punjabi food is always rich with pure ghee (clarified butter), yogurt, milk and spices. Most Punjabis are meat lovers and like to prepare their meat in various methods such as bar-be-qued, fried, steamed or baked. Their food is tentatively more spicy than other regions of India. Usually Punjabis like to drink buttermilk as a substitute for water while they are eating food. This is because buttermilk helps in making the food less spicy.
Must-Try
Tandori Chicken: Consists of roasted chicken marinated with yogurt and special masala. In Punjab, the chicken is roasted in special clay oven that adds aroma to the food. In Singapore usually the clay oven is replaced by grill. As Punjabis are not very fond of rice, this is normally eaten with naan, baked wheat bread.
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