1 year, 3 months ago
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What kinds of spices are used in Indian food?
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Hello mmng23,
India is an ethnically and demographically diverse country. Its cuisines and food ingredients including spices vary from region to region. However, turmeric is one such spice that is used in almost all (okay, exclude desserts) Indian cooking. Other popular spices used in Indian dishes are coriander, cumin, and pepper (chillies). These spices usually go into most preparations. ‘Garam masala’ is a mixture of spices consisting mainly of cardamom, cinnamon, clove, bay leaf, and kashmiri pepper, but again, the ingredients may vary according to one’s taste and choice. Mustard is another spice used especially in Bengali cuisine.
Saffron, cardamom and cinnamon are used in sweet dishes.
You can get some more information from the following website:
http://www.indianfoodforever.com/indian-spices.html
This is an excerpt from one of its pages: quote- There is another type of masala westerners might be unfamiliar with and that that is the chaunk or tadka. Whole dried spices like kashmiri chillies, cumin and coriander seeds, karipatta etc are added one by one to hot oil until they begin to sputter or pop. This tempering is then poured over dals and raitas. That's the extra zing that makes Indian food so popular the world over!- endquote
As regards your second question – no, learning Indian cooking is not hard, that is, if you are interested in cooking. It is one of the creative arts in which you can always add your own touch. There is no hard and fast rule in Indian cooking. Most Indian foods are cooked in vegetable oils or ‘ghee’ or clarified butter. And curry (vegetarian or non-vegetarian) is the main dish that accompanies cooked or baked cereal.
You can get all types of food in Indian restaurants. If you choose South Indian food, you have the option of dosas, idlis, coconut rice, etc. Check them out here:
http://www.indianfoodforever.com/south-indian-vegetarian-food.html
If you feel like having North Indian food you may opt for dal-chawal, chhole-bhature. Here’s the link to North Indian food:
http://www.indianfoodforever.com/north-indian-vegetarian-recipes.html
India is an ethnically and demographically diverse country. Its cuisines and food ingredients including spices vary from region to region. However, turmeric is one such spice that is used in almost all (okay, exclude desserts) Indian cooking. Other popular spices used in Indian dishes are coriander, cumin, and pepper (chillies). These spices usually go into most preparations. ‘Garam masala’ is a mixture of spices consisting mainly of cardamom, cinnamon, clove, bay leaf, and kashmiri pepper, but again, the ingredients may vary according to one’s taste and choice. Mustard is another spice used especially in Bengali cuisine.
Saffron, cardamom and cinnamon are used in sweet dishes.
You can get some more information from the following website:
http://www.indianfoodforever.com/indian-spices.html
This is an excerpt from one of its pages: quote- There is another type of masala westerners might be unfamiliar with and that that is the chaunk or tadka. Whole dried spices like kashmiri chillies, cumin and coriander seeds, karipatta etc are added one by one to hot oil until they begin to sputter or pop. This tempering is then poured over dals and raitas. That's the extra zing that makes Indian food so popular the world over!- endquote
As regards your second question – no, learning Indian cooking is not hard, that is, if you are interested in cooking. It is one of the creative arts in which you can always add your own touch. There is no hard and fast rule in Indian cooking. Most Indian foods are cooked in vegetable oils or ‘ghee’ or clarified butter. And curry (vegetarian or non-vegetarian) is the main dish that accompanies cooked or baked cereal.
You can get all types of food in Indian restaurants. If you choose South Indian food, you have the option of dosas, idlis, coconut rice, etc. Check them out here:
http://www.indianfoodforever.com/south-indian-vegetarian-food.html
If you feel like having North Indian food you may opt for dal-chawal, chhole-bhature. Here’s the link to North Indian food:
http://www.indianfoodforever.com/north-indian-vegetarian-recipes.html
You can leave an optional "tip" with Mahalo's virtual currency, Mahalo Dollars. If you are asking a difficult question that might require some research, or if you'd like a wide variety of feedback, a higher tip often leads to more answers to your question.
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