Nothing brings people together like good food. India, a nation with a diverse variety of cuisine, including traditional and regional cuisines. A wide variety of spices makes the dynamic Indian cuisines. The whole palette of flavours like sweet, sour, spicy and hot are all used at the same time. Lets see some of the famous and delicious food items which are the favorite cuisines when it comes to spice.
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Table of Contents
Butter Chicken:
Butter chicken is made in rich gravy also known as curry, with marinated chicken and tomato sauce with butter and a variety of spices to add flavour. The base of this recipe starts with tomato, unlike other Indian cuisines where it starts with garlic and ginger. As tomato and cashew are added in this the dish has some sweetness. Chef Kundan Lal Gujral invented this recipe by accident in the year 1950, in a restaurant in Delhi. He had a habit of keeping the leftover tandoori chicken, butter and tomato together in a pot, and hence the recipe and the best seller dish of all time. This dish has become a special occasion cuisine in many restaurants and households. A lot of butter is used for butter chicken along with Kashmiri Lal Mirch which gives it the colour and Kasuri methi with ginger garlic paste is an add on taste. Main ingredients are the marinated chicken, tomato and cashew.
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Dal makhani:
Dal Makhani originated in Punjab, and now has spread all around India, is a main dish on the north Indian cuisine menu. It’s a crown dish in lentils, as most of the lentil dishes are served with some side dish. It is served with paratha, rice or roti and a speciality about it is that it tastes better when served the day after it’s prepared. The recipe is a complex one and not easy. It basically requires black lentil, red kidney beans, cream, masala, and for a healthy diet, you can use yoghurt instead of cream.
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Chole Bhature:
Also a Punjabi dish and a famous cuisine in Delhi is liked by everyone. Chole Bhature is a dish which has spicy curry made with white chickpeas and bhatura is fried flat bread. The chole should be cooked properly, they should not be overcooked as it will make them mushy. Use Kashmiri red chilli powder for a bright coloured curry. Other ingredients used are the usual ones like bay leaves, tomato, onion, ginger garlic paste and for the bhature, the dough has to have the perfect proportion of maida and curd and it should be kept covered for 5-6 hours before frying the bhatura. Served with coriander leaves and onion Chole bhatura is indeed a complete meal in itself.
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Chicken 65:
Chicken 65, a quick snack, is a dish of spicy deep-fried chicken which originated in Chennai, in the Year 1965 and hence the name. . A tangy sauce over the fried chicken served with lemon and onion is the best thing you could ask for an evening snack. The dish has flavours of ginger, black pepper and fennel. This can be made with both boneless and bone-in chicken.
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Veg Fried Rice:
As the name says, the dish is basically rice with a lot of veggies. And a very famous recipe made in Indian household, especially made with leftover rice. Leftover rice gets a little dry in the fridge and makes it perfect for fried rice. You can also use freshly cooked rice. It is a simple recipe, you just need to add vegetables with soy and sesame with ginger garlic paste. You can also add scrambled eggs onto the rice for added flavour.
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Veg Thali:
Thali is an Indian name for a plate and veg thali is a plate served with a variety of Indian cuisine and you see such thalis usually in traditional Indian weddings. There are many restaurants now, which serve only veg thali with a variety of cuisines. Thali is a complete meal served on a single plate which has 10-15 food items. The six taste theory has been used in thali since ancient times, and has its ayurvedic origin. Thali is the Indian balanced diet which has all flavours like sweet, sour, salty, pungent, astringent and bitter. Historically a thali would represent prosperity. The food items in thali varies from south India to North India. Rice is mainly served in the south with different types of curry and curd. Whereas roti or parathas are served in North region with curry, lentil and some sweet.
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Veg Kolhapuri:
A coconut-based gravy is an important Maharashtrian cuisine, originated in Kolhapur. Kolhapur, famous for growing red chilli, gives the spice to the curry. This recipe is prepared by first making the curry paste with red chilli, coconut and ginger garlic and then boiled or steamed vegetables like french beans, potato,capsicum, carrot, onion etc are added. Veg Kolhapuri is served with Roti.
