One of the amazing things about India is it has, and is, split into 28 regions, or states, where each has its own language, dress, food traditions, and culture. This means there is no way to really capture their culinary traditions in one post; or even in a series. But one key, to all of the variations of Indian cuisine has to be their amazing use of spice for texture, aroma, and taste. They take bits of whole or ground spices, and mix them amazingly well to create multi-layered dishes that ooze complexity and flavor. Join me in trying to capture, in this limited post, the variations in Indian dishes and how their cooks fearlessly use texture and color to create culinary masterpieces.
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Main Culinary Groups
When I speak with chefs or cooks about Indian food they often make a comment about Northern or Southern cuisines. Such as, Southern Indian food is hotter with chilies than Northern Indian food (1). Even though we know each state has its own culinary history, the major differences I have read about are focused on the North-South distinctions.
I believe this is due to the greater differences between the North and South in terms of geography, climate, plants, and animals. For instance the North is landlocked and the South lies upon the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean. The North butts up against the Himalayas which influences their weather, growing seasons, and temperature. The South is tropical, warmer and humid. But, as IndianKitchenAndSpices writes: In India cuisines vary every 100 km.
Northern India
I have put Northern India first because I believe this is mainly the food served in the Indian restaurants close to me, and I believe this is because it is milder than the hotter chili-based Southern food so fits with USA palates. The North is a wheat region, so there are lots of bread, and although rice is available, it is aromatic, long grained white Basmati that is used plainly and sparingly. One of the most common Indian breads eaten by Americans is the Northern flatbread Naan and the crunchy Papadam (both are my spouse’s favorite breads).
In these local restaurants, they commonly serve Northern India’s samosas, aloo ghobi (potato + cauliflower), tandoor chicken, saag paneer, and various other curries. Curries are often served in the North and are thick, as dairy is used in its cooking. Other dairy used includes milk, yogurt, paneer, and ghee.
The other important feature in Northern cooking is the use of the tandoor oven, not just for chicken, but also lamb, as both meats are used in curries and kebobs. Commonly used aromatics include ginger, garlic, onion and tomato combinations. With garam masala being a significant spice blend, and ghee as the predominant oil.
Most meals are ended with a hot drink, like chai.
Southern India
Southern India cuisine has much more rice, lentils, and stews; and is much more vegetarian based. Basmati Rice is grown in India and sold relatively cheaply, so up to 50% of the population relies on rice as a base staple. Biryani and Lemon Rice (Chitana) is made with basmati rice. Of course other rice is also sold in India, but basmati is the big one.
Being more tropical and close to the sea, they naturally have coconut, fish, and root tubers as influences in their cooking. That means they cook with coconut milk and meat is usually fish and prawns, although some chicken and mutton may be used on a very limited basis. The curries in Southern India tend to be thinner, due to the the use of coconut milk rather than dairy.
My favorite dish from Southern India is the Dosas with potato-based fillings, and the Biryani rice dish. The sambar powder is a predominant spice flavor, along with the flavorful curry leaves, and tamarind. Commonly used spices make up sambar, but interestingly, the South uses dahls, split peas, and lentils as spices as well.
Meals are finished with a chickery-coffee hot drink.
Eastern Indian (Bengali)
I was lucky enough to eat some food from East India, Bengali, via a family friend’s mother. As her daughter describes it: “Ma” brings 60 years of experience from cooking large meals in her kitchen in India. This is a rare opportunity to savor Home cooked East Indian (Bengali) food. “Indian Food” available in restaurants in the Bay Area, is primarily either North Indian or South Indian food. East Indian Bengali food has not yet been commercialized much here in USA, except for some places in New York and L.A.
Her menu was:
- Daal: A green lentil dish with a subtle, yet rich flavor of coconut. They were topped with two grape tomatoes that were plump and juicy when popped.
- Alu Kopi: A very traditional cauliflower-potato dish with flavors of turmeric and cumin.
- Tribal Chicken Curry: This is a delicately spiced popular chicken dish from Ma’s village.
- Paneer Pasinda: Another delicately spiced dish, this time with tofu and bell peppers using black pepper, cinnamon, clove, and cardamom.
- With a reddish and sweet tomato chutney made up from 5 spices, called phanch phoron: Fenugreek seed, nigella seed, cumin seed, black mustard seed and fennel seed.
I’ve seen written that Eastern Indians love sweets, and I must admit I do not usually like most chutneys, but this one was a surprise of tangy sweetness, great taste, and a deep red color. Even the daal was sweet given the coconut flavor. I can say without a doubt, this was a very good and filling meal.
If you want to find out what Ma is cooking now, and perhaps order, contact: Bhadra.roke@gmail.com, provided you live in the San Francisco Bay Area and are willing to pick up the meals as there is no delivery.
Spice Combos and Mixtures
Indian home cooks have a special spice tin called masala dabba. This round, stainless steel container has a tight-fitting lid and securely holds 6 – 7 individual tins of spice. What this tin holds will vary by household, as it contains the cooks most favorite and most used spices at the ready.
A few notes:
- Masala means “spice powder mix”.
- I am using ”combo” to mean a unique marrying of 2 or more spices, like ”salt + pepper”.
- The spice mixtures are not limited by the specific ingredients I list, but vary family to family, I am just providing a foundation of what the mixture is like.
Chaat Masala
Chaat Masala is a more gentle, or milder, yet tangy combination of spices such as: amchoor, cumin, coriander, ginger, salt, black pepper, asafoetida, and chili powder. BonAppetit writes, the origins of chaat masala are somewhat mysterious. A popular (though unproven) story claims it was created in the 17th century by the kitchen staff of the Mogal emperor Shah Jahan, when he was sick and could eat only smaller, lighter fare.
I have eaten this blend in Dosa and Samosa and have seen it sprinkled on a salad.
Chai Masala
This is a spice blend that is added to black tea for a spicy drink that may include: cinnamon, cloves, green cardamom, black peppercorns, fennel seeds, ginger, and nutmeg. This is a very ancient drink estimated at 5k to 9k years old, and originally served without black tea leaves.
From 1835 forward, which is when the British Colonialists set up tea plantations, Chai was mixed with Assam black tea, whole cow’s milk, and unrefined cane sugar. But, SpruceEats records, Chai was consumed mainly by the British for it was expensive. Then in the 1960s it exploded in India and became a more common drink.
So the Chai tea or Dirty Coffee we buy locally will have some combinations of this spice mix. I find that while I can drink lots of tea throughout the day, I do have to limit my Chai intake as it contains oily spices that can be harsh on the stomach, especially if I have not yet eaten.
Chettinad Masala
From what I have read, this is a rather complex combination of: cinnamon, green cardamom, mace, star anise, cloves, fenugreek seeds, black pepper, kapok buds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, mustard seeds, dry red chili peppers, curry leaves, poppy seeds, turmeric powder, grated coconut, and an ingredient called stone flower. These spices are dry roasted in a specific order, then cooled and ground to be used in curries.
This spice is considered to have fiery flavours (2) from red chilies and black pepper. Quite a few articles speak to how pepper-hot this food can be, so I am not sure I could actually eat anything but the mildest dish they have.
Cumin + Coriander and Cumin + Pepper Combos
Cumin has an illustrative history all its own as it has spread from the Mediterranean all across the globe to become a spice used in many cuisines, and throughout history (3). Some use the seeds as is, some grind those raw seeds into a powder, others pan fry the seeds in oil, while others roast them in a dry skillet and then grind. Each of these techniques releases a different aspect of the spice into the air as the sweet aroma raises, and changes a dish with its unique often described as bitter flavor (4).
It comes in 3 colors amber, black and white. It is a common addition in curry. Additionally, cumin seeds are often combined with coriander seeds for a great combination of taste and aroma. But cumin also combines well with black pepper.
Curry Spice Mixture
Sukhi Singh has written that curry powder can fancily be termed as the potpourri of spices that were exported to England; so that the Indian Curry dishes British Colonists enjoyed, could be replicated when they returned home. So really ”curry”, which is a term meaning ”sauce”, does not reflect Indian culture so much as British subversion and misunderstanding of Indian cuisine.
So perhaps this should not even appear in this list, but historically this spice mixture was understood to be of Indian origin, and still has a huge impact in England, and other areas of the world. (Please see my post on curry.)
- AtlasObscura: An invention of a colonial empire, it epitomized Britishness—under the guise of being authentically Indian—and graced the tables of white southerners in America, ultimately drawing the ire of South Asians until it was reclaimed, reinvented, and rebranded under its current avatar as “masala.” The history of this humble kitchen ingredient is the history of empire and its aftermath.
Garam Masala
Wikipedia writes that Garam masala is a blend of ground spices, originating from South Asia, common in Indian, Pakistani, Nepalese, and Bangladeshi, cuisines. In the North this is a powder, but in the South it is a paste and often combined with coconut milk, vinegar, or water (5).
- Garam Masala is ground from whole roasted spices
- Common spices include: Cinnamon, cloves, peppercorns, nutmeg, cardamon, and black cumin.
- But the spices and their amounts vary by cook, some add bay leaves for instance.
This spice blend is often added toward the end of cooking a dish, so it has a big impact on the flavor. But also, MasterIndian writes, this spice mixture probably has the greatest variation, because the spices, amounts and preparations vary by region.
Phanch Phoron Mixture
This is a combination of seeds: brown or black mustard, kalonji (or nagella), cumin, fenugreek and fennel. This is often called the Indian Five Spice.
From what I have read there is some variation in phanch phoron:
- Radhuni (a dried fruit mostly used in Bengali) is somtimes added.
- Mustard seeds are sometimes replaced with coriander seeds.
- Some reduce the amount of fenugreek to lower bitterness.
“Panch phoron” means “5” and “tempering of whole spices in fat” (6). This means the spice is often tempered in oil or ghee as part of its preparations, and then is mixed with veggies, lentils, chutney, fish and meat.
Sambar Masala + Dish
EpiCentre writes that: Sambar is a South Indian soup. Sambar powder or sambar masala is the spice blend that is the star of this soup.
Sambar powder is a blended, textured spice powder created by grinding coriander seeds, cumin seeds, mustard seeds, black peppercorns, dry red chilies, fenugreek seeds, cinnamon, dry coconut etc. with chana dal.
Sambar, a lentil based veggie stew, can be dryer or wetter depending upon the Southern state you are in, but in all cases it is a combination of spices, peppers, and legumes. But in all Southern states it seems no meal is complete without sambar as a dip, or to pour over rice.
Tikka Masala Mixture
This is one of the mild red-ish combinations of: coriander, paprika, turmeric, nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon, cumin, and black pepper. Like ”curry” this is not quite Indian, although some think it comes from the Northern Butter Chicken. However, it is believed this dish was created by a Pakistani Chef Ali Ahmed Aslam, in Glasgow (7).
At this point, this well known dish is carried in many Indian restaurants, I imagine mainly because consumers probably ask for it by name.
Salutation
Oh my goodness, I have to stop now. I have reached the very ends of my experience with Indian food. There are more spice mixtures, more to be said, but even though I have read and watched master Chefs and cooks, it would take a life time to learn the magic of this food. The best I think I can do is to learn a few of my favorite dishes, and appreciate the food I can find around me.
Perhaps it is fitting that a land of such complexity has cuisines reflecting the diversity of its peoples. The only thing I can find that unites them is their love of spice, color, texture, and taste. A land, united in my mind, by the wonderful, and amzing alchemist cooking. Truly magical.
—Patty
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