Authors: Hari Nayak
Typically, most Indian meals are casual, informal affairs. If unexpected guests turn up, they are welcomed with open arms. Adding to the casual feel, Indian meals consist of several dishes (sometimes even dessert) served all at once—family style. Multiple dishes are brought to the table, from which each person takes his or her share. For everyday meals there is usually a main dish, which is quite elaborately prepared. The accompanying dishes are chosen to go with the main dish—a menu is planned so that each dish complements the other and the flavors will match. Rice and bread are indispensable staples in a typical Indian meal.
Like many Indians, I truly enjoy eating food with my hands and combining the various curries, which makes each bite unique. As author Maya Tiwari (A Life of Balance) has noted, “While in the West eating with the hands usually conjures up pictures of a child smeared from head to foot with food, in India, using hands as utensils is a highly refined art.” Whether I form my fingertips into a “petal” that cradles scoops of rice and dal or use four fingers as a “spoon” and my thumb to slide the blends of sauces, chutneys, meats and vegetables into my mouth, it is a truly satisfying way to eat. Whereas I find eating with my hand (only one is used) to be a sensuous indulgence, I realize it is not for everyone. If you want to give it a try, remember to thoroughly wash your hands before eating.
Most traditional Indian meals involve elaborate preparation, but in our busy lives most of us do not have the luxury to prepare time-consuming meals. So, I have kept the recipes in this book simple yet delicious while preserving their authenticity.
You can easily make the recipes in this book for yourself or for your friends and family. Most of them are quick and don’t require any special cooking equipment or techniques. The only thing you will need is a sense of adventure to explore a variety of flavors and aromas and a hearty appetite to savor the authentic foods of India.
Over time you will learn how different spices and herbs interact with each other, as well as other ingredients, creating unique scents and flavors. This knowledge is the key to unlocking the “hidden” magic of Indian cuisine.
I urge you to experiment with the spices and their flavors while trying out these recipes—in this way you’ll gain an understanding of how spices mix and mingle with ingredients and how they appeal to your taste buds. Cooking is all about experimenting with what appeals to the senses—to your senses—and I exhort you to indulge in this process to your heart’s content. Be daring and adventurous, and before long you’ll be tantalizing your palate with the subtle flavors of Indian cuisine.
Indian Meals—Indian Style or Your Style
A typical everyday Indian meal always includes a saucy or “wet” dish (either a protein or vegetables), a sautéed or “dry” vegetable dish, bread and/or rice, and plain yogurt or raita. An array of pickles, chutneys and salad are standard accompaniments. Vegetables play a very important part in everyday meals, even if the meal is primarily non-vegetarian. Indian meals for entertaining and company tend to be more elaborate than everyday meals, and will include more than one main dish. Special appetizers, drinks and desserts are served. Elaborate rice dishes like biriyani and pulao will be made, and more complex condiments and other accompaniments are served to complete the meal.
When preparing an Indian meal, whether on a week night after work or for a Saturday evening dinner party, you can cook and serve several dishes all at once, Indian style, or you can divide them up into different courses, just like a western meal, and serve them accordingly. The recipes in this book, therefore, have been divided into different chapters that correlate to typical western courses or components or a meal.
To get you started, here (see right) are some menu suggestions for everyday and more elaborate meals, suitable for entertaining, as well as a nontraditional Indian meal. The recipes in the latter menu are my own easy-to-prepare Indian-inspired inventions, created with the modern cook in mind. Each of these menus creates a complete Indian meal and balances elements of taste and texture. You can make the recipes from My Indian Kitchen as they appear in the book or you can be innovative and adventurous to create dishes of your own.
PLANNING YOUR INDIAN MEAL
Simple, Everyday Vegetarian Menu
Delicious Everyday Dal (page 74)
Stir-Fried Okra (page 87)
Whole-Wheat Griddle Breads (page 136)
Plain Basmati Rice or Basmati Rice with Whole Spices
(pages 124, 132)
Green Mango Pickle (page 47)
Simple, Everyday Non-Vegetarian Menu
Chicken Curry in a Hurry (page 109)
Cauliflower with Ginger and Cumin (page 86)
Whole-Wheat Griddle Breads (page 136)
Plain Basmati Rice or Basmati Rice with Whole Spices
(pages 124, 132)
Green Mango Pickle (page 47)
Vegetarian Party Menu
Sweet Mango Yogurt Lassi (page 152)
Mung Dal and Cucumber Salad (page 62)
Crunchy Potato and Corn Croquettes (page 52)
Puréed Spinach with Cheese Balls (page 88)
Stir-Fried Vegetables with Yogurt (page 80)
Northern Chickpea Curry (page 69)
Fried Puffed Bread (page 138)
Black-Eyed Peas and Rice (page 127)
Pineapple and Beet Raita (page 46)
Masala Pappadums (page 55)
Cardamom Apple Kheer (page 149)
Non-Vegetarian Party Menu
Mumbai Fruit Punch (page 150)
Pomegranate and Mint Potato Salad (page 56)
Samosas, Kheema-Filled (page 58)
Masala Lamb Chops (page 121)
Smoky Fire-Roasted Eggplant (page 84)
Mushrooms and Corn in a Spicy Curry (page 85)
Saffron Chicken Biriyani (page 128)
Whole-Wheat Griddle Breads (page 136)
Cucumber and Yogurt Raita (page 45)
Masala Pappadums (page 55)
Pistachio Mango Ice Cream (page 145)
Nontraditional Indian Meal
Raspberry Lemonade (page 154)
Shrimp Bruschetta (page 50)
Pork Tenderloin with Mango Salad (page 119)
Five Spice Blackened Salmon (page 104)
Black-Eyed Peas with Mushrooms (page 72)
Mint Rice with Potatoes and Toasted Cumin (page 133)
Avocado and Roasted Cumin Raita (page 44)
Chai Crème Brûlée (page 147)
Pairing Wines with Indian Food
Traditionally the enjoyment of wine is not part of the Indian lifestyle. When I was growing up in India, the preferred alcoholic drinks were scotch or beer. Drinking was a pre-dinner activity, though drinks were usually paired with freshly made snacks such as spicy kebabs and papadams. To this day, I still prefer a chilled glass of beer when choosing an alcoholic beverage to pair with an Indian meal. Many Indian restaurants will carry beer on their menu, including Indian beers (especially Kingfisher). The best beers to pair with Indian food are relatively light beers—that is, pilsners, lagers and ales. Dark or strongly flavored beers such as stouts, porters and bocks should be avoided.
For wine lovers, pairing wine with Indian food is complicated and challenging, as there are a lot of competing spices and seasonings to contend with. The complex layering of spices and chili heat in Indian dishes makes it tricky. The traditional method of pairing lighter food with whites and heavier foods with reds does not necessarily hold true in Indian cuisine—for example a heavy dish such as creamy lamb curry or beef korma will pair well with whites and a flavorful seafood dish can go well with reds.
The important rule to remember is that there is no rule!!
After consulting several wine experts and master sommeliers, I’ve come up some general tips to help you make good wine selections:
The lesser the alcohol level the better because alcohol tends to intensify the heat in a dish. For a white, try something like a Gazelle Vinho Verde from Portugal, which has only 9 percent alcohol, or just about any sauvignon blanc from France’s Sancerre region. Those wines usually have alcohol levels no higher than 13 percent. For a red, try the Heron pinot noir, from the Languedoc region of France, which has an alcohol level in the 13 percent range.
Reds with less oaky and more intense fruit flavors works well with the complex tastes of the cuisine.
Whites with light acidity and mild fruity textures will balance the richness of the Indian dishes.
The refreshing bubbles and palate-cleansing acidity of sparkling wines would also work with Indian dishes that have heavy sauces.
A dry rose, which has some of the complexity as a red as well as the acidity of a lighter white, can also be paired next to a lot of Indian dishes.
Here are some specific suggestions—but they are suggestions only. Following the basic tips above, other wines may be chosen.
Gewürztraminer: Since “gewürztraminer” literally means “spicy grape” in German, this wine can pair perfectly with the spices and seasonings in Indian cuisine, especially ginger and cardamom. And since many bottles have a bit of residual sugar, gewürztraminer will tame the heat in curries and other spicy dishes.
Riesling: With aromas and flavors of crisp apple and peach, good acidity, and often a hint of sweetness, Riesling is a match made in heaven for Indian cuisine. Try a glass or a bottle the next time you have a curry dish made with fruit like peaches or apricots. And, as with gewürztraminer, the touch of sugar in the wine will counter the heat in chili peppers and other spices.
Sauvignon Blanc: Sauvignon Blanc’s enticing flavors of lime, grapefruit, gooseberries and herbs make it a food-friendly choice for any cuisine, as the bracing acidity wakes up your taste buds and makes you want to go back for another bite of whatever you are eating. Try it with dishes that include tomatoes, lemons or limes, which will match the wine’s acidity. With coconut milk–based curries and other rich dishes, sauvignon blanc will cut some of the richness and taste extremely refreshing.
Rosé: Not to be confused with white zinfandel, rosé wine is completely dry. It has some of the complexity and weight of a red wine (think red berries and spice), as well as the acidity of a lighter white. Rosés can hold their own next to a lot of Indian dishes, including those made with lamb. Since rosé tends to be drier I suggest not pairing it with some of the spicier Indian dishes like vindaloo or murg kali mirch since it doesn’t have the sugar content that helps counter chili heat
Sparkling wine: Often underrated as a food wine, and saved for special occasions, Champagne and other sparkling wines can be enjoyed with many different kinds of food. The refreshing bubbles and palate-cleansing acidity would especially work with Indian dishes that have heavy sauces. When choosing champagne to accompany Indian dishes with a lot of chili heat, choose a sweeter champagne as its higher sugar content works well with spicy foods. Also, a chilled glass of Prosecco, with its sweet, rich and complex flavor, works very well.
Pinot Noir: Crave a bottle of red wine with your Indian food? Pinot noir is a smart choice, as it offers lots of fruit (cherries, raspberries, cranberries,) but typically has silkier, smoother tannins than more full-bodied red wines such as cabernet sauvignon or merlot, so it won’t dry out your mouth or fuel the fire of a spicy dish you are enjoying. If you are serving a variety of Indian dishes at your next dinner party pinot noir is a great selection. It can pair with everything from tandoori chicken, to khadai stir-fried shrimp and palak paneer kofta.
A Few Simple Techniques
The heart and soul of Indian cooking is to be able to master the unique and imaginative use of spices, seasonings and flavorings and learning the nitty-gritty of Indian cooking techniques. You will already be familiar with many of the Indian cooking techniques from your own everyday cooking. The main techniques are steaming (dum), tempering (tarhka), roasting (bhunnana), frying (talna) and sautéing (bhunao). Other common techniques are roasting and grinding of spices, browning onions, garlic and meats and handling sauces. Each of these “methods” or a combination of two or three or even all may be necessary to prepare an Indian dish. They are not hard to master, but is important to understand the basic principles of each.
SAUCE TIPS Unlike in western cooking, flour is almost never used to thicken Indian sauces. The dark thick sauces in Indian cooking are achieved by a proper balance of the ingredients and the use of the correct cooking techniques. For example, the body of the Indian sauces very often comes from onions, garlic, ginger and tomatoes, which may be chopped, creating a textured sauce, or made into a paste in a food processor or a blender. Once a paste has been made, it is then cooked or browned in oil. The sauce is allowed to cook further until it is reduced and has become thick. Sometimes cream, yogurt, coconut or nut pastes, such as almonds and cashews, are added to Indian sauces, which give a creamy texture.
ROASTING AND GRINDING OF SPICES Roasting is the key to bringing out the flavor of spices. Roasting spices removes the raw smell that untreated spices tend to have and intensifies their flavors by heating up the essential oils. All you need is a small, heavy bottomed skillet (cast iron works great). No oil is used when roasting spices. Whole spices are put in a dry skillet and roasted over medium heat until the spices turn a shade or two darker and become aromatic. The spices are then immediately removed from the hot skillet to avoid over-roasting.
In my kitchen I generally buy the spices whole and then grind them myself as I need them. Because spices retain their flavor and aroma much longer in their whole form than when ground, grinding roasted spices in small batches is the ideal way to use spices, and gives the greatest possible flavor to dishes. Traditionally, in Indian kitchens the grinding of spices is done on heavy grinding stones or with a mortar and pestle. To save time, I grind spices using a spice grinder, though a coffee grinder works equally well.
SAUTÉING (BHUNAO) Unlike classic French sautéing, Indian sautéing, or bhunao, is a combination of sautéing, stir-frying and light stewing or braising. It is the process of cooking over medium to high heat, adding small quantities of liquid, such as water or tomato purée, and stirring constantly to prevent the ingredients from sticking. Almost every Indian recipe needs bhunao at some stage, and some at more than one stage. Generally ingredients like onions, ginger, garlic, tomatoes and spices require bhunao. The purpose of this technique is to extract the flavor of each of the ingredients in combination with spices as well as to ensure that the masala is fully cooked before adding the main ingredient. Sometimes the main ingredient, such as poultry, meats or vegetables, may also require bhunao. The process of making masala is complete only when the fat leaves the masala, which is very critical in Indian cooking. Traditionally a kadhai is used for this technique. I find that if I use a heavy-bottomed saucepan or another deep-sided pan, such as a braiser or Dutch oven, works just as well. Recipes like Puréed Spinach with Cheese Balls (page 88), Hyderabadi Mixed Vegetables (page 78), Traditional Lamb Curry (page 115) and Chicken Tikka Masala (page 111) are good examples of this technique.