Indian food

[Mblova]

Rogan Josh.


god you guys are making me hungry as I am at college and away from home.Sooooo no moms cooking.

 

[The Wayfarer]

Any South Indian dishes that are particularly good? I'm pretty well versed in North Indian.

I recently had a South Indian buffet but nothing was labeled. Some I liked, some I didn't. My main complaint is how runny everything is.

 

[feynmix]

South Indian:

my favorites are rava masala dosa, mysore masala dosa, garlic and chili uttapam, sambhar, and coconut chutney. They usually have lemon rice too, which can be awesome if made correctly.

 

[DocHolliday]

Nice to see the north/south Indian distinction. There's only one Indian restaurant near here that offers any significant number of south Indian dishes.

 

[feynmix]

Originally Posted by DocHolliday

Nice to see the north/south Indian distinction. There's only one Indian restaurant near here that offers any significant number of south Indian dishes.

In fact, there is other types as well:
Gujarati food, Goan, Sindhi, Bengali etc, but these are tough to find outside India.

Bengal is known for its fresh sweets. A native south indian, in my experience, eats a lot of rice and it is a staple of their diet. Gujarati food is good too, and its a bit different from the typical north indian food. The idea is the same as in (naan, curry, daal, rice), but some of the ingredients are different.

Also, even though I have never been to Pakistan, I am willing to bet that north indian food (especially chicken, lamb, etc), and dishes such as biryani, are just as good if not better than what can be found in a typical dhaba or restaurant in punjab or delhi.

 

[bwridge]

I'm a huge fan of VIndaloo curry with chicken... with samosa and naan on the side. Unfortunately, my wife doesn't like Indian much so I don't often have the chance to eat it. I did have the opportunity a few nights ago with some classmates... at a small place in Seattle. Thailand has a lot of great Indian restaurant, too.

My only beef with Indian food is that it seems to take a while to get to your table. Based on my less-than-scientific observations of Indian people... they seem like very slow, deliberate types. Especially compared to the frantic atmosphere of, say, the staff of a Mexican restaurant.

Brian

 

[feynmix]

Originally Posted by bwridge

My only beef with Indian food is that it seems to take a while to get to your table. Based on my less-than-scientific observations of Indian people... they seem like very slow, deliberate types. Especially compared to the frantic atmosphere of, say, the staff of a Mexican restaurant.

Brian

Yes, Indian meal is supposed to be enjoyed slowly, and are also served slowly. This might be because some dishes take awhile to cook. A lot of curries have a very structured way of cooking them, and things such as onion and garlic need to be cooked for a bit before anything else can be added to them. Biryani, if cooked in an authentic manner, is cooked slowly, in layers, so that takes awhile too. Dal makhani is cooked slowly, to get the full flavor out and get the right thickness to it.

 

[globetrotter]

india is a big place, there are a lot of very differnt foods. what happens with a lot of immigrant foods is people get used to eating foods that are common in one part of the country - the country where most of the immigrants come from. a lot of english indian food isn't really indian, its bengali, for instance.

many indians will tell you hyderabadi food is the ultimate - biryani is from hyderabad, for instance. its a southern indian city that was ruled by north indian muslims but the majority of the population was hindu, so it has an intersting mix.


as was said - south indian is usually more rice based cocunut is the oil, mostly veg, north india is mostly wheat and dairy, more non-veg. then you have exceptions - gujarati, while northern, is usually pure veg.

 

[oscarthewild]

Originally Posted by feynmix

Yes, Indian meal is supposed to be enjoyed slowly, and are also served slowly. This might be because some dishes take awhile to cook. A lot of curries have a very structured way of cooking them, and things such as onion and garlic need to be cooked for a bit before anything else can be added to them. Biryani, if cooked in an authentic manner, is cooked slowly, in layers, so that takes awhile too. Dal makhani is cooked slowly, to get the full flavor out and get the right thickness to it.
Many Indian dishes are ill suited to being prepared to order in a restaurant due to the very long time needed to make them properly. Fortunately, these stew and stew like creations like haleem, nihari, pai, qorma, ...... are great when served in a buffet. The simmering heat makes the flavours better. Biryanis and pulaos (rice dishes) also take a long time to get ready. I have become very wary of restaurants that can drum up some version of these long cooked dishes in 10 mins with ones choice of meat (chicken, beef, lamb or veg) and spiceness level. Kebabs and other roasts and the breads, (naans, parathas, puris, chapatis) are best served right off the heat source. The best skewers are heavy cast iron ones (think square prison bars) that sear the meat from the inner surface as well and the direct heat from the outer surface. Look for a place that has such skewers. Places like haandi have the stews ready to be served. The naans are made to order. That is the best combination. I also like to squeeze lime or lemon on the savory spicy dishes.

 

[VKK3450]

I enjoy South Indian food, particularly Dosa and Vada but eating it in many restaurants kills me as they make it so heavy and it seems to expand in my stomach.

Curry is ubiquitious in the UK, and when I see these places with a choice of 20 different curries, with choice of chicken, lamb or shrimp, I always think that there are two or three premade bases to which a dash of vinegar and a bit of this spice makes their "vindaloo". A bit of this spice and some tomato makes their "balti"...

Not that it matters in most cases. While I have met some Brits who know more about curries and their preparation than old Indian housewives, for many its just something spicy to shovel in their mouths after downing as many pints as possible in the shortest time possible. Then they just puke it up in the street a few minutes later before smacking a bottle into someone's head and trying to cause some sort of pointless vandalism.

Ohhh and +1 on finding a place that has their own tandoor

K

edit: the above comment on Brits is a gross generalization and based purely on stereotypes, anecdotes and tabloid media. But it does happen frequently

 

[globetrotter]

Originally Posted by VKK3450

I enjoy South Indian food, particularly Dosa and Vada but eating it in many restaurants kills me as they make it so heavy and it seems to expand in my stomach.

Curry is ubiquitious in the UK, and when I see these places with a choice of 20 different curries, with choice of chicken, lamb or shrimp, I always think that there are two or three premade bases to which a dash of vinegar and a bit of this spice makes their "vindaloo". A bit of this spice and some tomato makes their "balti"...

Not that it matters in most cases. While I have met some Brits who know more about curries and their preparation than old Indian housewives, for many its just something spicy to shovel in their mouths after downing as many pints as possible in the shortest time possible. Then they just puke it up in the street a few minutes later before smacking a bottle into someone's head and trying to cause some sort of pointless vandalism.

Ohhh and +1 on finding a place that has their own tandoor

K

edit: the above comment on Brits is a gross generalization and based purely on stereotypes, anecdotes and tabloid media. But it does happen frequently

one thing that I hate about most indian resteraunts is that they will have prepared sauces, and just toss in the protien and stir it around in the sauce. a real curry should be cooked for hours in the sauce, and should have the bones in, prefferably.

 

[greeneye]

There are some special dishes from western India (Western Ghat region or Maharashtra) as well. As many of you mentioned, these dishes are very difficult to find outside of India.
Puran Poli - It's a type of very sweet roti which is served with either ghee or milk.
Shrikhand - A typical sweet dish served in Maharashtra's weddings. Made of curd and saffron, sugar, dry fruits etc.
Basundi - Sweet dish made of Milk
Pohe - Medium spicy dish made of rice flakes.
Suralicha Vadya - light spicy dish. Only one/two sweets shop sell this in Pune. Else it's only a home made dish, hardly found in any shops.

All the above is specialty from Pune, which is 150 km from Mumbai.

Vada Pav - Indian burger. Vada is made of Potatoes, deep fried, spicy and put in a piece of bread while serving. (Anywhere in Maharashtra)

Misal - This dish can be medium spicy to extreme spicy depending on the area in Maharashtra state where you try this. (Famous place - Kolhapur - 5 hrs from Mumbai)

Muttan Russa - Very spicy mutton curry, Again from Kolhapur

If you visit the costal Maharashtra (Konkan), you will get different types of sea food dishes, which taste different than the sea food you get in Goa.

Hope anyone visiting Mumbai/ Pune will be able to enjoy this variety.

~Green

 

[The Wayfarer]

How about Punjabi specialties?

 

[globetrotter]

Originally Posted by The Wayfarer

How about Punjabi specialties?

a lot of what is somewhat comon in the west are punjabi specialities - dal makhni, butter chicken, some of the more common kabbabs.

 

[Bouji]

Originally Posted by oscarthewild

If you are in NY, I rec Haandi on Lex around 27th or so. The large number of taxi cabs parked outside are testament to the taste and value of this place. Haleem is lentil, wheat and meat stew that is amazing. Nihari is a meat stew (cooked overnight I think)( The raan is spit roasted lamb shanks. Get these if they are coming out of the tandoor. Once they get cold (and are reheated) they are nto the same. But when fresh they are sublime. The chapal kebabs and seekh kebabs, biryani and the veg stuff are also very good. They have a tandoor onsite for FRESH naans. I have also had very good experience at Kebab King in Jackson Heights. They have a branch in NY on Madison around 29th ?? that was good. -
Although all very good dishes, none of those, which you've mentioned would be considered Indian - they're all Pakistani. Perhaps Biriyani could be considered Indian, but there's the Hyderabad (Andhra, India) variant, and there's also the North-West frontier (Pakistan) variant. These days Seekh Kebabas and Naan are considered Indian, but there from the area that is now Pakistan. The most simple Indian curry to make in my opinion is what in India would be called Murgh Makhni, Marinate chicken in garam masala, garlic, ginger, cumin, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, red or green chili, yoghurt, and a dash of rice wine or scotch whisky. After a minimum of 4 hours grill this chicken. In a pan heat some ghee, add a very small amount of red onions and garam masala, plenty of cumin, ginger and garlic, and chilli to taste to this add pulverised tomatoes, fry until the masala and tomatoes are combined and the tomatoes have a rich darker colour. Add the grilled chicken, cook for about two minutes, then add pouring cream until the masala becomes a bright orange. Cook for about 3-4 more minutes. Add salt to taste, garnish with plenty of freshly chopped coriander and melted ghee.