10 Fun Facts About Indian Food

Indian food has been tempting the masses with its siren song of exotic spices, fragrant flavours and sheer variety for thousands of years. However, despite those frequent calls to the local curry house and our nights wining and dining at some of London’s best Indian fine dining restaurants, how much do we really know about Indian food? Here’s 10 fun facts about your favourite cuisine:

1. India produces more varieties of spice than any other country in the world.

Well, with the moniker, ‘Land of Spices’, what else would you expect? Spices are the foundation that Indian food is built upon, cropping up in mains, sides, desserts and dishes.

2. Indian cuisine seeks to balance six flavours – salty, sweet, bitter, sour, astringent and pungent.

Indian Food Theory (yes, it’s a thing) states that when these flavours are in balance, this creates the ideal Indian meal. This, no doubt, traces back to the ancient Hindu, holistic practice of Ayurveda which seeks to unlock the healing powers of food.

3. The most popular ground spices in India are cumin, chilli, turmeric, coriander and garam masala.

Make sure your kitchen cupboard is stocked with these essentials and it’s easy as pie to bring a little Indian inspiration to your meals.

4. Garam masala is a blend of different spices.

You thought garam masala was a single spice? You thought wrong! Commonly a combination of cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, coriander, cumin and black pepper, garam masala is thought to be the iconic spice blend of India. However, the exact blend varies greatly from region to region.

5. Staple Indian ingredients such as potatoes, tomato and chilli are originally from Portugal.

Portuguese merchants can take a huge amount of credit for many of the typical ingredients we enjoy in Indian cuisine to this day and Indian cooks certainly showed some serious skill in making them their own. But the fact that chillies originated in the Americas and not India? Our minds are blown.

6. Always remember – spices before acid.

A top Indian cooking tip to get the most out of your spices is to let them heat and blend together in the pan before adding any acidic ingredients such as tomatoes. This ensures a smoky taste that packs a real flavour punch.

7. London loves Indian food so much it has more curry houses than Mumbai.

London’s love affair with curry started back in Victorian times and the first curry house in England opened its doors in 1810.

8. Ground spices can last up to 3 years and whole spices even longer.

When spices are cooking in the pan, you should be able to smell the aroma. If it smells good, the spices are still good.

9. A wedding isn’t over until the payasam is served.

Or so they believe in South India. Pasayam is a favourite, sweet dish of India and considered a staple in this region’s wedding menu.

10. Chicken tikka masala is not from India.

Perhaps the biggest shocker on the list, one of the best loved dishes on the British curry house menu was invented in neither India nor Britain, but Glasgow, Scotland.

If this list has whet your appetite then drop by one of London’s best Indian restaurants to get your fix of fine food.

Don’t Neglect Your Spices

Have you ever made a curry which you think is going to be gorgeously spicy, only to find that it is disappointingly mild? If so, it could be because your spices are past their prime. All spices have a limited shelf life and while they do not ‘go off’, if you keep them beyond their sell-by date they lose their intensity of flavour.

One of the problems is that as our tastes have widened and we have become more adventurous in our kitchens, we are buying a wider range of spices. Where once we were happy with just a jar of mixed herbs and another of mild curry powder, these days we have everything from star anise and saffron to fenugreek and tamarind.

But all too often, once we have used them a few times, these spices move further and further towards the back of the cupboard – and are soon forgotten about. According to a recent survey, here in the UK we have more than £240 million worth of unused herbs and spices lurking in our kitchen cupboards.

And part of the reason is that we all us aspire to be great cooks. From wowing dinner party guests to watching cookery programmes on the TV, we hope to create restaurant-standard dishes at home. Indian food, in particular, can have a huge number of spices in just one recipe. So we dutifully rush out to buy the 15 plus spices in our recipe of choice – many of which we may never see in another recipe ever again.

The secret to this problem is to be more imaginative in our use of these spices. Cumin seeds, coriander seeds and even garam masala can be used to flavour many more dishes other than curries. From biscuits and breads to salad vinaigrettes and fruit compotes, a sprinkle of Indian spice can make a good dish taste great.

If you are dealing with a large number of unused, unloved spices, then your best bet might be to blend them together and create a paste. You can do this by mixing the dried spices with some fresh ingredients such as onions, garlic and ginger. With the help of a blender it’s really simple to do and it can be frozen for use at a later date. If you are feeling particularly organised, you can freeze the paste in an ice-cube tray so it is in manageable portions and ready to use.

Of course, there is one obvious solution to the problem of out-of-date spices – use more of them. Don’t be afraid to chuck them into dishes with a flourish – if you like the flavour you can’t really go wrong. And with Christmas just round the corner, there are plenty of opportunities to get spice happy. Think mulled wine, mince pies, fruitcake, stolen and more. So don’t give up on that sad-looking jar of cumin seeds just yet…

If you want to get inspired about ways to use more spices then why not visit one of London’s best fine dining Indian restaurants? The chefs here don’t hold back on their use of spices – and neither should you.

Influences In Indian Cuisine

To accompany every recipe there is a story. Each combination of ingredients and method of preparing a dish hasits own context. It can take a long time for a recipe to develop, and this is something that is particularly true with Indian cuisine. The background and circumstances in which recipes evolve is what gives them their soul and unique characteristics. In India there are key aspects that have had (and continue to have) a profound effect on the way in which the dish develops over time.

One of these influences is religion.It plays a huge role in people’s everyday lives and this is reflected in food. With Hinduism as the main religion within the country and Islam second, there are many individuals who do not eat beef or pork, respectively. For this reason, these two meats are rarely found on menus around the country.

In addition to religion, another major influence on what people in India eat is the region in which they live. In the north, where the climate is cooler than other parts, wheat is the staple grain crop. The soil is largely fertile in the northern states and fruit and vegetables also grow in abundance. Rice dishes are also on the menu here and are often made with milk, butter, lamb or chicken. The level of spices ranges from the mild, creamy taste of butter chicken to the fiery, rustic flavour of kadhai-style dishes.

Move further east and you enter the state of Bengal. Whereas wheat is generally considered the staple of the North, in Bengal it is rice. The core spices used in dishes comprise of fennel seeds, mustard seeds, cumin, cardamom, onion seeds and carom. Mustard oil is also a favourite in Bengal and the starting point for many regional dishes. Another distinguishing feature of Bengali cuisine is its prolific and unique use of fish and seafood in so many dishes.

Head to the southern states of India and you reach the peninsula states of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka, which are encompassed by a long, sprawling coastline. This proximity to the sea means that fish and seafood feature strongly on regional menus. Other key flavours that make the recipes of the region so distinctive are coconut and chillies. The latter are used to counter-balance the hot, humid climate as sweating has a cooling effect on the body.

Along the western coast you find Goa and Mumbai, both being diverse in culture and culinary style. In Mumbai, anything goes – Maharashtrian, Pan-Indian and global. In Goa, the emphasis is on fresh seafood matched with bold flavours. Further west still in Gujarat and Rajasthan the cuisine is predominantly vegetarian. The dry, arid land makes crop growing hard, so bold a use of spices is characteristic of the region.

At Chutney Mary we celebrate the unique regional differences of Indian cuisine. We are the original contemporary Indian restaurant, meaning we combine authentic flavours and traditional recipes with modern techniques and stunning presentation. Every one of our dishes tells its own unique story and has a narrative to whet any appetite.

Cardamom – Little Pods of Magic

If you are feeling down a good pick-me-up is a bowl-full of something both tasty and comforting. Whatever takes your fancy, from a bowl of dal or a rice-based biryani to a plate of mithai, we all have our culinary weaknesses. But sometimes – and this is particularly true of Indian cuisine – just the aroma of a certain spice can wrap you up in a great big hug.

There are many people in India who would argue that cardamom is one such spice. Make yourself a cup of cardamom chai in a kulhar (an earthenware cup) on a winter’s day and you are transported to a place much warmer, fuzzier and pleasurable –and that’s before it has even passed your lips. Take a sip and you will feel instantly calm and at one with the world.

Powerful stuff, you may think, but this is something that has long been recognised in ancient Ayurvedic teachings. The very fragrance of the spice, known as elaichi, is both warming and can lift the spirits. As a result, it has long been used in Ayurvedic treatment to improve the health of lungs and help relieve conditions such as asthma and bronchitis. It is also believed to help control digestive issues such as bloating.

Cardamom has two varieties. In English these are generally differentiated by their colour – one black, the other green. In Hindi they are often distinguished by size – one big and the other little. The smaller green variety also happens to be the most expensive spice available on the market, after saffron and vanilla.

Cardamom belongs to the same family as ginger and turmeric and is native to South India and Sri Lanka. Its origins can be traced back to ancient Greece and Egypt and China. In Greece it was used during childbirth, Egyptians used it to make cardamom-scented wax candles and in Chinese medicine it was (and still is) used to treat incontinence and as a diuretic.

As an ingredient in the kitchen it is also incredibly versatile, being used to bring a depth of flavour to savoury dishes and to delicately flavour sweet dishes too. Depending on how subtle or intense you want the cardamom fragrance to be, you can prepare the spice in a number of ways. For a lighter touch, simply open the pods a little before adding them to hot oil. For a more dramatic taste you can crush them with a pestle and mortar before adding to the dish. For sweet dishes, simply roll the pod with a sprinkle of sugar.

The only other thing to remember when using cardamom is to make sure you always use fresh pods. You can ensure this by buying the best quality pods available. Check for freshness by opening a pod – if the seeds are plump and dark brown they are good to go. Seeds that look grey and shrivelled should be discarded.

For Indian food that is packed with magic, head to one of the capital’s Indian fine dining restaurants. A meal here will never fail to impress – and will leave you feeling warm on the inside, too.

Asafoetida: The Misunderstood Spice

In the world of spices thereare some that are pretty sexy – chilli is the obvious one. Eating a spicy curry makes our faces flush and can really get the blood pumping. Cinnamon is another – it was considered an erotic spice by the Indian Maharajas and they used it to make aphrodisiacs. These are the kinds of spices that sell a dish. They can be bold and brash or more gentle and unassuming. They also work well with a range of different flavours and ingredients – but always remain the star of the culinary show.

And then you have the spices that are far from sexy. Asafoetida falls into this category; its flavour and aroma certainly make an impact, but not is a sensual way. To the uninitiated, asafoetida can even be downright alarming. It is one of the most misunderstood spices and is sometimes referred to as devil’s sweat. Suffice to say, it doesn’t get a great press.

Asafoetida (also known as hing) is one of the most distinctive spices in Indian cuisine and can transform a dish into a masterpiece. Despite its magical qualities, unlike many of its Eastern spice counterparts asafoetida has not made the transition into Western cuisines. It has stayed confined to its roots, which seems a bit of a waste.

Before using asafoetida for the first time it is best to be prepared. The smell of asafoetida before it has been cooked is far from pleasant. In fact it could be described as being pretty repulsive. However, all this changes as soon as it comes into contact with hot oil in a pan. It is generally one of the first spices to be added to the pan, so its initial pong quickly mellows and transforms into an aroma that is so distinctive you can be transported to a South Indian village in an instant.

When buying asafoetida you will mainly find it in it pre-ground form. You will also use very little of it with each dish, so don’t choose a huge container of it. When using it in your home cooking it complements a range of vegetables including potatoes, cauliflower, peas and greens. It won’t be a spice that you will necessarily use in every Indian dish you prepare and will add a background note to other complementary spices in the dishes it does go in to.

Asafoetida may not be the star of the show but it plays a great supporting role. It works in harmony alongside spices such as cumin, mustard seeds, ginger, curry leaves and dried chillies. As well as being added at the start of a dish, asafoetida is also used in tarkas and poured onto dishes before serving.

If you want your dishes to taste more like the ones you find in a fine dining Indian restaurant, then asafoetida may be the answer. So next time you visit London and one of these established Indian restaurants, order a dish that contains asafoetida and be instantly transported to that lovely South Indian village.