India offers one of the most diverse cuisines of any place on the planet. Indian cuisine is rich and varied. It holds in its charmed circle, extraordinary traditions that leave an indelible impression on people. The entire procedure of preparing and serving a meal is layered in tradition and gives an understanding not so much of India but of what life in India can mean. Indian dishes provide an amazing revelation, in subtle and piquant flavors, in the marvelous versatility and individual preparations of such pedestrian fare as lentils, of which there are an endless variety. Indian specialties are unlimited, be they a large range of seafood baked in tenderizing papaya leaves or marinated kebabs broiled over a charcoal .re. It is inaccurate to lump all Indian food together because each geographical area has regional variations. These days you will find northern Indian dishes commonly available in the South, and Southern Indian specialties in the North. However, there are some distinctive foods commonly served in Southern India. Traditionally, for lunch and dinner, Southerners eat rice meals, the famous thali or a dish, which really should be eaten with your fingers.
Southern Indian Food
Iddli
It is the Southern Indian breakfast food. They are small steamed patties made out of rice .our and eaten with a special lentil soup called sambhar.
Vada or Vadai
These are small dumplings made out of chick pea .our and deep fried in oil. They look like a donut but aren’t sweet.
Dahi Vada
These vadas or ground chick pea dumplings are deep fried in oil and then soaked in thick yogurt sauce. The sauce could be of either plain yogurt or sweetened by sugar.
Uppama
It is another common breakfast food made with semolina.
Dosa
It is made with a batter made out of rice .our and made into large thin crepes, served with sambhar or special lentil soup and chutney or sauce made out of green pepper and other spices.
Uttapam
It is made out of batter prepared from rice .our and cooked into thick pancakes with onions and spices added into them.
Northern Indian Food
North Indian cuisine, particularly the Moghlai or Moghul Style cooking, has made strong inroads into South India over the last 20 years. Moghul style dishes bear resemblance to dishes from the Middle East and Central Asia. These North Indian vegetarian dishes are mainly prepared by using aloo (potato), gobi (cauli flower), palak (spinach), bhendi (okra), mutter (peas), paneer (mild farmer’s-style cheese), dahi (yogurt), chana (chickpeas), and dhal (lentils). These dishes are served with rice, chapatti, puri or parotha (breads), and also with naan and roti, special breads baked in the tandoor (clay oven). The North Indian non-vegetarian cooking relies a lot on the tandoor (clay) oven. Marinated and baked meals are usually eaten with the breads and they are cooked in the ovens. Here are some common food items: kheema (minced meat) kababs that are usually ground meat, sometimes chunks, cooked on skewers; tikka are pieces of boneless meat or .sh, and sometimes paneer or home made cheese, marinated and cooked on skewers in the tandoor. Tandoori chicken is a dish made out of jointed pieces of chicken, marinated and cooked on skewers in the tandoor.
Some food items that are found in both, North and South Indian Cuisine are as follows: Chapatti
Wheat .our dough is rolled .at and fried on a griddle. One can get either dry-fried or oil-fried. These may be served with vegetarian or non-vegetarian curries.
Parotha
Wheat .our is rolled very .at in oil, and pressed into a multi-layered variation on chapatti. These are most common with non-vegetarian dishes.
Puri
Made like a chapatti, but deep-fried. The best ones arrive at your table puffed up like soccer balls.
Samosas
They are made of all purpose .our with peas and potato filling for a vegetarian dish or meat filling for a non-vegetarian dish and deep-fried in oil.
Biryani or Pulao
Rice, spices, and vegetable or meat cooked together. Saffron and turmeric powder gives it the yellow color and a special flavor. This dish is eaten with salad and spicy yogurt sauce. Contrary to popular belief, not all Hindus are officially vegetarians. Strict vegetarianism is confined more to southern India and to the Gujarati community. Even if they eat some meat dishes, they stay away from beef because they believe that cows are sacred animals and they worship them. There are considerable regional variations from north to south, partly because of climatic conditions and partly because of historical influences. In northern India, much more meat is eaten and the cooking is often “Moghul style,” which bears close relationship to the food of the Middle East and Central Asia. The emphasis is more on spices and less on chili. Grains and breads are eaten far more than rice. In southern India, more rice is eaten, a larger variety of vegetarian dishes are available and the curries tend to be hotter, sometimes very hot. People eat most Indian dishes with their right hand fingers.
Deserts and Sweets
• Kulfi is a delicious dessert prepared from heavy cream. It is similar to ice cream and is widely available in different flavors all over India.
• Rasgullas are sweet little balls of cream cheese, flavored with rose water and dipped into sugar syrup.
• Gulaab Jamuns are small balls made out of .our and deep fried in oil and then dipped in syrup. They are flavored with cardamom and rose water.
• Jalebis are the orange colored squiggles with syrup inside, are made of flour, colored and flavored with saffron.
• Laddus are yellow colored balls fried and sweetened from chickpea flour dough.
• Barfi is also made from khoya or thickened milk and is available in flavors like coconut, pistachio chocolate, or almond.
• Payasam is a sweet southern drink made from coconut milk, mango pulp, cashews and spices.