Fav. Indian Food Poll

[JJNJustin]

As long as we're on food, I thought I might as well ask whats your fav Indian food?

I think mine is Lamb Biryani, and Masala Dosa with Sambar and Chutney.
-J

[Fishmonger]

Chicken tikka masalla with piloa rice and good plain naan.

I have such refined taste.

EDIT: Papadums with mango chutney and this spicy onion salad they do at my local indian is a great starter.

[dlorc]

I really enjoy Madras dishes, also Kashmiri and Murghi's are rather nice.

I tend to have a shish/sheek/ kebab also.

[katyseagull]

I know almost nothing about Indian food. Could you guys briefly describe what these dishes are so I can learn a little about Indian cooking? I sort of recognize seeing the names on menus but have no idea what they are.

I really enjoyed the vegetarian biryani that I ordered once, but one time I ordered lamb biryani at this restaurant in Indiana and it was served with a lot of little pieces of bone. wtf? Is this common?

[El Diablo]

JJN,

Even though it is not really Indian food, I love Chicken Tikka Masala (chicken in a creamy tomato sauce) and also love Butter Chicken (chicken in a rich sauce, which I think is a semi-legit Indian dish).

Among more legit dishes, I really love Mattar Paneer (peas and cheese I guess sort of similar to mozzarella) and Aloo Puri (which is potatoes and a lighter, fried naan-like puffy flour thing).

[JJNJustin]

Indian food is generally very spicy. Spicy in that there are many aromatic spices used, and sometimes "hot" but not always. Briefly, Indian food from Northern India is more arabic influenced and Southern Indian food is more vegetarian. Southern Indian food tends to include more rice and rice flour types of bread, Northern uses more typs of wheat flour and chickpea flour. Southern food tends to use more dried red chilies, whereas Northern food tends to be more mild and subtle, and somewhat richer.

Since Hindus dont eat beef, you will see a lot of lamb dishes in place of beef. Since Moslims dont eat pork, you wont see hardly any pork.

You will see alot of lamb, chicken, lentils, some seafood, mangoes, coconut, cashew nuts, and pistachios.

Here is a list of all the spices they use:
Cumin, Coriandor, Green Cardamom, Black Cardamom, Cinnamon, Bay Leaf, Turmeric, Black Mustard Seed, Fennel Seed, Anise Seed, Fenugreek, Cloves, Nutmeg, Nigella Seeds, Curry Leaves, Black Cumin, Paprika, Mango Powder, Tamarind, Coconut Powder, Dried Urad Lentils, Saffron, Asofetida, Dried Red Chilies, Chili Powder, Cilantro, Mint, Garlic, and Ginger Root.

Some restaurants even light incense sticks while you are eating. Eating Indian food stimulates your sense of smell just as much as your taste buds.

[chopstick]

[ QUOTE ]
I know almost nothing about Indian food. Could you guys briefly describe what these dishes are so I can learn a little about Indian cooking? I sort of recognize seeing the names on menus but have no idea what they are.


[/ QUOTE ]

Saag = generally spinach
Paneer = generally cheese cubes
Tandoori = cooked in a tandoor oven
Naan = the tasty puffy bread
Batura = tasty puffy bread that was fried


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Indian_cuisine

has a lot more. they don't have gulab jamun there, which is a super sweet desert that is quite tasty.

go to a family-run place, and just ask questions. i have yet to do this and not be swamped with info.

cardamom tea is also really tasty.

and obviously finish with a mango lassi. mmmmmm mango lassi.



I second the wtf on your experience. Indiana ain't no India. India? na!

nyuck nyuck nyuck.

[nation]

chicken biryani, vada, puri, sambar, rasam, and samosas are good.

tikka masala just tastes amazing so it's also on this list.

naan always accompanies tikka for me. its unfortunate that most indian restaurants feature north indian food and many people never get to experience south indian cooking, which is significantly different from north.

[chopstick]

[ QUOTE ]
its unfortunate that most indian restaurants feature north indian food and many people never get to experience south indian cooking, which is significantly different from north.

[/ QUOTE ]

the same could be easily said for italian food as well. cept reverse the north/south.

[diebitter]

[ QUOTE ]
I love Chicken Tikka Masala (chicken in a creamy tomato sauce)

[/ QUOTE ]

El D.

My favourite too. did you know it was created in England? I kid you not. The story is some Hooligan ordered Chicken Tikka, and when they gave it to him, he complained it was too dry, and to put some sauce on it. The chef had some tomato soup handy, and...wallop! CTM!


And now it is made and shipped back to India, where it is in big demand [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]

I live in Leicester, BTW, which has a big Indian population...and the CTM here is fan-freakin-tastic [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]