THE HISTORY OF INDIAN FOOD

THE HISTORY OF INDIAN FOOD

Indian Appetizers and Snacks

The majority of Indian appetizers and snacks are based on potatoes, combined with different spices. The Alu Ki Tikki for example, which is one of the oldest snacks recorded by the history of Indian food, is made out of mashed potatoes,coriander and onions. Another famous is the Samosa appetizer, made out of steamed potatoes, peas and vegetables.

We all also now know an approximate recipe to the Bhel Puri .The tasty Indian snack is made out of crispy puris, puffed rice, Indian sevs, chilli powder, potatoes, red onion, chat masala, coriander and lemon or mango juice. It comes in two dish version which are spicy or sweet. The spicy chutney includes garlic cloves, mint leaves, salt and green chilies, while the sweet chutney’s ingredients are cumin seeds, jaggery, sugar, tamarind pulp and boiled dates pulp.

Indian Sweets

The Rasgulla is one of the most popular relished sweetmeats in India, originating from the Eastern part of the country, has an interesting modern history. This dish is produced by the boiling of small pops of casein in sugar syrup has become many people’s favourite.

Another Indian dessert that blends with the Hindu culture is the Payasam (or Kheer as it is called by the Hindi). This dessert has been an essential dish throughout the history of India, being usually found at ceremonies, feasts and celebrations. The best and most popular Payasam dishes are found in the temples of Guruvayoor and Ambalappuzha.

Western India also does a great job on satisfying the sweet tooth of its inhabitants, with one of the most delicious desserts which is the Shrikhand. The Shrikhand is a creamy dessert made out of strained yogurt, from which all water is drained off, leaving the thick yogurt cream by itself. Adding exotic dry fruits like mangos only enhances the Shrikhand’s delightful taste to newer limits. This great dessert is one of Western India’s most popular traditional dishes, since it has ancient roots in the Indian cuisine.

Other important traditional Indian sweets and desserts, Gulab Jamun is a popular Indian dessert made out of fried milk balls in sweet syrup. Mysore Pak is also a delicious dessert made out of ghee, sugar and chick pea flour. Halwa is made out of semolina and sugar, Halwa is one of the most popular Indian desserts that have spread in every corner of the World. Often referred to as Indian ice cream, the Kulfi is made out of boiled milk and a wide variety of mango, kesar or cardamom flavors .Not forgetting the Jalebi which is a common sweet dish from North India, the Jalebi is basically a pretzel-shaped fried batter, which is soaked in syrup and lastly the Jangiri,the South Indian look-alike of the North Indian Jalebi.

WRITTEN BY : AMIRAH BUSYRA