Indian cuisine is one of the most interesting and complex culinary traditions of the world. It is incredibly rich, diverse and varied, with the range of culinary practices differing widely even within small geographic areas. There are a number of common characteristics that unite the myriad culinary practices found across the Indian subcontinent. Food in India is deeply cultural. Indian food reflects India’s diverse history and deep-rooted traditions (Khanna et al., 2023). Hence, cultural differences determine the various staples, dishes and culinary practices adopted by communities living in different geographical areas. Geography plays a major role in determining a region’s staple ingredients. These ingredients decide which food is cooked and how it is cooked, resulting in a range of culinary practices. An exploration of staple ingredients, typical cooking methods, and structure of meals helps in understanding the daily eating habits of people across different regions of India. Generally, people belonging to the same community share similar dietary habits. However, dietary practices also vary with differences in religion, sub-castes and social status. Indian food is heavily influenced by the various communities and religions that have settled in or invaded the Indian subcontinent. An overview of the Indian subcontinent and the people of India helps to understand the various influences on Indian food. The essay seeks to provide a broad understanding of Indian food and its diversity. It starts by discussing the geographical and cultural context of India and the various influences on Indian food. It then looks at the different culinary practices across the Indian subcontinent, before addressing the staple ingredients and cooking methods used. Finally, it examines the daily structure of meals and eating habits. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in Indian cuisine worldwide. Indian restaurants and takeaways have proliferated in major cities across the globe, introducing the diverse culinary practices of the Indian subcontinent to a wider audience.
The Role of Spices and Aromatics in Indian Cooking
While spices may be perceived only as flavor enhancers in most cuisines, Indian cooking revolves around spices and aromatics. Spices offer numerous health benefits, along with flavor enhancement (R Vasanthi and Parameswari, 2010). They are a bond of extraordinary nutritional value. Spices are the dried seeds, fruits, roots, bark, or other plant parts, usually used in the whole form or ground, mostly added to recipes either during cooking or prior to serving. Some common Indian spices are cumin, coriander, and turmeric. Cumin is an important ingredient in Indian curries and rice dishes. It is known for its digestion stimulating property and is generally used in whole form. Coriander is a dual spice; both the seeds and leaves are used, and the two taste entirely different. The seeds, like cumin, are usually added to hot oil so that the warmth releases their essential oils, while the leaves are used raw as garnish and are known to add a slightly sweet flavor to the dish. Turmeric is a bright yellow spice, famous for its anti-inflammatory properties. It is almost always used in powder form and added during the initial cooking stages.
Indian cuisine is known for its vivid flavors. Salt, sugar, and spice are used to balance an ingredient and bring it to harmony. A proper balance of sweetness, sourness, saltiness, bitterness, and spiciness in one dish is crucial. Each Indian dish generally embodies all the five main tastes. In particular, sourness is desired in meat dishes, which may come from adding yogurt or tomatoes, whereas lentil dishes are usually cooked without sourness (Duffell, 2018). The concept of balancing flavors is crucial across numerous cuisines, but it is far more sophisticated in the Indian tradition. The word ‘taste’ in Indian languages refers not only to flavor but also to a mental state. It must be noted that spices possess unique aromatic compounds, some of which are dominant in Western cooking. French cuisine relies largely on herbs to produce aromas, whereas Indian cooking depends mostly on spices; their dry heating, frying in oil, and usage in different forms are meant to produce the aroma.
Regional Diversity in Indian Cuisine
The immense regional diversity in food, ingredients, cooking techniques, and eating practices across India is remarkable and reflects the country’s vast geography, climate, and varied cultures. The regional cuisines are so vast in their diversity that one can find an ocean of differences within fifteen hundred kilometers. Each region has its own unique food specialties shaped by historical context, availability of local ingredients, trade routes, and other factors. The eight states Punjab, West Bengal, Karnataka, Gujarat, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Manipur were selected to explore the rich and diverse world of Indian cuisine. Within these states, the food items of one community were analyzed, which further adds to the diversity of Indian cuisine. The culinary specialties of Punjab, known as Punjabi cuisine, mainly center around wheat and dairy products. The cooking techniques mostly involve a heavy use of ghee or butter, and the items are generally cooked in tandoor or over slow fire. On the other hand, Bengali cuisine, food of the native speakers of Bengali language, is primarily fish-centric. Here, the use of mustard oil, paanch phoron spices, and a unique cooking style called dunkan, where the fish is fried and dropped into prepared gravy, are common. In South Indian cuisine (Karnataka), rice is the staple food, and items are usually spiced with coconut and curry leaves. Gujarati cuisine, on the other hand, is vegetarian, and sweetish flavor predominates the dishes here. In overall Indian cuisine, food plays a vital role in the festivals, which comes with an elaborate preparation of special food items. Movement of people with time and trade has also played a significant role in shaping regional food. Some communities like the Kachchhis and Memons who migrated from Gujarat to Maharashtra actually brought along with them the Gujrati flavor, which with time got fused into the Maharashtrian flavor now reflected in dishes such as dahi puri and batata puri. On the contrary, some dishes like bhaji-pav and vada-pav originated in Maharashtra and were exported to other regions. There also exists a link between religion and food. While beef is a strict no for the Hindus and generally for the Brahmins, Muslims consider it their most favorite meat and instead shun pork. Each religion has its own festival and tradition associated with food which helps preserve the heritage of regional food. The one-day Gudi Padva festival, for example, in Maharashtra comes with a signature dish called puran poli, which is a flat bread stuffed with jaggery and dal preparation. Each region also has its own distinct practice of street food, which is relatively simple, cheap, and often consumed in haste. Street food forms an integral part of the everyday cuisine of the people here. Preparation and consumption of street food of one particular region such as Bombay in Maharashtra were explored here. The dish panipuri, which is unique to the region, was studied in detail as how food of one region could have so many variations in its preparation and consumption. Food of a particular community today is an amalgamation of rituals, traditions, religion, and ancestral practices associated with concerns of life, death, health, and nature. The overall diversity in culinary practices across the regions of India adds to the richness of Indian cuisine as a whole. However, the food diversity of India would still require a great deal of effort to trace and analyze accurately at a larger scale from as fine a culinary resolution as possible (Jain and Bagler, 2015) (Khanna et al., 2023).
Vegetarianism and Veganism in Indian Cooking
One remarkable aspect of Indian cooking is the prominence of vegetarianism and increasingly, veganism. Both dietary practices stem from the richness and diversity of Indian culture, influenced by deeply embedded religious and social beliefs, which dates back thousands of years. Many people around the world see vegetarianism as a food choice, or as a diet. In India, however, it is widely viewed as a way of life. Hinduism, Jainism, and Buddhism have all historically advocated vegetarianism as means of attaining higher states of consciousness, and to avoid inflicting any kind of injury on a living being. Even amongst meat-eaters, the focus is on consuming certain less-feared animals like goat, chicken, and fish rather than beef or pork, since the cow is regarded as sacred and the eaters of these animals considered filthy and derogatory in the Indian socio-religious milieu ((Christina) Sathyamala, 2018).
With the creativity and adaptability in making use of the countless plant-based ingredients such as lentils, legumes, seasonal vegetables, and spices, there is an endless variety of vegetarian dishes in Indian cooking. In fact, a large number of Indian households take pride in serving guests elaborate meals prepared with multiple dishes, all strictly vegetarian. Some staple ingredients in vegetarian cooking are lentils, or dal in Hindi, which is also a common accompaniment with rice or flat-bread in Indian meal. Legumes, or beans in broader description, are another common ingredient in Indian kitchens. They are used in both whole and flour form, often made into savory deep-fried snacks called bhaji or consumed as curries. Seasonal vegetables come next, having a significant place in Indian diet. This reflects the consciousness of eating what the nature has to offer in different seasons, since in India, it is considered a sin to waste or misuse the natural produce. In fact, a large variety of vegetarian dishes are prepared in Indian homes depending on the season and the available vegetables. Most of these vegetarian ingredients are rich in protein, iron, calcium, and vitamins vital for healthy growth, and when combined with rice or flat-bread, they provide a wholesome diet. Besides this, the traditional ways of cooking which involve prolonged steaming, boiling, or shallow frying, all done with covered utensils, help keep intact the nutrition value of the food. Long before western nations started thinking of healthy cooking styles like steaming, Indian cooks traditionally used these methods particularly for vegetarian meals.
In India, the rise of veganism has coincided with the current popular health trend of being vegan, since this has more to do with food choices regarding concern for health than animal welfare. Furthermore, food choices nowadays increasingly reflect its ethical consideration, because in the west, animal products are often thought to be procured through severe abuse whereas in India, animals are regarded as sacred and killing one need be justified by religious rituals. Meat-eating in India is often thought to be a transgression of ethics, caste, and even religion. Under colonial rule, the onus of dietary change was then transferred from the rulers to the ruled because of the projection of the Indian diet as dirty and lacking, and hence the epidemiology model rendered the meat-transgressive lower castes ‘progressive’ in the eyes of the upper-caste ‘vegetarians’. For those who have never tried Indian vegetarian or vegan cuisine, it is important to know that it is more than just a dearth of flavors and options. Rather, it is an incredible array of flavors, textures, and cooking styles that one has ever experienced, spices, and herbs playing an important role to attain this complexity. In Indian cooking, spices can be used in many forms: whole, crushed, or ground. Often the whole spices are tempered in hot oil initially to bring out their fragrant aroma, after which other ingredients are added. In Indian food, veganism and vegetarianism should not be seen as mere abstentions from meat and animal products. After all, vegetarianism is a way of life rather than just a dietary preference, and so it significantly forms the Indian identity.
Celebratory and Festive Foods in Indian Culture
If food is the essence of life, then the celebration of food is the essence of culture. No wonder much of the Indian way of life is wrapped, bundled, rolled, picked, poured, devoured, and celebrated with food. Celebrations mark the departure from the normal, however briefly, to create a moment of exuberance. Festivity calls for indulgence, rejoicing, fanciness, and an expression of the extraordinary, over and above the mundane. Each celebration brings the promise of new beginnings, a fresh start, an end, or a closure — the significance is endless. And so is the food that accompanies the celebrations. Be it the ceremonies that ring in the New Year, the joy of harvesting, the arrival of a bride, or the honouring of the departed souls, the common thread that binds the celebration together is food (Kohn, 2013).
In India, celebrating with food seems almost instinctive. The diverse religions and cultures seamlessly weave food into the very fabric of each celebration. A multitude of festivals observed by the different religions in India dot the calendar year — Holi, Baisakhi, Eid, Diwali, Christmas, Lohri, Pongal, etc. Each festival brings with it a bundle of traditional dishes, many of which are specific to the festival and have to be meticulously prepared for the celebration to be deemed complete, irrespective of the regional diversity that shapes the culinary landscape of India. While many festive dishes vary from region to region, some dishes display an extraordinary geographic spread and mask regional variations. Given that most of the festivals fall within a particular season, several traditional dishes also reflect that season’s bounty of ingredients.
In communal celebrations, sharing food is an intrinsic part of the celebrations. An integral part of the prayer rituals associated with most Indian festivals is the offering of food to the deities. The food offered is cleansed and sanctified before it is shared among the gathered, establishing social bonds and reaffirming a sense of belonging. Food, thus, becomes a means to strengthen familial ties and social networks. Each celebration comes with its specific food symbols, which often encode the cultural narratives of the community. Such foods, therefore, become sites for the explicit enactment of cultural identity. Innovations in blending flavors abound during the festive cooking. The traditional food which is the hallmark of the celebration preserved through generations also reflects adaptability and improvisation in the face of change.