Why is Indian food so tasty?

It is said that Indian food is renowned across the world for the flavours with which it is cooked. There had been several researches which prove that the combination of the spices that are there in the Indian curries makes it stand apart from the rest of the world. The other day, I visited one of the popular North Indian restaurants in Gurgaon and I was bowled over by the taste of the foods they served it made me realize that no matter what, i would always consider Indian food as my first love!

Indian cuisine holds a special position in the hearts of all Indians. No matter how much we all swear by Continental or Tex-Mex cuisine, we all return to our home made Rajma chawal at the end of the day. After doing a bit of research, I found out that Indian food is so delectable due to lesser amount overlapping flavours in it, unlike western cuisines wherein the ingredients used are similar in flavour.
Indian food stands apart in this sector as it has at least 7 types of flavours in an average simple preparation. The cooking procedure too has a lot to do with the taste which is generally an extensive process including several steps. The spices contribute in its own way to the final taste pf the meal.

My friend, who happens to be a chef in one of the renowned restaurants in Saket Dhaba by Claridges, said that Indian have a distinct way of pairing up staples with main course which adds to the quantity and the taste of the meal. The way some dishes are best paired up with roti, paratha and rice is something which Indian have been adept at since time immemorial. In fact, the breads that Indians have their individual taste like, Missi roti, tandoori naan etc. So I believe Indian food can be the best culinary experience for us Indians, and for people outside India.

History of Butter Chicken

No matter how many times you have butter chicken, you’re always going to lick your fingers after feasting on it. Chicken’s lavishness in a creamy curry along with butter naan will give you a calorie shock but your taste buds will go into frenzy. Although it is usually a Punjabi dish, butter chicken has gotten palettes of a large global audience addicted. Such is its craze that the Canadian PM Stephen Harper especially took out the time to enjoy butter chicken at a North Indian restaurant on his visit to India.

There’s no doubt that butter chicken is a top, north Indian cuisine in Delhi. The reason behind that is butter chicken’s roots can be traced to city. A certain Kundan Lal Gujral invented this recipe at his small hotel called Moti Mahal in Peshawar, Pakistan, before partition. After Punjab was split in two, Gujral moved to New Delhi, India and re-opened his Moti Mahal restaurant. It was here that butter chicken became a super-hit, especially among the Sikh community, who took it across the globe with their diaspora.

Dhaba by Claridges has continued the tradition of cooking delicious and tongue rollicking butter chicken. It is prepared by marinating chicken for some hours in a yogurt and spice mixture. The spices vary across different preparations and can be garam masala, ginger, garlic, pepper, coriander, chilli, turmeric etc. Chicken pieces are cooked in tandoor, grilled, roasted or pan fried. A curry is prepared which is a bit on the sweet side and includes a lot of butter. There are any variations on the spices used for the sauce. Spices for the sauce can be cloves, cumin, cinnamon, coriander, pepper and fenugreek. Garnishing the butter chicken with more butter, cream and coriander prepares a lavish, mouth-watering dish. 

Why Mughlai food is the most royal amongst delicacies

Mughlai cuisines have thrilled palettes all over the world. Although, there have been amazing empires all over the world, Mughals always stood out because of their love for art, architecture and food. And just like their lavish lifestyle, their meals were sumptuous, to say the least. The royal looking Mughlai dishes taste much like what an emperor would have on his table. Masalas, oils and colour add to the dishes’ grandeur. There won’t be a single foodie in the world who has eaten biryani, murgh musallam, kebab, rogan josht etc and not got hooked to them.

The display of the royalty in the food has toned down a bit. In the peak of the Mughal era, cuisines were made to look lavish, colourful and fragrant and it was eaten with proper respect and table manners. Decorating the food was also seen as a nutritional benefit on the advice of the royal physician. For example, the royal biryani had each of its grain of rice coated with silver oil, because silver aids digestion along with acting as an aphrodisiac. Even the best restaurants in Delhi now are unable to match that level of grandeur.

Mughlai food turned out so well because it infused the best of many cultures including Iranian, Persian, Afghani, Kashmiri and Punjabi. The cuisines are not only non-vegetarian though as some emperors even liked vegetarian food. For example Akbar ate vegetarian three days in a week and Aurangzeb was an out and out vegetarian though he did fancy his occasional mega-biryani, as it is referred to by the historians. Being the national capital, Delhi’s food was influenced by a lot of cultures. Although, North Indian cuisine in Delhi remains the favourite of every one mainly because of its Mughal background. So hurry up and order, it’s time to feast like a king. 

The North-South combo!

I am a ‘mixed breed’ as my friends call me. That’s because I have a Punjabi mom and a Malayali dad. I am the by-product of cultural diversity in India and I have experienced a lot of such ‘diverse’ things right form my childhood. I have been brought up in Delhi, so I must say that I have its influence slightly more than the southern corner of our country. But apart from that I have always encountered the best of both!

For instance, language has been one of significant things of my life. I know Punjabi from my mom’s family and Delhi has always been my teacher when it came to the accent of authentic Punjabi language. Also, I acquired the knowledge of Malayalam from my grandparents who lived with us and dad who wanted me to be fluent in his mother tongue as well!

So I used to be a wonder kid back in school who knew Hindi, Punjabi, Malayalam and English! Even I never realized how I picked up so many dialects, accents and dictions!

The next inevitable point that I must mention is food. Breakfasts were never boring as I would either get aloo paratha or dosa and the likes. Although I have been exposed to North Indian food in Delhi more, I am equally attached to South Indian cuisine.

We have explored the best restaurants in Delhi serving both North and South Indian cuisine! I am at times surprised at my undivided love for both idli and chole kulche at the same time!

Festivals were the best part of my upbringing into a culturally ‘mismatched’ family like this. Pongal used to be so much fun! And Diwali was just as grand!

The best thing is I never realized while I was growing up that I was imbibing two different cultures together which otherwise the society considers ‘impossible’. Everyone creates ‘norms’ but few realize that there is an inexplicable peace (and joy) beyond that.

How to Make an Evening In Enjoyable

After a long and hectic week filled with work, meeting, waking up early and long hours, all one wants to do is sleep the weekend away. And even if they feel like spending some down time with their friends, then even the thought of dressing up and going out, just leaves one tired. So, that is why, many times people just invite friends over to one’s house and have a nice relaxed time, talking, playing games, watching TV or movies.

When a group of people gets together the first the thought is what to eat, luckily, these days there are numerous delivery restaurants in Saket, Malviya Nagar, GK, Hauz Khas and most of the Delhi area. Even some of the high end restaurants offer home delivery services, so one can order from there too. And these delivery services have gotten fast too, most don’t take more than 30-40 minutes to deliver scrumptious food that one can enjoy in their comfortable clothes.

One of the most favourite cuisines to order is north Indian cuisine in Delhi. Not just for the cuisine itself, but also, that it’s so filling, pocket friendly and can easily feed a large group of people in just 2-3 dishes and a lot of bread rotis. Unlike other cuisines one doesn’t have to order separate dishes for every person.

Also, one can take a trip down memory lane and play old board games, or create new games of your own. One can also go to the local market if they want, to just take a walk and get some fresh air, have lively debates, finally binge watch a show or have a movie marathon of some of the classic films.
There is nothing better than being able to lie in your house, in for pajamas, with good company and good food, to make an evening in sound wonderful.

My favourite North Indian restaurant

Being a food aficionado, I am always open to trying out different cuisines and restaurants. There is nothing that makes me happier than starting and ending my day with good food. Food does not merely give me energy to live; it makes my life worth living. But just like all other human beings, I too have small flaws. I happily visit the known, the unknown, the new, and the old restaurants for all cuisines but North Indian. There is only one restaurant that satisfies my taste buds when it comes to North Indian food and it is none other than Dhaba by Claridges in Saket.

And it is not just the amazing food that attracts me to that place. The typical dhaba-like ambiance, quick service, full-of-life staff who would surely raise the spirits of every person with their dance on a Bollywood number etc. are things that I simply can’t find anywhere else. Though I have tried some pretty great North Indian restaurants in Gurgaon and Delhi, I keep going back to my favourite restaurant in Saket. But when it comes to other cuisines, I am always up for a new adventure.

There is another annoying habit of mine because of which my friends have often had to suffer. There are so many reliable food websites nowadays which help people decide upon restaurants. I unfortunately do not like to form an opinion about a place without visiting it myself as I wish to give every restaurant a fair chance. While some restaurants turn out to be great, we have also had instances wherein we ran to save our lives. Just kidding! But yes, when my friends are not impressed with the food, they do make it a point to torture me later on. While you think about my weird nature, I need to get going as we have a dinner reservation at a renowned Italian joint. Arrivederci! 

The secrets of a good food delivery mechanism

Food service industry has become quite competitive. Multiple food outlets are opening up every day and two of the many things that you should make sure to match the fast pace of the food service industry are: an online order platform and a delivery service!

We have several South Indian as well as North Indian restaurant in Delhi which are popular, obviously for their food, but especially for their excellent delivery service. Here's a list of some of the important things to remember,  which are elements of a good delivery mechanism.

•Timely: The first and the most important thing a  customer expects out of a food delivery is its speed. Nothing impresses us like a fast delivery. In those waiting hours, when we are done ordering the food online or over the phone, every second passing by feels like an hour. So, when you're establishing a delivery network, make sure you have enough people to assist it. Some of the delivery restaurants in saket  even come up with slogans like "20 minutes delivery" and I believe it is an excellent way to make your customers fall for you!

•Appearance: The sight of the food on the door should be pleasing to the eyes. That would raise the excitement levels of the customer who's ordered it. Make sure your delivery boy has a special sealed storage system in his bike so that even heavy rainfall or excessive heat won't spoil the taste as well as the look of the entire package!

•POS: Some customers choose cash on delivery mode, but realize that they're short of cash only after the delivery is made. It's wise to make your delivery boys carry POS systems with them for it might solve the problems of the customers. They'd be happy and relieved to see that the delivery carries a back-up plan.

And that's quite enough to bring smiles on the faces of your customers! They're not too demanding!