Free Asian Recipes from India for Cooking Indian Food

My first exposure to Indian cuisine happened when I was a small girl, growing up in Malaysia and having two wonderful nannies at home who were Indian. They would cook the most wonderful curries and make some of the most delicious Indian desserts. I always looked forward to celebration days when they would produce some of these gems for us, family and friends.

Now having married to a man with Indian background, I am blessed with a mother-in-law and various aunties (and uncles!) whose love of Indian cooking and culture have often emerged from our kitchen. It was they who taught me the secrets and love of Indian cuisine, bringing with them the many secrets and spices that go with it. I have come to respect and adore Indian cookin techniques. One of the greatest thing about it is that it rarely requires much last-minute attention. My only wish is that I could install one of those popular clay or brick oven which is common in most part of India but virtually unheard of in the western continent.

Let's talk about the Indian cooking background. Note that each region of India is very different from the next and each region has its own specialities and characteristic dishes. For example, in the region of Mumbai (formely Bombay), you can find their famous pork curries while in fish is featured in Bengali. Madras is known for its beautiful array of vegetarian dishes. To make this simplified, just think of India as two parts, the north and the south. Northern dishes has influences from various invasions throughout the centuries and southern dishes have less foreign influences.

Speaking of foreign influences, perhaps the most strongly influenced were by the British who although their cuisine did not impact much of India, they were in turn, influenced by Indian cooking and you can find a bit of India in English sesasonings (e.g. mustard) and various chutneys. The humble pilaf and many of the rice dishes can be traced back to the Persians. The Portuguese introduced vinegar thus becoming the main defining ingredient for vindallo curries. (See also Beef Vindaloo) The coming of chillies was in thanks part to the Portuguese and Spanish explorers. The Moguls were responsible for dishes that are creamy and rich.

In the south of India, the religion of Hindu is prominient which means most of the dishes you find are mostly vegetarian. In the north, Hinduism is not as strict so meat dishes, mainly lamb and chicken are found in many traditional dishes. You would be hard press to find beef in any of the dishes simply because one does not eat beef in India as the cow is considered a sacred animals. There are also Muslims who live in India and who eat all types of meat with the exception of pork. The pig, as the Muslims viewed are considered 'unclean animals'. Other minorities in India include the Christians and Jews, all of whom have their own unquie diet.

The Cooking Methods of India. Think about it. Perhaps one of the greatest contribution of the Indian cooking is that it rarely requires last minute attention. Most western kitchens have everything one needs to make Indian food so you don't really need to go out and buy special equipments. You do, however, need to blend the spices mentioned as this is an integral part of Indian cooking. A heavy-bottom skillet is essential to Indian cooking. If you wish, you can also purchase something called a tawa or tava which is a type of grill pan and is used by Indians for roasting various spices and cooking chapatis and other flat type bread. However, if you cannot get acesss to the tawa, a good size and durable skillet is all you need.

Another specialty equipment which you might see in any Indian restaurant is the tandoor or brick or clay oven. This equipment is virtually impossible to have in any Western kitchen but it is quite popular in nothern India. Most of the recipes on this site, however, have been slightly adapted to fit the western style oven. Other speciality equipment include the narial kas (coconut grater) and chalni (strainer) - all of which though nice to have is not necessary.

The following recipes are some of my favorite recipes that I urge you to try and experiment. They are easy to make, does not require as much detail attention and the rewards are wonderful. If you're a first time comer to the flavors of India and want to try something easy, I would recommend that you try the butter chicken or beef vindaloo. Naan bread is usually used as an accompaniment to most curry dishes but you can use basmati rice instead.

Regardless of what you choose, don't be afraid to try and adjust to your palatal taste. If you are not too keen on spiciness but want the flavors to remain, simply cut back on the chilli powder or add more lemon to your dish. Enjoy!

Indian Recipes

Index of New Indian Recipes:

• Ground Lamb with Peas
• Tandoori Shrimp ^NEW
• Mint Raita ^NEW
• Slow Cooked Vegetable Curry with Diced Eggs ^NEW
• Cauliflower Soup ^NEW
• Ground Almonds in Ghee and Milk ^NEW
  
  Chicken, Duck, Quail & Poultry Recipes:
  
• Balti Chicken
• Butter Chicken ^popular
• Chicken with Black Pepper
• Chicken in Coconut (Kukupaka)
• Chicken Masala ^popular
• Spicy Chicken Livers (Shahjehan Kaleja)
• Tandoori Chicken Drumstick ^popular
  
  Pork, Mutton, Beef, Veal and Lamb Recipes
  
• Beef Vindaloo ^popular
• Lamb Keema
• Lamb Pot Roast
• Lamb with Spinach
• Meatballs in Sauce
• Musaman or Masaman Beef Curry ^popular
• Rogan Josh ^popular
• Spicy Lamb Chops
• Spicy Lamb Curry
• Spicy Leg of Lamb (Moghlai Raan)
  
  Seafood Recipes
  
• Bengali fish curry
• Fish Moilee
• Fried Trout with Ginger
• Masala Prawns ^popular
• Mussels in Coconut Sauce
• Prawn Curry ^popular
  
  Vegetarian Recipes
  
• Ginger Garlic Paste
• Green Chilli Paste
• Indian Chickpeas
• Indian Stuffed Cucumbers
• Onion Bhajias ^popular
• Mixed Vegetable Raita
• Mushroom Masala
• Potato and Pea Curry
• Pomegranate Potatoes
• Roasted Madras Potatoes
• Singiwala Sambhar (Drumstick Sambhar)
• Spiced Lentil Soup
• Spinach with Cottage Cheese
• Vegetable Kachori
• Vegetarian Samosa ^popular
  
  Noodles, Rice & Bread Recipes
  
• Naan bread (Updated) ^popular
• Vegetarian Biriyani Rice ^popular
  
  Dessert & Sweets Recipes
  
• Gulab Jamun (Milk Sweets in Syrup) ^popular
• Indian Mango Ice Cream ^popular
• Kesar Sandresh (Saffron Cheesecake)
• Mango Lassi ^popular
• Paneer (Cottage Cheese) ^popular
• Sweet Saffron Rice

Asafoetida
A gum derived from a Persian plant that is used in tiny amounts in Indian cooking to give flavor and to prevent flatulence. Availabe in small rectangular blocks from Indian spice shops. Also known as hing in Hindi and perankayam in Tamil. Best bought ground and stored in an airtight container.

Ata Flour
Also known as chapati flour, this whole wheat flour is widely used for making breads. Well sifted whole wehat flour can be used instead.

Basmati Rice
Is a fragrant long-grain rice usually from Pakistan, it has a delicious nutty flavor. Sometimes sold as Patna rice.

Bay Leaf
Bay Leaves (Tej Patta) come from the sweet bay or laurel tree. The dry light green colored long aromatic leaves and have a sharp, bitter taste. Mostly used in flavoring pulaos and some curries. The whole leaves are used to impart a wonderful flavor only and are bitter and hard to chew. Removed at the time of eating.

Besan Flour
Made from chick peas and sometimes called gram flour. Not to be confused with flour made from yellow lentils. Usually used to flavor and thicken curries for making pakoras and bhajias.

Brinani or Biriyani Spices
Ready-mixed spices for use in Biriyani Rice sold by some spice merchants, consisting of cinnamon, cloves, cardamon and black cummin or sajira

Brown Mustard Seeds
Small seeds used by South Indian cooks. Not to be confused with larger yellow mustard seeds from Europe.

Channa Daal
Is the round dried yellow split-pea. Very similar to yellow split peas but slightly smaller. The dried lentils are brown and when split they are a pale yellow color. Split Channa daal is used to make curries and is used also in many vegetarian dishes. In English, known as yellow split peas. Also used as a binding agent.

Coconut Milk and Cream
Coconut milk should not be confused with 'milk' or juice found inside a fresh coconut. The milk used for cooking is proudced from the white flesh of the nut. If left to stand, the thick part of the milk will rise to the surface to become the 'cream'.

Coriander
Also known as Chinese Parsley and cilantro. Fresh coriander has a strong, pungent smell that combines well with other rich flavors. The white coriander root is used when the green coloring is not required. Seeds are also used, whole and ground.

Cumin
Available as whole seeds and as a powder, cumin has a strong, slightly bitter flavor and is used mainly in Indian recipes.

Curry Leaves
Used abundantly in Indian cooking, curry leaves (karuvapillai) must not be confused with the Indonesian daun salam. Leaves are about 2.5 cm long, dark green in color and have a pungent smell. Dried leaves can be bought overseas in a specialist curry shops.

Fenugreek
Fresh herb used in a number of vegetable dishes and in some meat dishes. Always discard the stalks which taste bitter and use only the small leaves. Fenugreek seeds give curry spice mixes a strong exotic aroma. Also said to enhance milk production in women who are breast-feeding.

Ghee
Is a rich clarified butter oil used as the main oil in Indian cooking. It is made from cow or water buffalo milk by removing the milk solids from the oil. If ghee is not available subsitute with vegetable oil or butter. Nowadays, vegetable ghee, more often corn oil, is more popular because is contains less saturated fat.

Garam Masala
To make this delightful spice: combine 1 cinnamon stick, 8 dried red chillies, 5 tbsp coriander seeds, 2 tbsp cumin seeds, 2 tsp cardamon seeds, 1 tsp fennel seeds, 1 tsp black mustard seeds, 2 tsp black pepperconrs and 1 tsp whole clove together. Roast dry everything together and keep in container in refrigerator for up to 3 months.

Kapor
White lime used as part of a betel quid.

Mansoor Dhal or dal
These are split red lentils and are available in most Indian grocery stores. They are actually orange in color and become much paler when cooked.

Moong Dhal or dal
This split yellow lentil is quite similar to channa dhal or dal but smaller in size.

Omum
A minute spice resembling parsley seed, this is used to flavor murukku and some other Indian dishes. Botanical name is carom, the Hindi ajwain. No subsitution.

Panch Phoran
This is a type of Indian mix that consists of five spices - cumin seeds, onion seeds, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and star anise.

Paneer
Sooth, white cheese with a delicate flvaor used throughout India by both vegetarians and meat eaters. It is often combined with meat. Ricotta cheese may be subsituted instead.

Papadum
(Popadum), are paper-thin wafers made from lentil flour. Should be absolutely dry before frying in hot oil for a few seconds on either side, so that they swell up and become crisp and golden. Comes in a variety of flavor from plain to spicy.

Saffron
It is the hand picked and dried stigmas of a flower. In Southeast Asia, it's only used by the Indians for its intense fragrance though it is also used by the Chinese as a medicine. It also gives food a yellowish color but being the most expensive spice in the world it is rarely used just for that purpose. (For colouring purpose, usually turmeric is used.) Usually, a tiny quantity is soaked in water and the resulting orangy yellow liquid is added to food.

Sajira
A dark fine cumin. Used for Biriyani and North Inidan vegetable dishes. Roasted, ground and used sparingly.

Samosa
Also known as Samboosa or sambusac, are small, triangle shape pastries, often filled with meat or vegetables, used as a side dish. Usually served as a side dish or appetizer or snacks. Available frozen.

Star Anise
(Chakra Phool) Star anise has the wonderful scent of licorice. It is the fruit produced by a small evergreen tree grown in Asia. As one might suspect, is star-shaped. Each of it's eight points contains a star anise seed. Whole star anise has a long shelf life, but once ground, it should be kept in an airtight container in a cool, dark place for no more than 3 months. It is great to flavor biryani's and other non-vegetarian Indian dishes.

Tamarind
Sour tasting and strongly flavored, this is the sticky, dried, dark brown pod of the tamarind plant. It has to be soaked in hot water, then strained before use. Tamarind paste is more conveninet to use and is available in jars from Asian food stores. If unavailable, use lemon juice instead.

Toor Dhal or dal
This split lentil is similar to channa dhal or dal.

Turmeric
A member of the ginger family, turmeric is a rich-golden colored root. If you are using fresh turmeric root, wear rubber gloves when peeling to avoid staining your skin. Turmeric is also avaiable in powder form.

Urid Dhal or dal
This lentil is available with its hull, which is black and may be called black gram or hulled, when it is creamy white. It takes a long time to cook this ingredient.