Indian dishes are quite famous for their "Spices" and "Curry" all around the
globe. Indian Curry has a long history of over 5,000 years. Curry is basically
derived from Tamil word 'kaikaari' that means vegetable cooked in spices. Curry
has hot and sour tastes and it is a gravy dish made with a variety of spices and
seasonings. Curry is such popular among the western countries that it has become
a symbol for Indian dishes eaten with rice or rotis.
Here are a few important factors that makes
Indian curry and spices quite
special and authentic to serve the taste buds:
Bhuna: It is one of the most important process of cooking a perfect Indian
curry. Bhuna is a Hindi term that means 'fry in oil' or cooking various assorted
spices in hot oil. This process helps to abolish the raw taste of various spices
and release their natural flavors. Tadka is the similar process as Bhuna, this
process is followed by frying whole spices in hot oil. To fry the spices the oil
used should be really hot and one should take care not to burn the spices. The
spices are cooked till the moment they attain color. This process can be very
quick especially with the small spices like cumin seeds and mustard seeds.
Spices: Spices are the most important ingredients in any traditional curry,
acquired from aromatic dried bark, roots, buds, seeds, berries or fruits of the
Plants roots. To release the aroma and flavors of spices they must be heated
properly. To retain the aroma of spices one must store them in air-tight
containers, else they loose their fragrance and flavor. Masala is a mixture of
spices sauteed in oil or ghee. In India, majority of people use Garam masala in
daily cooking. Garam masala is one of the major ingredients of Indian Curries
and is often added at the end of the recipe.
Curry Powder: Curry powder is a blend of various spices like turmeric, cumin
seeds, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, five spice powder, with red chili powder.
Curry powder is used in many dishes in western countries like America and U.K.
In India, still many people are unaware of curry powder as they create their own
mixtures using various spices. Turmeric is also known as 'haldi' in Hindi. It is
a deep yellow colored powder derived from grinding a dried plant root. It is
well-known for its health benefits, anti-oxidant properties and is much popular
for its digestive properties and to fight against leukemia.
Curry: It is the preperation of gravy used in the Indian dishes; it is a
perfect blend of various spices and other ingredients like turmeric, cloves,
coriander, fenugreek, ginger, red and black pepper. One of the popular spice
blends used in Indian curries is called "Garam Masala".
India is a land of several religions and cultures. Each region of India has
its own style of preparing curry, the flavors, textures and pungency in each
region is quite different yet similar due to some common factors like marination
and slow cooking. These factors of cooking ensures the texture, colors and
flavors of herbs comes out really well in the dish. All these above factors make
Indian curry special. The spices and the process of making Indian curry gives it
an authentic aroma which is getting quite popular around the globe.