Quote: (12-13-2012 12:23 AM)HiFlo Wrote:
gimme the down & dirty on cookin indian food. i love i.t.
Each culture has base ingredients that they use for almost all dishes
French-Mirepoix (onion, carrot, celery)
Cajun-Holy Trinity (Onion, bell peppers, celery)
Portuguese-Refogado (Onions, garlic, tomato)
Italian-Soffrito (onions, garlic, celery)
Spanish-Sofrito (see above)
This holds true to many asian cuisines as well. While I don't know the names they would be:
Chinese- Garlic, ginger, scallion
Indian- Garlic, ginger, onion
Knowing this, you can compose very rudimentary Indian dishes with this vegetable mixture, some curry mixture (don't buy curry powder, look for Garam Masala.), some vegetables, fish, lamb or chicken as your protein, and coconut milk or yogurt.
Sweat the garlic, ginger, and onion until translucent. Coat your protein in the garam masala and add to pan with whatever other vegetables you're using. Cook lightly, and then add either coconut milk or yogurt, about a half cup of water, cover and cook for 20 minutes or until everything is tender. Remove the lid and reduce to acheive a thicker consistency, and season. I typically add a red jalapeno or other fresh chile to my curries since I love spice. Finish your dish with plenty of chopped mint or cilantro or both.
This is very basic Indian cooking but it's a start. It's an incredibly diverse and complex cuisine and hyper regional. If you had to generalize the different regions I'd say it's broken down like:
Mughal (influenced from Pakistan and the northwest)
Muslim (influenced from northern regions)
Goan (this is where you get Vindaloo, the spicy shit. West coast spice trade style)
Kerala (also west coast spice trade)
Madras or Masala (this is the real OG Indian curry. The oldest and most traditional)
Each of these regions has their own unique touches. Some of these mofos put rose petals in their curries making them floral. Others are spicy as hell. Some use more cream and heavy dishes (usually colder regions) while others are lighter and stick to yogurt. Do a search on amazon for indian cookbooks; there are some amazing ones out there.