Cook With Me (Chapter 3) - Rice, The Staple For Many

Food habits are also influenced by religious and cultural choices, and traditions. India is an amalgamation of many cultures due to trades, and invasions. The culture has been influenced by a history that is several millennia old, and the cuisine has been influenced by Persians, Mughals, Arabs and Europeans.If we look at the map of India, the four distinct regions are very clear. The Northern region consists of enchanting Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh. 

Gujarat and Maharashtra lie in the west. East covers West Bengal and Orissa. And the South includes Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Generally Indian cuisine can be split into five main categories - Northern, Southern, Eastern, Western, and North-eastern. I will introduce you to Bengali cuisine in particular, which falls in the eastern category, but there is nothing wrong in exploring the other regional cooking styles and flavours. Every state is almost a country by itself, and each has its own cuisine!

The main crops of the plains are rice and wheat. Other important crops are maize, sugarcane, cotton and many more. A number of food-grains, pulses, oilseeds, fruits and vegetables grow on the fertile land. Because of the range of diversity in soil type, climate, and occupations, India has a wide variety of regional cuisines. Food habits vary depending on the locally available herbs and spices, vegetables and fruits.

Eastern and Southern parts of India depend heavily on rice as their staple, because the climate is perfect for producing rice. But North and West states grow more wheat which becomes their staple food-item. So in Bengal, we are used to eating rice for both lunch and dinner, whereas in Punjab, chapatis made of wheat or maize are all they need for everyday requirements. Interestingly, in South India, they have a crunchy crepe-style pancake which is called " Dosa", and which is made of ground rice and lentils blended together.The Northern part which is mountainous land, cuisine is so much different from the South, because South is mostly coastal area, close to the oceans . 

The people in the North of India use a lot of tomatoes and onions in their cooking, while the people in the Southern part use plenty of coconut and tamarind. The reason must be the availability of those vegetables due to the natural surroundings. Jammu and Kashmir in the Himalayan region is the ever-mysterious, ever-coveted part of the country which may brag of a totally Mughal cuisine. I had been fortunate to travel to Jammu and Kashmir, stayed in the houseboats on Dal Lake, and savoured those exquisite mughlai dishes. 

Srinagar, the capital of Kashmir, is as captivating as Switzerland in Europe. The lake, the valley, the mountains, the Mughal gardens (planned by the Mughal emperor Shahjehan) are breathtaking! The food in the region is influenced by the royal cuisine of Mughal emperors. The aromatic meat dishes such as Rogan Josh, Seekh Kabab, Chicken Pulao have their origins in Persia, and some of the vegetable dishes such as Dum Aloo (Potato), Palak Paneer (Cheese and Spinach) are no less appetizing. Kashmir is famous for growing walnuts; so Walnut Chutney is a favourite condiment.

I grew up in West Bengal, but later lived in Northern India for a couple of years. I found a difference in ingredients, such as rice and vegetables, when we moved to Delhi, the capital of India. The most popular rice we find in North America is "Basmati" (meaning " Flavourful" in Hindi), but in Bengal the most common everyday rice is Boiled Rice. 

The most staple food in India is rice, but it has many different varieties. First of all, rice can be boiled or parboiled. I found a lot of people are confused about what that means. Parboiled rice is partially boiled in the husk. In this process the raw rice or paddy is dehusked by using steam. The process generally changes the colour of the rice, and it is the most nutritious variety. 

There is a buzz everywhere, especially in North America, about the health benefits of eating brown rice. I remember, in our childhood, brown rice used to be considered as poor people's food, because it was rougher and cheaper; we were so disappointed if, for some reason, we had to eat brown rice. I feel so amused now when I find myself looking for brown rice in the supermarket.

Rice is an everyday food in most parts of India, but there are a few methods of cooking rice. As a little girl of six, I had the opportunity of going on a vacation to Kerala, where my uncle worked and lived for forty years. I, my mother, and my little sister stayed in the little town of Aleppe for three months with my uncle's family. The fondest memory of my childhood is playing with the waves on the sandy beach of Arabian Sea, every evening. 

Another fond memory is having "Canjee" for breakfast every morning. Canjee is a preparation of rice, or a thick porridge; it is prepared by boiling rice in a large amount of water for a very long time;  as a result the grains are almost disintegrated. I loved the breakfast and the fresh home-made butter which was churned every day. Canjee can be eaten on its own, or with meat, fish or vegetables. It is a good meal when someone is sick, most probably because it is easy to digest. Food habits vary depending on the locally available herbs and spices, vegetables and fruits.

Other than rice, flatbreads such as Chapati, Roti, Paratha. Luchi, Puri, Dosa and Idli are the common items for the main meal. All these flatbreads are eaten with vegetable curry, lentils, or meat dishes. The first three varieties, Chapati, Roti, Paratha are made from wheat flour, while Luchhi, which is special in Bengal, is made of refined flour. It is light and fluffy, and irresistible to the palate, but from a health viewpoint, not the best. It is deep-fried, and absorbs a lot of oil or ghee (clarified butter).

A wedding menu will definitely have Luchhi on the list. My daughter, who is a picky eater, can't stop eating when once in a while I decide to give them a taste of Bengal! Dosa and Idli are prepared by mixing and fermenting rice and lentil paste, and largely eaten in South India, although it has become popular in every part of India now, because of its crispiness, and nutritional value of using a minimum amount of oil, and fermentation of the dough.

The Bengalis eat a lot of vegetables and a variety of fish, which are mostly caught from the local rivers. According to recent studies, this seems to be one of the best food-habits in the world. But some meat, e.g. chicken, goat, lamb, are also on the menu, and Bengalis have lip-smacking, finger-licking recipes for all of those items. 

My grandmother was the mentor for my mother who was an artist in her kitchen, although she definitely didn't have a fancy kitchen with lots of expensive, shiny gadgets. What we learnt from her was - learn the basics, you will be able to cook anything from Indian to Chinese, from Mexican to Italian.

Today I will give you a recipe for the simplest, completely vegetarian (vegan) Indian dish.

Dal ( Lentils)

Lentils are a huge part of Indian (Bengali) everyday food. Many different kinds of lentils are available in India. Masoor and Moong are the most common, and we used to eat one of them with rice every single day. They can be cooked really thin or thick or concentrated according to a variety of recipes. Indian families were usually large in those days when I was a little girl - with grandparents, uncles, aunts, and cousins living together under one roof with parents, and siblings (quite a few of them). To feed that big bunch, the lentils or dals, cooked thin (like a soup), were a staple, important part of lunch, even dinner. Bengalis are usually non-vegetarian, eating a variety of fishes, and a few kinds of meat - goat or chicken. But in North and in South India, a huge population is vegetarian, and lentils are the most important source of protein.

Masoor Dal

Ingredients:

Masur Dal or Red Lentils - 250 grms.

Turmeric Powder - 2 tsps. (too much is not recommended)

Green Chillies - 4

Onion - 1

Red Chilli - 2 (optional)

Optional: Tomatoes - 2 ( chopped)

Coriander Leaves - one bunch

Extremely easy to prepare.

Step 1: Wash and boil the lentils in a large saucepan for 15-20 minutes ( less time if a pressure-cooker is used) till they are tender. Check with your fingers or a spoon; they should be mushy.

Step 2: Use hand-blender, or regular blender to blend them completely in water (dal can be thick or thin, according to your choice). Add Tumeric powder, salt, chopped green chillies, and chopped tomatoes.

Step4: Add chopped coriander leaves (I do that when the dal has cooled down). Stir, and it’s done!

Dal is usually eaten with rice and fried vegetables, e.g. Fried Eggplant (Begun) or Potato (Alu).