The Sweetie’s Fave Indian Meals

Those of you who know me, know that I am an adventurous eater, and that I love Indian food… but our 5 weeks in India were next level! - Steve

A few highlights:

Breakfasts

Walking into the lounge/breakfast area of our hotel in Mumbai on our first morning in India set the stage for what would become one amazing breakfast after another. Laid out in front of us: rotis, idlis (steamed fermented rice cakes), dosas, curries of various kinds, sambal, upma (sort of a porridge), aloo paratha (mashed potatoes encased in bread), puris, uttapam (a fluffy pancake), vadas (lentil-based doughnuts), bhurji (scrambled eggs masala), chutneys galore, and so much more! The only challenge with breakfast was trying to get hungry again for what was always an amazing lunch a few short hours later…

Our First Thali

We were familiar with thalis, the Indian meal with many different dishes, each in its own small bowl… but we were unprepared for our dinner at Bhoj Thali in Aurangabad early on in our trip. We sat down at our table, and found a dozen empty bowls in front of each of us. Then, without warning, the first of a procession of servers appeared, each holding a steaming cauldron of food, which they dished into one empty bowl after another, server after server until all the bowls were filled… and then they were back again, refilling each bowl after even the slightest progress was made in eating it. Amazing curries, rices, chutneys, breads… we finally had to call a halt to the refills when we remembered that another huge breakfast was on the horizon!

Curries

It was hard to choose our favorites… but for me, the top contenders were the fish and prawn curries of Kerala, on the Arabian sea coast in the south. Fresh-that-morning fish, giant prawns, crabs, tons of spices and hot chilies, all bathed in coconut milk. One of our most enjoyable meals took place on a houseboat as we traveled through the backwaters and canals of Kerala: we stopped at a waterside seafood market along the way, purchased our ingredients for dinner… and then a few hours later, ate our superbly prepared fried fish and curries while watching the sunset over water.

Food Tour

India Someday arranged a street food tour for us with Foodies Day Out in the city of Madurai, Tamil Nadu… and we somehow managed to eat 12 separate meals! From “pre-snacks” (including humongous dosas) to regular snacks (sweet and savory paniyaram, putti, idli, and string hoppers), to appetizers (onion uttapam), to a couple of actual main courses, and then dessert – everything was amazing. My favorite was the Parotta, a sort of flaky bread, fried in ghee, then wrapped in a banana leaf, and served with various curries (we tried mutton curry). Even though it was at least the 11th course of our evening, I was tempted to order another one!

Cooking Class

We love a good cooking class (even though we rarely follow through once we get home), and one of our best was in Udaipur, with Shashi. We met at her home (getting there by auto rickshaw was its own adventure, since Indian addresses rely on landmarks – 2nd house in the 3rd alley behind the neighborhood temple – rather than western style street numbers; after knocking on a few wrong doors, one friendly neighbor walked us directly to the right house). And although Shashi was clearly the boss, the whole household pitched in with cooking tips: her two sons, daughter-in-law, a couple aunties, and even her grand-daughter Rainbow. We learned to make several types of pakoras, breads, curries, chutneys, and even chai – here’s the proof:

The Best Biryani

We ate many of our meals at restaurants suggested by our guidebooks or arranged by our drivers… meaning that the restaurants were accustomed to western tourists (and sometimes tried to tone down the spice levels). But occasionally we struck out on our own, with unanimously good results. One day, after a strenuous hike up a mountain through the tea fields on the border between Kerala and Tamil Nadu (which I did without Kemi!), I stopped at the first restaurant I could find. It was packed… entirely with men, all of whom stopped eating and stared at me as I stood in the door. I stopped for a minute, unsure whether to proceed, when a teenage boy came over, directed me to a table, and came back a few minutes later with a steaming plate full of chicken biryani. And then after another couple minutes he came back with a spoon, guessing that (unlike the rest of the restaurant patrons) I might like to eat with a utensil. Spoon or not, that was the best of the many biryanis I enjoyed on our trip, and as far as I know the spice levels weren’t adjusted on my behalf! Here I am working up an appetite on the mountain top!

P.s. We can happily report that we did not get sick in India! So, lets put that unhappy myth to rest!