Millennials Explore: Cultures And Cuisines

Vibrance and Warmth in Chettinad

Centuries ago, banyan leaves served mostly dishes juxtaposed with spices like fenugreek, fennel, clove and freshly crushed turmeric in south India.

The UNESCO-accredited site of Chettinad in Tamil Nadu has its own cuisine. Originally, the Chettiars, who settled there around 3,000 years ago, were a group of traders of salts and spices who were known to be extremely rich and used to host lavish feasts. The present-day rendition of their cuisine features some of the best fish gravies and prawn curries you can taste in the world. Their well-crafted menu also includes items such as brain masala, stomach sambols and pepper chicken along with an exquisite vegetarian banquet replete with miniature potato fries, appams, idlis, idiyappams, adais, dosais and dried curries. A trip to the cluster of 76 Chettinad villages could be worth your while, if only for tasting the sheer complexity and rich flavours of spices and condiments mixed in one dish.

• Chettiar kitchens often offer beautifully made vintage cookware.
• The Chettiars brought huge amounts of riches to India in trade with Burma (Myanmar), Java, Khmer (Cambodia), Ceylon (Sri Lanka) and Mauritius.
• In the Sangam era, huge establishments were created above the sea level to save the spices from continuous droughts and floods.

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Veganism Against the Odds

Go on a vegan food trail in the different states of India where cafes and restaurants are promoting vegan cuisines and culture.

Finding vegan food while pedalling across borders can be hard, but not impossible. While traversing across the country and choosing a vegan lifestyle, get your hands on masala dosas, idlis, dal makhani, kofta, rajma, and chole kulche. Being a land full of varied cultures and food preferences, India is also famous for culinary tourism, and it is fairly easy to find vegan and vegetarian food items. Despite all of its seafood attractions, Goa has also been accredited by PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) accredited to be India's most vegan-friendly state with popular vegan and vegetarian restaurants like Zest, Blue Planet Cafe, Bean Me Up, Soul Booster Bar, Cafe Tato, Chia Lounge, among others, that offer a plethora of vegan delicacies. The Silicon Valley of India, Bengaluru, too has an array of
vegan-friendly and vegetarian restaurants such as Santé Spa Cuisine, Green Theory, The London Curry House, and others. Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan and Punjab are also increasingly offering multiple vegan options.

• The earliest instances of vegetarianism are found in India, as practised by Jains in the 6th century BCE.
• It is mandatory to label foods in India as vegetarian or non-vegetarian with green and red dots, respectively.
• It takes more than 2,400 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef, but only 25 gallons to produce a pound of wheat.

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Beyond Momos and Noodles in Ladakh

Dig in to the rustic and soul-uplifting Ladakhi preparations made of rice, barley, meat and rooted vegetables.

If you thought momos, thukpa and noodles were all there is to Ladakhi cuisine, think again. There are many sumptuous dishes awaiting your approval, but you could start with the delightfully aromatic and homely Ladakhi pulao, prepared with white rice, mutton stock and caramelised onions, carrots and nuts. You may not find it at the street vendor's, but it is a mainstay in many Ladakhi households. Next up is the skyu soup, a comfort dish in which small, thumb-sized balls of barley or wheat dough are boiled and cooked slowly along with root vegetables like potatoes, carrots and turnips. For a different taste altogether, give chhurpi a shot. It is a variety of cheese that is made from yak milk, and comes in three versions: plain, sweet and salty. Chhurpi is commonly cherished with an interesting range of breads and stews such as the sweet and tangy tingmo, the extremely thick khambir or even homemade pasta. For your day’s source of protein, don’t miss dastuk, a homespun porridge of rice, yak milk and butter,salt, pepper, wild greens and capers that is often considered to be the best meal on chilly winter days.

• Order butter tea with khambir, and have a traditional Ladakhi tea time to keep your body warm.
• In case of gluten allergy, opt for rice-based options. Barley is also a staple crop in the region.
• On your way back from Ladakh, get your hands on jars of apricot jam, as they are 100% organic and grown and processed in the region itself.

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Sour and Spice on a Parsi Food Trail

Flavourful and adequately balanced between sweet and sour with some Iranian spice, it would be worthwhile to give Parsi cuisine a try.

If the Parsis had not arrived on Indian soil and imbibed it with their wonderful culture, India, as a whole, would not have been the same. While their contributions to the economic world are notable, their distinct gastronomy is as significant. In the states of Gujarat and Mumbai, especially, its influence has been paramount. Parsi cuisine is a mix of delicacies as diverse as the civilisation itself. After moving from Persia, the group has lived on the Gujarat coast. This unique background gives Parsi food a distinctive taste due to the amalgamation of gosht (meat), dry fruits from its Irani roots, nuts, eggs, potatoes — all seasoned with a variety of spices. One of the most popular traditional Parsi dishes is jardaloo salli boti. Using boneless cubes of meat called boti, this tangy and spicy Parsi meat is served with store-bought matchstick potatoes called salli. Then there is sali per eedu, which is the Parsi-Indian version of shakshuka, with a lot of flavours and poached eggs. Mumbai is also quite famed for the Parsi cafes and restaurants such as Britannia and Co., Cafe Military, and more.

• Parsis first migrated to India from Iran in the 7th-8th century CE to preserve their culture and heritage.
• Most Parsis communicate in Gujarati or English, but their native language is Avestan.
• Most Parsi cuisines have nuts. Beware of allergies.