Staple foods of the Indian Food cuisine include rice, flour & a variety of lentils. Indian cuisine is mostly recognized by the spices that are used. Popular spices that make up the traditional Indian dishes include Cardamom (Elachi), Tumeric (Haldi), Cumin (Jeera), Coriander (Dhania), Black Mustard Seeds (Sarso), Saffron, Ginger, Garlic & Chili Powder. A popular & common spice that is also used is called Garam Masala which typically has a combination of five or more spices.
Some leaves are also used in the Indian dishes which give them their distinctive Indian flavor. Leaves used for various dishes include Curry Leaves, Bay Leaves, Fenugreek Leaves, Mint Leaves & Coriander Leaves.
GREEN BANANA CURRY This Indian Recipe Serves 1-2 Green banana curry is a spicy Indian vegetarian dish. It is a quick & easy meal which is very nutritious. This meal is also vegan friendly. Raw green bananas are high in protein, has a low Glycemic Index & likewise has high resistance starch, which…
HOMEMADE PATHA This Recipe Makes ± 10 Patha Slices Patha is an exquisite delicacy that is extremely well known, particularly among Indian South Africans. Homemade Patha is much more delicious as you can play around with the ingredients instead of purchasing it from the store. It is a combination of a spicy chili pasted mixture…
KHANDVI This Indian Recipe Serves 2-3 Khandvi is a Gujarati snack that is quick & easy to prepare. It is also known as Patuli, Dahivadi or Suralichi Vadi in the Marathi culture. It is a savoury snack made with gram flour (besan, chana, chickpea flour) with a combination of yoghurt, water, turmeric powder & salt.…
GULGULA This Indian Recipe Makes ± 15 Gulgulas Gulgula – also known as Goolgoola or gugula is an Indian doughnut which is shaped as balls & deep fried in vegetable oil. These doughnuts are usually made for Hindu prayers & are accompanied by Veda’s. Apart from auspicious celebrations, these are also enjoyed by many…
RASAM This Indian Recipe Serves 3-4 Rasam is a popular dish of South India as well as in South Africa & translates to “juice“. It is also referred to as Russo, King Soup, Kabir, Saaru or Chaaru. Tamarind (Puli/Imalee) is one of the main ingredients for this dish. My maternal grandmother is of the…
LAMB BIRYANI This Indian Recipe Serves 4-6 This Lamb Biryani recipe is inspired by my mum. It is a typical South African style biryani with infused flavours. Biryani otherwise called biriyani or biriani, is a blended rice dish with its origins among the Muslims of the Indian subcontinent. It is mainstream all through the subcontinent & among…
METHI AND EGGS This Indian Recipe Serves 2 Methi And Eggs is mostly prepared in many Indian homes of South Africa. Methi is the Indian term for Fenugreek. Besides the use of Methi (Fenugreek) prepared with eggs, it can be also cooked on it’s own or with other variants such as mince or…
CALABASH CURRY This Indian Recipe Serves 2 Calabash Curry is one of my favourite veggie curries. It’s only loved by a few due to its texture as it becomes really soft once cooked. Most people like the long calabash, but my mum has taught to always pick the round ones instead as they…
SOUR PORRIDGE This Recipe Makes ±400 Milliliters In the Indian community, most Tamil South Africans make this Sour Porridge for the Mariamman prayer (porridge prayer). Sour Porridge is basically a gruel prepared from fermented maize meal (mealie meal). It is not to be confused with other traditional African fermented drinks like mahewu, incwancwa…
MUSHROOM CURRY This Indian Recipe Serves 2-3 Mushroom Curry is such an easy meal to prepare & is always a favourite. This dish is great for those fasting or meat-free days. It is a great dish for vegetarians & vegans as well. Growing up, I remember always asking my mum to prepare this…