If you want to learn or taste the recipes of India, you cannot miss the pickles, chutneys and appetizers of India which are prepared using the best spices and s sorts of fruits, vegetables, and natural ingredients. Appetizers stimulate the digestive system and add taste and flavor to a particular recipe. As well as they are nutritious and good for health. The appetizers are for all occasions and for all seasons.

If you ever buy any book on Indian Recipes and cooking traditions you will definitely find some recipe lessons on Indian appetizers. The appetizers include items like pickles, chutneys, murabbas, jellies, jams, sherbets, cold drinks prepared in home, squashes and raita. The ingredients required to prepare them are easily available in the local market.

The chutneys, pickles, salads, raita and other things used in a variety of ways in Indian homes depending on their moods, lifestyle, region and festivals. They are served as condiments to enhance the taste of food and add an extra flavor to dishes.

Here are recipes of few appetizers in India:

Coconut Chutney

Ingredients:
1 cup of unsweetened/sweetened grated coconut, 1 cup of roasted chana or roasted peanuts, 1 cup loosely filled cilantro leaves, 5 hot green chilly peepers, ½ tbsp salt, 3 pods of garlic, ½ cup lime juice and 1 cup of water. 

Mix all the ingredients in a pour into a bowl. Now take a blender and blend them find. All salt and mix the blended items well. Garnish the chutney with fresh leaves of parsley or mint or coriander or any herb of your choice.

The coconut chutney is ready to be served with dosa or roti or rice dishes.

Amla Pickle

Amla pickle is a widely used condiment in the homes of Indians. Almost all homes do prepare ala pickle during amla season and relish it with favorable dishes like paranthas.

Ingredients:
15-20 amlas, 1 tablespoon mustard seeds, 4 green chillies, 2 tablespoon turmeric powder, 1 tbsp hing, 7-8 tbsp mustard oil, fenugreek seeds, vinegar and salt for taste.

Take a pressure cooker. Pour all the amlas after washing them well. Now cook them till they are soft and tender. Five or six whistles will make them tender. Take out the amlas and blend them well with mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, and green chillies. Ass the turmeric powder too. If you wish you can add red chilly powder to prevent them from rotting when they are kept for long. Now heat the oil in a kadai and add the paste of that you blended in the mixture to it when the oil is hot. Cook for at least 6-7 minutes. Take a clean glass container whose mouth can be covered tightly. Pour the rest of the oil in the container and put the amla from kadai in it. Add little amount of vinegar to keep the medium tangy and free from rotting pathogens. For one week keep the bottle under direct sunlight. The amla pickle by now gets ready to be served with variety of dishes.

The traditional Hyderabadi cuisine are known for their spicy flavor, hot fragrance, liberal use of exotic spices, ghee and use of dry fruits in most items. They use the meat of lamb extensively as a non-vegetarian food. The delectable recipes of Hyderabad are famous throughout the world. Tourists flocking to India rarely miss the chance to visit the place of historic importance and get a taste of the cuisine.

Here are few recipes of Hyderbadi Food:

Beef Korma

Though beef is not eaten by majority sections in India, yet the item is very popular in South India. Beef korma is a delectable dish of Hyderabad and it is served well with hot tandoori rotis or rice.

You would require:
2 lbs of beef cut into pieces of 1 inch. ¼ cups of sliver almonds, 8 cloves of garlic, 7 cloves preferably whole, 1 tbsp ginger-root which is chopped coarsely, 1 tbsp coriander seed, 1 tbsp cumin seeds, 1 tbsp cardamom seed with pods, 1 tbsp red peppers crushed, 1 ½ tbsp salt, 1 tbsp ground cinnamon, 6 tbsp cooking oil, 3 medium onions sliced very thinly and separated, ¾ cup of whipping cream, ½ cup plain yogurt, 2 tbsp flour, ¼ tbsp garam-masala, 2 tbsp parsley or you can choose snipped coriander, water of required amount.

Combine all the spices and blend them in a blender to fine powder. Add little water, and then blanched almond, cloves of garlic, ginger-root, salt and grounded cinnamon to the mixture and blend them well till the mixture is in the form of paste. Boil the meat and then deep fry them in cooking oil. Now it is time to fry the onion on a big pan and add all the blended ingredients into it. Sauté till the color is deep brown. Now add the meat and pour ½ cup of water to the pan. Cover the pan for simmering the whole stuff for 45 minutes till the meat becomes tender and keep on stirring from time to time. Now stir the yoghurt, adding whipping cream, garam-masala and flour to it. Cook and stir the whole stuff till the gravy is thickened. Garnish the cooked korma with coriander leaves and the beef korma is ready to be served hot.

Hyderabadi Biryani

Ingredients required:
720 gm of mutton finely cut into bite pieces, 400 gm of rice parboiled, 4 tbsp lime juice, 10 blanched almonds, ½ tbsp mint leaves, 1 cup butter, 1 handful of chopped coriander leaves, ½ tbsp cumin seeds, 1 large sliced onion, 3-4 cardamom, 3 tbsp oil, 5-6 pods of garlic, 3-4 cloves, ginger finely grated, ½ tbsp saffron, 2-3 green chillies chopped, 1 cinnamon, ½ kg curd, 130 mg milk, 4 cups of water.

Wash the rice and boil it in a cooker. Soak the saffron in water. Now fry the sliced onions in the oil till they are brown in color. Put it aside. Fry the garlic, ginger, red chillies and almonds in fresh butter, add mutton to it and salt and stir the mixture well. Add little amount of friend onions to it. Now add water and cook on low flame till the meat is tender and some thick gravy is left. Put curd in a muslin cloth and let the water to drain away. Mix the cardamom, cumin seed, min leaves, chopped chillies, coriander in the drained curd. Strain the saffron water and add lemon juice to it. Add all these to the mutton on the pan and mix well. Now sprinkle half of the boiled rice and spread a layer of friend onion and then the rest of rice over it again. Pour the milk and some butter over it. Cover the vessel and seal the edges with flour paste. Place the can on flame for about 45 minutes. The biryani is ready for serving with chutney and raita.

Each region of India has its own specialty which is inspired by race, history, religion and geography. For instance, the Rajasthan cuisines make use of more milk and milk products than water due to scarcity of water in the place. The Punjabi food reflects the vibrant culture of the place, the tradition of people who love variety and want food filled with not only nutritious ingredients but also some amount of love by which they are prepared.

The secret of Indian style of cooking is the use of spices. Always being hot filled with chilly varieties, spices Indian food is also a complement for the blend of sauces that are used while preparing the recipes. The tradition of Indian cooking is an art and you would have great experience in cooking Indian food. Right from planning your recipe to collection of ingredients in right amount to blending of spices, simmering, steaming and stirring, the cooking is an activity that would enjoy the most.

The good thing about Indian cooking is that it is neither complex nor confusing. You don’t have to work too hard to prepare them. Just you need some patience preparing the spice blend and collect some ingredients for them. You have to be very specific while you cook Indian food for the real taste. For example you must use coconut oil for South Indian dishes to get the real taste and pure mustard oil to get the flavor of Bengal and East.

The traditions of Indian cooking have seen both vegetarian and non-vegetarian style of cooking. There are some recipes or dishes which require not a contemporary roaster or micro-woven, but the burning coal or a perfect fire place to roast them. For instance you can prepare tandori chicken in a woven but the taste of it roasted in a hearth has a different feeling.

Indian cooking thus involves all types of cooking- frying, boiling, steaming, roasting and low steam frying. There are few recipes where banana leaves are used to steam meat and fishes. Your mouth would just water while you see them prepared!

The Indian style of chicken curry has found its place in the menu of internationally acclaimed chef’s recipe books too. India boasts not of single type of chicken curry, but the place is known for its variety of styles of chicken curries. The chicken curry of north is different from East; the West is different from the South and so on and so forth. But there are some recipes which are common to all Indians and they are heartily relished by people all over the world for the taste and richness of nutrition.

Here is a famous and delicious recipe of chicken curry which you can prepare in your home.

Butter Chicken:

You Need:

750 gm of boneless chicken or chicken made into fine pieces. 200 gm of butter, 2 tablespoon of lime juice, ½ cup plain yoghurt, ½ cup cream, 2 tablespoon peanut oil, I big onion chopped, 1 cup tomato puree, 1-1/2 tablespoon Cayenne Pepper, salt for taste, 1 tsp chilly powder, 1 tsp cumin grounded, 1 tsp cornstarch, ginger garlic paste, 2 tsp garam masala (powder of spices like cloves, cardamom, etc.), 1 tsp chicken masala and required amount of water.

Heat 2 tsp of peanut oil and add the chopped onion in medium heat till the color turns light brown. Now add the butter, lemon juice, garlic ginger paste, garam masala, chicken masala, chilly powder, cumin, bay leaf, into the mixture and stir the mixture for one minute. Mix till the aroma comes quite hard. Now add the tomato puree and cook for another 2 minutes. It’s time to add yoghurt and cream to this mixture and mix them well. Reduce the heat to low and cook for 10 minutes. Add salt, black pepper and cayenne to this mixture and remove the pan.

Now take one large frying pan and pour the remaining peanut oil on it. Cry the washed chicken on the oil till it is brownish in color. Reduce the heat and add all the masalas that are left. Put 1/3rd of the persuaded sauce prepared into ti and cook till the liquid becomes more viscous. Now add the rest of the sauce and add required amount of water into it. Cook till the liquid gets reduced and there is thick gravy in the pan. Remove the pan from heat and put little amount of butter and cream over the prepared curry. The butter chicken is ready.

If you wish to feel the elate and richness of Indian food, you cannot afford to miss the Punjabi dishes of India. The Punjabi Cuisines are renowned throughout the world for their highly energetic food. The have some awesome cuisines which are very much indigenous to the land of Punjab and which are now eaten by people of all regions. They have brought about a revolution in the breakfast table with so many types of ‘Parathas’ for a heavy and perfect breakfast along with curd and other healthy items.

There are more than hundreds of original Punjabi dishes which you can prepare in your home and serve them. The great feeling of Punjabi food lies in the variety and versatility of their recipes. Here are few popular Punjabi dishes of India which are relished by people from all regions throughout India. They are simple to prepare and very tasty to gulp them down.

Alo-Gobi Recipe:

You need:

1 cauliflower, 4 potatoes, 1 tomato, ½ spoon turmeric powder, ½ spoon red chilly powder, 1 table spoon coriander powder, ½ table spoon sabji-masala, salt to taste, Ghee or oil. The ingredients mentioned here are for two-three people. You can increase the amount according to the servings you need.

Method:

Cut the potatoes (Alo) and cauliflower into pieces. Wash them properly. Now heat the oil or ghee in a cooking pan. Add some amount of chopped onion, paste of garlic and ginger. Fry the mixture till it is brownish in color. Now add the chopped cauliflower and potatoes. Cook in medium flame for 5 minutes. Now add chopped tomato, the turmeric powder, chilly powder, coriander and cook it for another 5-10 minutes. If you wish you can add little amount of water so that the stuff don’t stick to the pan. Serve hot with bread (rotis).

Roasted Baingan ka Barhta

You Need:

two eggplants, I large onion chopped, 1 tomato chopped, garlic cloves, chopped green chillies, ½ oil, fresh coriander leaves chopped, and salt for taste.

Method:

Roast the eggplants till they are soft. Peel the skin of the eggplants and mash them. Add the desired amount of salt on it and mix the mash with salt. Make a mixture of oil (preferably mustard oil), chillies, onion, garlic cloves and coriander leaves. Add the mixture to the mashed eggplant and mix the whole stuff properly. You can pour one tablespoon of lime juice over it for taste and little amount of butter. Serve it with rotis.

The very mention of Indian cooking makes one think of rich aromatic foods that have been cooked with a variety of spices. However, the art of Indian cooking lies in the selection and combination of spices rather than their quantity. Spices are used in such a manner and quality as to bring out the characteristic flavors of a dish.

In north India, the most commonly used spices are the red chilli, coriander, cumin and turmeric powders. These spices impart both pungency and flavor to the dish. Garam masala powders are also used in selected dishes to enhance aroma and spiciness. In certain recipes whole spice like cumin seeds, cardamoms and cloves are used to impart their characteristic aromas.

Though all these spices are available commercially as packaged masalas and powders, but to ensure that the spices are fresh, it is preferable to use whole spices and grind them fresh each time in a blender or with a mortar and pestle.

How to prepare garam masala at home

Art of roasting spices:

Before grinding, the spices are sometimes roasted to bring out the characteristic aromas. To roast, place spices in a small heavy skillet on medium heat. Stir continuously until the spices darken by a few shades and give out their distinct aromas.

Below are recipes of garam masala both in north Indian as well as in eastern Indian style.

Garam masala-north Indian style

Ingredients:
20 gms peppercorns;10 gms cloves;20 gms cinnamon;15 gms brown cardamoms peeled;10 gms caraway or cumin seeds

Method:

Lightly roast all ingredients on a griddle. Grind to a powder and sieve.

Garam masala- eastern Indian style

Ingredients:
20gms cloves; 20gms cinnamon; 20gms green cardamoms peeled

Method:

Lightly roast all ingredients on a griddle. Grind to a powder and sieve.

Preparation of sambhar powder in south Indian style

One of the prime requisites of south Indian cooking is the sambhar powder. No south Indian home is without it and each region of south India in turn has its own interesting version of the sambhar powder.

Ingredients:
25 gms whole dry red chillies;25 gms coriander leaves;10 gms Bengal gram;1 tsp fenugreek seeds;2 ½ cm pieces turmeric;1 tsp peppercorns

Method:

Lightly roast all the ingredients on a griddle. Grind to a powder and sieve.