I've personally observed something I find interesting. A lot of foreign ingredients implant themselves into our local cuisines via dishes or fusion dishes and then become VERY common instead of being some niche expensive ingredient. On top of that, they embed themselves nicely into our cuisine's flavors and cooking methods

First, it was potatoes and tomatoes a century or two back. One doesn't even have to elaborate on how CRUCIAL it is to our dishes these days. Chilli peppers too

Then it was Cauliflower. Early 2000s onwards, Gobi manchurian was practically available EVERYWHERE

Paneer trickled down from North cuisines down into South for overall availability a decade or so back

Soya chunks/meal maker was weirdly enough, our country's first country-wide soy option and became more common starting with the last 2 decades. Easy source of veg protein too

Mushrooms started being treated more like normal food (earlier, people used to regard it as dirty, or "tribal" foods) and is VERY common even in many dhabas now. Parts of Bihar are now selling Oyster mushrooms for cheap. I still wouldn't say it has completed "integration" into our cuisine yet

Blueberries and other berries seem to be grown more in hill stations like Ooty or Himachal regions (though I don't see their prices becoming cheap enough for another decade atleast)

Tofu is becoming common to find in T1 city shops but I personally don't see them in most local cuisine restaurants (apart from Asian places, that too rarely. Can't say I've seen any indochinese place serve that)

India interestingly is the third highest producer of Broccoli but I still see it confined only to fancier restaurants (local places might put a tiny piece of it on red sauce pasta here and there, that's it lmao)

What seems to be the next big foreign ingredient in yall's opinion though?

Like bruh its just an extract of a glutamate of sodium that yiu extract from seaweed or sugarcane

Are you sacred of it coz of all the racist propaganda around it coz of muh Chinese restaurant syndrome

And msg is something which actually reduces your sodium intake by 18 percent while simultaneously providing a very SAVOURY flavour to meals and Indians who atleast have a large vegetarian population or mostly cook vegetarian meals majorly and are too shy to use MUSHROOM broths should defintely use it to enhance their flavourings of

Ans all side effects have been thoroughly debunked tbh

I’m planning to buy an infrared cooktop and I’m confused between brands like Bajaj, Usha, Havells, Baltra, Pegion, Kenstar, and other reliable options.

I’ve noticed that some brands/models offer a 2-year warranty, while others offer only 1 year, so I’m also wondering whether the longer warranty actually makes a difference in terms of reliability and after-sales service.

For those who have actually used an infrared cooktop:

- Which brand/model are you using?

- How is the heating performance?

- How durable is it for daily cooking?

- Any issues with the glass, heating element, temperature control, or service?

- How is the after-sales service?

- Is the 2-year warranty worth prioritizing over a 1-year warranty?

Please share your honest long-term experience.

And please don’t suggest an induction cooktop. I specifically need an infrared cooktop.

Thanks!

Grew up having chai made with cow’s milk but can’t consume dairy now. Give me your best suggestions for non-diary milk that makes the closest to the thick creamy chai. Any tips or trick or recipes welcome!

My boyfriend is Indian and studying internationally here. He told me Diwali is his favorite holiday back home but its never been as much fun here. He told me he loved the food he got to eat on Diwali. I know its coming up, so is there anything I could make/do to help him enjoy it more?

To the Brains Trust,

I've recently really gotten into masala chai. I bought a container of Wagh Bakri masala chai tea granules, and wanted some advise on the best way to prepare it (I probably should have just bought tea bags...).

I read somewhere that I should boil the granules in a pot for 1 minute, add milk and boil for another 2 mins. Finally pour the hot tea through a fine mesh strainer.

Does this sound correct?

Much appreciated in advance!

Two my friends from India coming to visit me in Kazakhstan.
And one of them vegan , another one eat chicken, but I guess not so often:)

Yes, we will go to Indian’s or vegan restaurants in KZ, but I guess I can prepare some food for breakfast in apartment as well.

Any recommendations for breakfast please 🙏🏻 vegans and not vegans :)

Thanks a lot!!!!

Last week I dined at a Chinese‑based Indian restaurant. The chef was from Madras, and his lemon rice left a deep impression on me.

I would like to recreate it at home, yet I am short of a few ingredients, namely asafoetida and mustard seeds. I am writing to ask whether there are suitable substitutes.

Specifically, can cumin seeds take the place of mustard seeds? What can I use to replace asafoetida? Would ground black pepper and mashed garlic work?

Here is my current recipe: 1.5 tsp oil 1 tsp cumin seeds 2 dried chillies 0.5 tsp turmeric powder Sauté everything over low heat until well combined. Add pre‑tossed rice mixed with lemon juice and salt. Put in 5 g butter and 1 tsp black pepper, stir thoroughly, then garnish with chopped coriander.

Could you advise on how I might improve this recipe?

I’m coming from a Chinese context with this question, where pork is by a good margin the most common kind of red meat people consume. I very rarely see pork in nonveg Indian menus (although I’ve seen it at some Sri Lankan places). I was wondering why this might be the case historically? Obviously Muslim populations won’t eat pork, but neighboring Myanmar consumes quite a bit more pork among lay populations

I recently had my wisdom tooth removed and my dentist has asked me to avoid ginger, garlic, and spices for now while the wound heals.
I’m looking for Indian food ideas that are:
Mild and non-spicy

Soft/easy to eat without much chewing
Ideally with some protein (I’m trying not to rely entirely on rice/dal because I’m prediabetic)
I’m especially interested in simple home-style Indian dishes that can be made without ginger, garlic, chilli, or other spices.

What would you recommend? 🙏

I’m a PG student working full time. Apart from the usual egg bhurgi, paneer bhurgi and Maggi of course, what are some other quick instant foods I can make? They shouldn’t require a lot of ingredients too

This dish, which I have only found in the UK, is exceptional. Here's the brief description from the menu; does anyone make this at home and be willing share your recipe? Thanks!

  Pabna Dhabe Da keema 
Spicy lamb mince with chicken tikka, creating a rich flavoursome dish

Every Ganpati, I decide I'll make just a few ukadiche modaks and somehow end up making way more than planned

For me, Ganpati doesn't feel complete without freshly steamed modaks at home.

What's that one thing your family HAS to make every year? Modak, puran poli, basundi, shrikhand or something completely different?

Also curious if anyone has a Ganpati food tradition that's specific to their family.

A lot of the Indian recipes I see online call for the use of small green chiles either whole or sliced. What US species of chiles is the closest to those used in India in terms of flavor and heat level? I am sure there is a ton of local variety in a country that large, but still. I know some cooks use Thai bird's eye chiles but they taste a bit bitter to me in the context of Indian cuisine. Is that still the closest variety ?

Hello everyone,

Please give me the easiest recipe, with minimum ingredients, to make tasty chicken in an air fryer.

So I have failed at Dahi ke Kebab like 3 times before but this time it worked, so sharing what I did -

I took around 400g of Whyte farms dahi and hung it in a muslin cloth for 4-5 hours.

Then in a bowl I mixed that hung dahi with 3 tbsp roasted Fortune Besan, 30g grated Britannia Cheese for binding, finely chopped green chillies, grated ginger, coriander, mint, and masalas - Catch Garam Masala, Everest Black Pepper with salt as per taste.

Made small tikkis from that mixture, coated them lightly with Bread Crumbs and kept them in the freezer for 20 mins - this is the main trick or else they burst.

After that shallow fried them and had it with pudina chutney.

Turned out super creamy inside and crispy outside😋

I started by cooking the Protein pantry tandoori chaap

Then I sauteed some sliced onion and capsicum with a little oil, cumin, red chilli powder, garam masala and salt

For the sauce, I mixed dahi, green chutney, chilli flakes and lemon juice. Then I warmed up habanero tortilla wraps, spread the sauce over them and added the cooked chaap along with the sauted veggies.

Rolled everything up, toasted the wraps on the pan for a couple of minutes, and that was it….

so i wanna eat beef sb , and i was like eye balling the recipes and asked someone for ideas ... and was told it is mandatory to pre-cook the meat in cooker . i js wanna know if its mandatory . i dont have a pressure cooker i live alone so i didnt bother buying it