Indian dishes are delicious and flavorful because of the spices used to marinate, season and cook them. Due to the influence of Indian culture and related food habits, Indian cuisine consists of a variety of dishes made with natural ingredients. Indian food is popular in the United States. Some of the best Indian food for Americans are tandoori chicken, butter chicken, chicken vindaloo curry, rogan josh with lamb, malai kofta, palak paneer, chole bhature, chicken makhni, reshmi butter masala and chicken tikka masala.
But there are many misconceptions about Indian food in the USA. Let's talk about some common myths about Indian food in the USA.
5 POPULAR MYTHS ABOUT INDIAN FOOD IN THE USA
All Indian food is very hot & spicy : Trust me, this is a pure myth. The fact is Indian food is not just about only spices and chillies, it is more about variety of aroma and flavors. The spices are used according to the need of the dish - some require more than others. Some spices keep our body warm in cold weather. Some spices help to recover ailments too. Many Americans use more heat in their food than they experience in Indian food. For example, Buffalo style hot chicken wings where they use habanero red chillies or even more hotter chillies to create a dish. Compared to that, Indian food uses more of green chillies for a milder heat which actually enhances the taste of the dish.
Indian food is difficult to cook & unhealthy : I admit that some of the Indian dishes need elaborate preparation and longer cooking time, but definitely not all. And a well-cooked Indian dish is anything but unhealthy. The foundation of Indian food lies in Ayurveda and the usage of lots of spices and fresh raw ingredients. So in no way it could be unhealthy at all. It may seem like Indian food is loaded with fats, butter and oil but it is untrue. If eaten in portions, Indian food can be relished at any time. For example, many nutritionists suggest tandoori chicken in their diet even in America.
All Indian food is curry based : Well, Tandoori Chicken & Biriyani are two widely popular Indian dishes relished not only in the USA but throughout the world, and they are not curry based. I think that’s enough to bust that myth. Yes, there are dishes that have gravy or more runny texture based on the main protein, but not all. Indian food has lots of vegetables used in it. There are many types of rice and roti consumed with dry and gravy items. And Americans love them.
All Indian rice is the same : There are more than 40,000 types of cultivated rice throughout the world, out of which 6000 types are used in Indian cuisine. Yes, basmati rice is the most widely used in the Indian restaurants in the USA , but there are jasmine rice, gobindo bhog rice and many other types of rice that are also used to cook both sweet and savory Indian rice dishes in the USA.
Naan is the only kind of Indian bread : There is a whole lot of Indian bread that is found in Indian restaurants in the USA. Butter naan, tandoori, plain kulcha, masala kulcha, simple roti, butter/ghee roti, parathas with and without stuffings be it with vegetables or meat, puri, rumali roti, etc. All of these are widely found in the USA. All of these are Indian breads widely consumed to mop up the gravy or even are used to eat as rolls with stuffings inside.
Indian food is diverse. It involves lots of spices and ingredients. It involves many techniques. That is why it has rich aromatic and complex flavors which are otherwise rare to find. But Indian food tastes delicious and flavorful. n food. So now when you eat in your favorite Indian restaurant in the USA, you should not be worried. Just savor the flavors in every dish.
Can you put down in the comments which your favorite Indian restaurant in the USA?
