Conquering Indian Food

Examples of just a few of the spices, chutneys, and prepared Indian dishes we have. I start my day off with a large cuppa' Masala Chai with sugar and milk. We eat an Indian meal at least once a week now that I have dared to experiment with Indian cuisine. It's been worth the effort.

I love Indian food, but this hasn't always been the case. Prior to meeting my husband, I had only had curries with rice. While tasty, none of those early meals had ever blown me away until we began going to Atlanta to try Indian restaurants. For years Mother India across from Gwinett Place Mall was our favorite. When it closed we were forced to try new places. It is seldom we have been disappointed. It wasn't until with found Udipi cuisine (Udupi in Hindi) that we knew we had found the perfect regional cuisine for us. Lacking onion and garlic, as lovers of both spices, we were amazed at the variety and range of flavors available. It is a rare treat to visit Udipi Cafe on Church Street in Decatur because of the hour and a half drive, but for every birthday outing my husband knows we'll visit Udipi regardless.

After discovering Patel Brothers Indo-Pak Grocery in the same shopping center as Udipi and the Dekalb Farmer's Market spice section, I knew I could acquire the necessary ingredients for homemade Indian food. Thumbing through several Indian cookbooks, extensive online research and recipe hunting, I began my quest to make the perfect homemade Indian meal. I have yet to find the perfect Indian bread recipe so, for now, I buy frozen paratha and naan at Taj Mahal on Baxter St. in Athens, GA. So far, I have a thick dal, several main dishes, and an amazing raita to my credit. We still buy prepared chutneys and pickles in Decatur, but some day I will try my hand at those.

In the next several posts, I'll share some recipes I've adapted and created. I hope you enjoy these recipes.