India is a nation with many diversities, religions and languages. Still greater is the diversity of the food that India has to offer. Indian food consists of various regional delicacies. From Idli and Uttapam in South to famous tandoori chicken of Lucknow, the city of Nawabs. Gujarat has the famous Dhokla and Khakri dishes to offer while the aromatic spiced teas and the Dum aloo from Kashmir are unmatched. Indian dishes can be mainly classified into four major categories North Indian, South Indian, East Indian, and West Indian. Indian food is mainly vegetarian, though there are a number of traditional dishes prepared using various different meats.
Indian dishes differ from those in the western countries in that most of these contain some kind of oil and are generally cooked unlike in western countries where the food is mostly roasted or grilled. Salad also is often served separate from the dishes instead of being mingled in with the dishes. Another peculiarity of the Indian food lies in the wide varieties of spices that are used in the dishes. Some of the most common being Ginger, sour mango powder, cardamoms, Cinnamon, Corriander, turmeric, cumin seeds. These species not only provide taste but help also boost an individual’s health.
Speaking of the great diversity in food a few of the main reasons for this can be cited as the location and largely different type of climate in the different parts of the country. For example the climate is generate moderate in the southern parts of the country and suited for the growth of rice and pulses which are grown in abundance here therefore the food mainly consists of rice preparations and pulses. Where as in the state of Gujarat which is situated by the gulf of Kutch, and is the largest salt producing state in India, there is an abundance of salt in the water. Due to this every food even the pulses are served with a tinge of sweet in them as it helps to change the taste as well as to avoid the access intake salt.