South Indian Cuisine

The smell of crisp vadas, the sound of spluttering mustard seeds, the taste of hot piping sambar made with fresh and pulpy tamarind, and the touch of feather-light, soft idlis - South Indain food appeals to all senses, is aromatic and delicious!

Dosa and chutney are just a brief trailer to an otherwise long, colourful, rich and absolutely fascinating journey that is South India. With its 5 states, 2 union territories, rocky plateau, river valleys' and coastal plains, the south of India is extremely different from its Northern counterpart. Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh each have their own culture, languages and by way of that many different cuisines.

But before we get into details like ingredients and cooking techniques, let's talk about some aspects that are common to those that live in the South. Firstly, most people eat with their right hand and leave the left one clean for drinking water. Also, licking curry off your finger does taste really good! Rice is their grain of choice and lentil and daal are equally important. Sambhar, which is made with lentil, tamarind and buttermilk is also common to all South Indian states. But each has its own version.

Andhra Pradesh: The spiciest of all South Indian cuisines, the food from Andhra can leave you panting, gasping for air. A large part of Hyderbadi cuisine is similar to that of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, but the Hyderbadi cuisine has a personality of its own. Nawaabi kebabs, saffron-smelling biryani, creamy haleem and crumbly keema - they'll put you in a state of trance.

Tamil Nadu: The food of Tamil Nadu is mild spiced, mostly vegetarian, light but absolutely sensational. This is with the exception of Chettinad food, which is top of the pile. It's also known to be extremely spicy but the kind that stems from pepper and not chilli. It also boasts of heavy local spices like star anise, kalpasi (stone flower) and maratti mokku (dried flower pods), freshly ground spices including cumin, fenugreek, fennel, clove, bay leaf, turmeric and tamarind.

Meats, seafood, vegetables, grains and fermented rice are used regularly. Being blessed with a long coastline, a variety of seafood like fish, crabs, lobsters and fresh prawns adorn a Tamil table.