Indian Cuisine

Indian cuisine encompasses a wide variety of regional cuisines native toIndia. Given the range of diversity in soil type, climate and occupations, these cuisines vary significantly from each other and use locally available spices,herbs, vegetables and fruits.

Indian food is also heavily influenced by religious and cultural choices and traditions.

The development of these cuisines have been shaped by Dharmic beliefs, and in particular by vegetarianism, which is a growing dietary trend in Indian society.[1]

There has also been Central Asian influence on North Indian cuisinefrom the years of Mughal rule.[2] Indian cuisine has been and is still evolving, as a result of the nation's cultural interactions with other societies.[3][4]

Historical incidents such as foreign invasions, trade relations and colonialism have also played a role in introducing certain foods to the country. For instance, the potato, a staple of the Indian diet, was brought to India by the Portuguese, who also

introduced chillies and breadfruit.[5] Indian cuisine has also shaped the history of international relations; the spice trade between India and Europe is often cited by historians as the primary catalyst for Europe's Age of Discovery.[6]

Spices were bought from India and traded around Europe and Asia. It has also influenced other cuisines across the world, especially those from Southeast Asia, the British Isles, and the Caribbean.[7][8]

Indian cuisine reflects a 5,000-year history of various groups and cultures interacting with the subcontinent, leading to diversity of flavours and regional cuisines found in modern-day India. Later, Mughal, British and Portuguese influence added to the already diverse Indian cuisine

A normal diet in early India consisted of legumes, vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy products, honey, and sometimes eggs andmeat. Over time, segments of the population embraced vegetarianism. The advent of Buddhism and Jainism affected this shift, as well as an equitable climate permitting a variety of fruits, vegetables, and grains to be grown throughout the year

Many Indian dishes are cooked in vegetable oil, but peanut oil is popular in northern and western India, mustard oil in eastern India,[13] and coconut oil along the western coast, especially in Kerala.[15] Gingelly (sesame) oil is common in the south since it imparts a fragrant nutty aroma

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