Friday, April 24, 2015

Don't like curries? Perhaps you have not found the right one


Today, at the cafeteria at Lahey Hospital & Medical Center, we had our Culinary Special Series featuring Indian food. Ravi Rajkarninar, our cook from Nepal prepared an amazing Indian cuisine consisting of Kadhai Chicken (The Kadhai Chicken is a popular North Indian dish with a distinct Bell Pepper flavor. It is also not overloaded with spices) , Stir-Fry Vegetables, Steamed Rice, Vegetable Pakora, Onion Chutney and Naan bread. The special is only for $7.95 and everything is made in house from scratch.

I grew up in Malaysia. So, I am used to multi cultural cuisine (Malaysia's main population consists of Malay, Chinese and Indian). When Ravi is cooking in the kitchen, the smell of his cooking reminds me of home. I can't wait for lunch today!

I was in the cafeteria promoting Ravi's special. I came across several people who told me "They don't like curry" or "They don't like Spices". I have to explain to them the Kadhai Chicken is not overloaded with spices. If they like bell peppers and curry, they will like this dish. Some are up for the challenge and give it a try. Some are too skeptical and walk towards the sandwich station. I wonder how many people have the same impression that all curries tasted the same? It's almost like stating "I don't like cheese" after trying only blue cheese. I wish everyone will give curry a second chance. Hence, I thought perhaps it's a good idea for me to talk a little about curry in this article today.

Do you know there are countless types of curries? I wish I could tell you the exact number. When I try to get an answer online, I couldn't find one. The closest I get is from wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curry. When I tried to count the types of curry I know, I stopped counting when it reached 35. Some examples of the different types of curries are:

Types of curries in India (Excerpt from http://www.indianfoodforever.com/food-guide/indian-curry.html)
  • Rogan Josh:
    It is a curried lamb originated in Kashmir but also popular in Punjab. Medium spicy the red color comes from tomatoes and red pepper than red chilies.
  • Saag:
    Saag refers to the green leafy vegetables such as spinach, green mustard etc.
  • North Indian curries:
    The famous ones are aloo palak (spinach and potatoes), Dum aloo(whole potatoes), kofta, navratna korma, palak paneer(spinach and cheese), aloo gobhi (potato and cauliflower)and baingan ka bharta( brinjal).
  • South Indian:
    They make use of spice and vegetables. Coconut is widely used in some form. The famous curries are sambhar, rasam etc.
  • Dals and lentils:
    They make use of pulses like moong(gram), masur dal, kali dal, rajma, and chana dal which could be eaten with chapati and rice.
  • Punjabi curries:
    Punjab is famous for the spicy and rich food especially currries. They include matar paneer, sarso ka saag, gobhi matar, dal makhni etc.
  • Rajasthani:
    Rajasthan is famous for fried dal, gatte ki sabji(rolled paste of besan with curry ) and pakodi ki kadhi (thin curry with besan pakodas.)

 Types of curries in Thailand (Excerpt from Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curry)
  • Red Curry-Red curry is a popular Thai dish consisting of curry paste to which coconut milk is added. The base is properly made with a mortar and pestle, and remains moist throughout the preparation process. The main ingredients are garlic, shallots, red chili peppers, galangal, shrimp paste, salt, kaffir lime peel, coriander root, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorns and lemongrass
  • Green Curry- Green curry is a Central Thai variety of curry. The name "green" curry derives from the color of the dish, which comes from green chillies. The "sweet" in the Thai name refers to the particular color green itself and not to the taste of the curry. As this is a Thai curry based on coconut milk and fresh green chillies, the color comes out creamy mild green or, as this color is called in Thai, "sweet green". Its ingredients are not exactly fixed. The curry is not necessarily sweeter than other Thai curries but, although the spiciness varies, it tends to be more pungent than the milder red curries.
  • Yellow Curry -Yellow Curry one of three major kinds of Thai curry that are commonly found in Thai restaurants in the West. There are other curry types in cuisine, several of which are yellow. Pre-packaged yellow curry of Indian origin is sometimes also referred to as yellow curry in Western countries but is a different blend of spices from Thai yellow curry.Thai Yellow curry, outside Thailand, usually refers to the Thai Muslim dish kaeng kari. This curry is richer and creamier than other Thai curries, since coconut cream is used in addition to coconut milk. This richer curry tends to tone down the overall spiciness of the dish, hence its popularity on menus outside of Thailand. The primary spices in kaeng kari are cumin, coriander, turmeric, fenugreek, gralic, salt, bay leaf, lemongrass, cayenne pepper, ginger, mace and cinnamon. Sometimes a touch of paml sugar or a similar sweetener will be added, depending on the sweetness of the coconut milk.

 Types of curries in Malaysia (In Malaysia, the curries are influenced by Indonesia, India and other parts of South East Asia). Some of the popular curries are:
Give curry a try! I have included some of my favorite Malaysia curries's recipes from websites I've used. 

You learn as you eat...You eat as you learn :)

Have a great weekend!


Left to Right: David Cox, Executive Chef, with Ravi Rajkarnikar at the World Cuisine Station



Left to right: Steve Wetterwald, Sous Chef, Ravi Rajkarnikar, Cook and Ashley Linger, Retail Operation Manager


Today Indian Special- Chicken Kadhi,Stir fry vegetables, rice,pakora and Naan bread




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