Indian vegetarian cuisine
November 22nd 2007
In the European and American continents the image of an Indian is mostly that of a vegetarian. However, the reason that many of the Indians are vegetarian and the major part of Indian Cuisine is vegetarian goes back to the second century BC. The influence of the benevolent and mighty emperor Ashoka the great is quite visible in the great Indian vegetarian cuisine.
Such vegetarian nature of the Indian Recipes was further developed at the time of the two great sages Goutam Buddha and Mahavir the Jaina. Ashoka was the first great ruler who had set up an environmental department in his administration. Rice and wheat were the main cereals. Boiled rice and plain chapatti made of Atta were the main staple food for the people
The greatest influence of vegetarianism is visible in the South Indian Recipes that are mostly devoid of meat, fish and other non-vegetarian components. Of course their food habits and recipes are vastly different from other vegetarian areas of the Indian sub-continent. With a greater input of sour taste, the south Indian recipes revolve round Dosa, Idli, sambar, Upama, Bara etc. South Indian dishes are not as rich as the north, east or western regions when it comes to sweet dishes or deserts.
While most of the Western and Northern Indian Food have chapatti made of atta as their main staple food, it is rice in the eastern ad north-eastern part of India. Not only rice is the mains staple food but also various preparations of recipes with rice as the main component are extremely popular in these parts of the country.
