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In quest of India's national dish.... what is it?


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Can you name one single dish which could be considered as our national dish? There is none, officially. In 2009, Outlook magazine conducted a survey, covering 13 cities, and the winner was Masala Dosa. pwtNZ.jpg Now I love masala dosa, but do I consider it India's national dish. I think not. To me, it is still representative of South India. India is an amalgamation of different cultures, with a variety of food traditions and habits. Wheat is more pronounced, in the north, in the form of chapatis/rotis, parathas and naans. Whereas, the south has a dominance of rice dishes like dosa, idli, and of course just plain rice. Considering such variations, what qualifies for a national dish? It neither has to be exotic nor be prepared occasionally. The same Outlook survey revealed, that 56% of correspondents thought that such a dish should be made best in our homes, rather than outside: CM13r.jpg Now I wonder how many North Indians can prepare Dosa the best in their homes? :hmmm: In my opinion, a pan Indian dish should have the following characteristics: 1. Should be representative of majority of the population. 2. Nutritious, simple, easy to make at home. Thus, allowing it to be staple of the country. 3. Affordable by the poor and middle class, and enjoyed by the rich too. 4. Something which can be considered as comfort food In view of the above criteria, my nomination goes to the humble but delicious combo of Dal Chawal (rice with lentils). I believe this dish is an everyday affair for a lot of Indians, if not all of them. It's most basic form can be found in all states, with lip-smacking regional variations. Rice is the same everywhere, but the concoction of the lentil soup comes in its basic form, of toor dal/yellow pigeon peas, to the rich and creamy dal makhani of Punjab. We have the medley of lentils and vegetables from the South Indian Sambar to the Odiya staple Dalma. And what about lentils cooked with rice, as in Khichdi. In dry places like Rajasthan/MP, where rice is hard to grow, the combo of Dal Baati is very popular. The tradition of eating rice or roti with dal goes back hundreds of years. Our forefathers got it right, to make this a complete meal. There is science behind it, whether they knew it or not. Lentils and rice/wheat complement each other. When eaten together, they provide a complete set of essential amino acids, thus making the meal balanced with proteins, carbohydrates and fiber. Fiber does come in way of the absorption of proteins lowering the biological availability, but it has its own advantages. :toilet: Plain Dal and its regional variations: - Kashmir: Dal Kashmiri (infused with fennel powder, dried ginger and kashmiri garam masala) - Punjab/Haryana/Delhi: Dal Tadka (tempered with spices), Dal Makhani (the King of all Dals made with two types of lentils and loaded with butter and cream... umm) - Rajasthan: Panchemal/Panchratna Dal made with five different types of lentils. - MP/UP/Bihar/North East: You have the UP style dal, the Bihari version, and the Assamese Kon Bilahi Diya Dail (lentils with tomatoes). - West Bengal: Bangali Musuri'r Dal (red masoor dal made in mustard oil with panch phoron spice mix) - Orissa: Dalma (lentils with vegetables) - Gujarat: Gujarati Dal, sweet in taste due to the addition of jaggery. - Maharashtra: Varan (plain Dal), Phodnicha Varan (spiced with tomatoes and green chilis), Puneri Aamti (made with the brahmin style Goda masala, and tamarind or kokum as the souring agent) - Goa: Dal Cho Roas (with tamarind and coconut) - Andhra Pradesh: Chaaru, Pappu, Mudda Pappu, Aaku Pappu (named after our Aaku? Aaku in Telugu means green leafy veggies) - Karnataka: Saaru, Koddelu, Udipi Sambar - Tamil Nadu: Paruppu, Sambar, Rasam - Kerala: Parippu Chaaru, Parippu Rasam With its ubiquitous nature, no wonder, a quarter of the worldwide production of lentils is from India, and most of it is consumed in the domestic market. Our beloved politicians too have made huge profits through dal, as was discovered last year, in the multi-crore Orissa Dal scam, where one minister took responsibility and eventually resigned. Yeah, so for me it is Dal Chawal with Dal being the focal point here. A hot plate of dal chawal with some lime or pickle; can't get more comforting than that! A plate of dal-chawal for Aditya (of NDTVGoodtimes)... watch from 3 minute onwards. EMYEa9UkmK4& So, do you agree? What are your thoughts? Which dish, in your opinion, is the best contender to be India's national dish and why?

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Good choice overall' date=' but you would be hard pressed to find any one in urban India who would claim dal-chawal is their favorite dish.[/quote'] I would agree, but a distinction needs to be made between "favorite" dish and something which can be considered pan Indian. I love Butter Chicken and it is my all time favorite, but can we consider it popular all over India. May be in the restaurants. How many people in the rural areas, which is still majority of Indians, eat butter chicken? India is now divided into urban and rural populations. The Outlook survey was done only in cities, so the sample type and size is flawed to begin with. True, dal still being the prime focus... :winky:
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Maggie Noodles?
:haha: Nope! On a serious note, Ramen noodles is one of the national dishes of Japan. Instant noodles was invented in Japan, and they have a museum dedicated to it, called the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum.
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I was expecting to see biryani when I clicked on the thread! Definitely not masala dosa. Dal chawal is truly the most common and pan-Indian dish. It probably suffers because of its "comfort food" characteristics. I would add pickle to the combo or a basic aloo tarkari with regional interpretations to round it out. Like PK says, urban (and young - because still self-conscious) India may not mention it but eats dal chawal at home regularly especially if they stay with their parents or have a cook come in. Most kids leaving home also make sure to learn to make DC before anything else from their mom's kitchens.

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I was expecting to see biryani when I clicked on the thread! Definitely not masala dosa.
Biryani is made both in north and south. And Sindhis love their biryani, I have heard. :winky:
Dal chawal is truly the most common and pan-Indian dish. It probably suffers because of its "comfort food" characteristics. I would add pickle to the combo or a basic aloo tarkari with regional interpretations to round it out.
Yes, dal chawal is so simple that one does not really think of it. Addition of a veggie side dish works. :good:
Like PK says, urban (and young - because still self-conscious) India may not mention it but eats dal chawal at home regularly especially if they stay with their parents or have a cook come in. Most kids leaving home also make sure to learn to make DC before anything else from their mom's kitchens.
Yes, even the modern working gal can make it. Can't they? :nervous:
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Biryani is made both in north and south. And Sindhis love their biryani' date=' I have heard. :winky:[/quote'] Oh yeah! I can corroborate that Sindhis love their biryani! Absolutely! And it was good to see Imam on Big Boss enjoying a bowl of dal chawal when he was feeling disturbed and it was obvious he found a lot of comfort from it. :regular_smile:
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