The influx of people from India to the United States has increased greatly over the last several decades. According to 2010 census data, Asian Indians, also referred to as Indian Americans, are now the second-largest Asian population in the U.S., after Chinese Americans. As is common with the immigration of a population, their foods, preparation methods, and ways of serving meals, come along too. People from India have opened restaurants and today, it is quite common to find Indian restaurants among your choices when you decide to dine ethnic.
Restaurants serving Indian food are generally found in metropolitan areas. They’re commonly located where there is a population or community of Asian Indian people, such as in areas of New York, New Jersey, California, and other areas between the coasts. Most Indian restaurants are sit-down establishments; a single owner might own just one or a few restaurants in the same general area or city. A few fast casual Indian restaurants are also beginning to crop up in major cities. Menus in these restaurants typically feature sandwiches, wraps, or create-your-own bowls in which you pick a base (rice, salad, bread), a protein, and various toppings and chutneys.
On the Menu
One simply has to glance at India’s location on a world map for clues about the tastes and flavors the cuisine will yield. Though Indian cuisine boasts many unique qualities and dishes, it closely resembles the cuisines of its neighbors—Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Burma. There are also a few similarities with the foods and tastes of China, which is geographically a bit further off. However, Indian food is most similar to that of Thailand in terms of the spices and ingredients used. The dishes of both countries can be hot and spicy and are often accompanied by rice (though flavorful steamed white basmati rice is most common in Indian restaurants). Plus, curry dishes are popular in both Thai and Indian cooking.
India is one of the world’s largest countries. Regional cuisines have developed because of the vast size of the country and because different areas grow and produce different foods and ingredients. Northern Indian dishes tend to be cooler to the taste buds than southern cuisine, which makes use of chilies and peppers. The North uses more wheat products, teas, and eggs, whereas the South features more rice, vegetables, and coffee. More seafood is eaten in the South, which abuts the sea, as well as hot pickles and chutneys. Yogurt (plain) is a common ingredient used in both northern and southern Indian cooking. The food served in Indian restaurants in America bends toward northern Indian cuisine.
As with most ethnic cuisines, there are pros and cons to Indian cooking when it comes to health. The pros include smaller portion sizes, the focus on starches and vegetables, the de-emphasis of proteins, and the heavy use of spices and seasonings that can add flavor without adding fat.
Basmati rice, the premier flavorful rice, is a main element of Indian cuisine. Breads are also considered an important and regular element of the meal. (Do watch out for the fried varieties of bread, like paratha and poori.) Legumes, including lentils and chickpeas, are often found in Indian dishes and their accompaniments. Legumes are healthy for a variety of reasons, including the fact that they’re a good source of several types of fiber and non-animal protein. Vegetables are easily incorporated into most Indian dishes: curry dishes, biryani (a rice dish), and pulao (basmati rice with bits of saffron, which give the rice a yellow hue, that is served with entrées). Commonly served Indian vegetables include eggplant, cabbage, potatoes, and peas. Onions, green peppers, and tomatoes are often found in the stewed entrées. Plain yogurt is frequently used in sauces.
Another positive aspect of Indian cuisine is the wide availability of chicken and seafood. Beef and lamb are commonly found on the menu too, but can easily be limited. Pork and pork products are rarely found on Indian menus. Generally, only small quantities of protein are used in Indian dishes. If two people share a chicken or shrimp masala, one won’t eat much more than 2–3 ounces of protein—just the right amount. It’s also easy to eat vegetarian if you desire. It is a great idea to order one chicken or seafood dish and one vegetable dish to split and share, maybe a biryani or aloo chole, a mixture of potatoes and chickpeas, to keep the portions and thus calories, protein, and fat low.
Spices are used heavily in Indian cooking. A garam masala, a fragrant mix of ground spices, produces many of the wonderful tastes of Indian cuisine. Some spices frequently found in the garam masala are cardamom, coriander, cumin, cloves, and cinnamon—the “C” spices. Several of these spices are referred to as “fragrant” spices. In the southern regions, you might find peppers and chilies added to raise the “heat” of the mixture. Mint, garlic, ginger, yogurt (plain), and coconut milk are other common ingredients in Indian cooking. Find more of these spices and ingredients defined in the Menu Lingo section at the end of this chapter.
The negative health and nutrition aspect of Indian cuisine can be the high fat content of many dishes. Fat finds its way into Indian foods by way of preparation. Ghee, defined as clarified butter, is a common ingredient used in food preparation. It’s a hidden item that makes small amounts of Indian food seem quite filling. Frying and sautéing are common preparation methods in Indian kitchens. For example, most appetizers, such as samosa and pakora, are fried. Some breads, such as paratha and poori, are deep fried, and others are brushed with oil or butter.
The oils most frequently used in Indian cooking are sesame and coconut oil. Sesame oil is mainly a polyunsaturated fat. However, coconut oil contains some saturated fat. You might want to ask about the type of oil in use at the Indian restaurant your visit, and if it is coconut oil, it’s particularly wise to limit fried food there. This will help you reduce calories as well as saturated fat. In fact, avoiding fried foods is good idea, regardless of the type of oil used. Coconut milk is also widely used in Indian cooking, especially in soups and curry dishes. This ingredient, too, contributes calories, fat, and saturated fat. Look for the words coconut milk, coconut cream, or simply shredded coconut in the descriptions of menu items and try to limit these.
The sodium content of an Indian meal can be kept within bounds by navigating around the menu carefully. It is best to avoid the soups, which tend to be high in sodium. Many dishes have small amounts of added salt, but if the dish you choose is divided into a number of servings and you keep the portions small, you will consume a minimal quantity.
The Menu Profile
Appetizers
A healthy appetizer is a rarity in Indian restaurants. Most appetizer options are deep-fried: samosas, a turnover stuffed with peas and potatoes, then fried; cheese, chicken, or vegetable pakoras, all fried; and fried shrimp with poori (a deep-fried bread). You may find a nonfried option, such as a chicken tikka kebab, which is healthier. If you have calories to spare, sample one appetizer. Share it with your dining partner. If you’re with a group and you order several appetizers or a combination plate (pu pu platter, Indian style), decide what’s healthiest and take one piece or half pieces of two different appetizers.
Ordering bread can present difficulties, but there are a few healthy choices available. Or you can just skip it. There are plenty of other interesting foods to try. Papadum, also seen abbreviated as “papad,” is a crisp, baked lentil wafer, which is fairly low in fat. It is, however, spicy. Chapati is a flat disk of unleavened bread resembling pita bread. It may even be made with whole-wheat flour. Naan is leavened bread made with white flour, and it is available plain, seasoned with garlic, or stuffed with cheese or meat. Stick with the plain or garlic varieties. Three more options are kulcha, a baked bread stuffed with vegetables, such as onions, or fruit and nuts; roti, a bread made with whole-wheat flour and baked; and paratha, a multilayered unleavened bread (which also may be whole wheat). Request that they not top the bread with clarified butter (aka ghee). Poori, a light, puffed fried bread should be left alone for obvious reasons.
Soups
Two healthier soups that make nice starters or entrées (when paired with a healthier bread or side item) are mulligatawny and lentil soup. They both combine very healthy legumes and are seasoned with Indian spices, which make them low in fat and calories. Creamy soups such as poppy seed and coconut should be avoided.
Entrées
You’ll find similar cooking styles used for chicken, fish, shrimp, beef, and lamb dishes. To keep total fat, saturated fat, and calories on the decline, stick with fish, chicken, or shrimp. Try these healthy cooking preparations: masala, cooked with a combination of Indian spices, sautéed tomatoes, and onions; bhuna, another dish similar to masala; jalpharezi, cooked with vegetables and hot peppers; saag, cooked with spinach and spices; matar, cooked with green peas; and vindaloo, cooked with a mixture of Indian spices with potatoes. Preparations done in a clay oven, called a tandoor, are known as tandoori and tikka; they are healthy preparations, too. Steer away from the murg makhani (butter chicken), malai, and korma dishes, which are creamy and, therefore, higher in calories and fat.
In most restaurants you’ll get plain pulao (basmati rice touched with saffron) with your entrée without asking. If you want more rice or want to order a different type of rice dish, there’s an entrée called biryani that is an option (but your waitperson will probably still bring the plain rice for protein-focused main dishes). Biryani works well as an entrée if you’re trying to eat more carbohydrate and less protein. It is made with chicken, lamb, beef, shrimp, or just vegetables (though there aren’t that many vegetables to speak of in this dish). A chicken masala, for instance, nicely complements a shrimp biryani. Pairing these two dishes can help you keep the protein and fat content of your meal down. But this still won’t give you enough vegetables. Don’t forget to ask them not to bring the pulao (rice for entrées), unless you’re with a crowd. Or, have them bring it ready to take home if you can. Having both the pulao and the biryani will be too much rice (carbohydrate).
Vegetable dishes can easily be a main course. From a nutrition standpoint, this is a great option as long as you steer clear of fried items. Vegetable dishes in Indian cuisine use a variety of legumes and vegetables, including chickpeas, lentils, potatoes, spinach, cauliflower, onions, peppers, and/or tomatoes. Often these vegetables are in curry or cheese (paneer) sauces. Paneer, which is called “cheese” in Indian cookery, is not like cheese in America. Paneer is made from milk and lemon juice. The milk is curdled by the lemon juice to create a thick cheese-like mixture, which is then formed into small cubes. Go ahead and enjoy paneer in small amounts, but watch your portion size as it does contain a small amount of saturated fat.
Accompaniments
A fun and unique aspect of Indian cuisine is the array of accompaniments. Several usually come with the meal in small amounts and others can be ordered as small side dishes. Raita, a combination of plain yogurt, cucumbers, and onions (though it can have tomatoes or fruit added in), is quite healthy. Its role is actually to cool the mouth after eating hot curry. Use it as a side dish or a dip for bread or appetizers rather than using sweet mango chutney, which you should avoid—it’s pure, concentrated carbohydrate. Dahl is a low-fat, spicy, lentil-based side sauce that is served warm. Onion chutney, sometimes called relish, might arrive without request. It is quite low in calories and adds zip to Indian foods. Three other sauces you’ll regularly see on the table in Indian restaurants are tamarind, cilantro chile (green sauce), and lemon rind with peppers. The cilantro-chile sauce traditionally doesn’t have sugar added, but some restaurants add a bit. The tamarind and lemon chutneys are often quite high in sugar, as is the popular mango chutney, which usually can be ordered as a side item. Limit your use of these higher-sugar accompaniments by eating them in very small quantities and opting instead for the chile or onion chutneys. If in doubt about whether or not your favorite accompaniment contains hidden sugar, ask your server.
Desserts
There are more dessert options at Indian restaurants than you’ll typically find at other Asian restaurants. Many are deep-fried. It’s best to say no to these options. Rice puddings are also popular at Indian restaurants. These are typically made with whole milk, sugar, nuts, often some fruit, and, of course, rice. A bite or two should be plenty to satisfy your sweet tooth and curiosity if you must indulge. Other small dessert bites are sadesh, made with cottage cheese, cardamom, and saffron, and modak, a sweet flour dumpling that is stuffed with coconut, nutmeg, and saffron, and then steamed. The benefit of these desserts is that they are usually each just a bite or two, but they are certainly carbohydrate dense.
Green-Flag Words
Ingredients:
• Baked, leavened bread made with whole-wheat flour
• Basmati rice (pulao)
• Dried fruit
• Ginger and garlic
• Indian spices and spice combinations (curry, garam masala, saffron)
• Lentils, chickpeas, and peas (matta)
• Nuts
• Papadum
• Potatoes
• Saag
• Shrimp and other seafood—not fried
• Skinless chicken
• Vegetables (tomatoes, onions, spinach, and potatoes)
Cooking Methods/Menu Descriptions:
• Chutneys (mint, onion, chile)
• Cooked with onions, tomatoes, spinach, peppers, potatoes, or peas
• Cooked with or marinated in yogurt
• Dahl (lentils)
• Garnished with dried fruits
• Indian hot spices
• Kebab
• Marinated or cooked in Indian spices
• Masala
• Paneer (homemade cheese)
• Pickle
• Raita
• Tandoori
• Tikka
Red-Flag Words
Ingredients:
• Coconut milk
• Ghee (clarified butter)
• Molee (stew)
Cooking Methods/Menu Descriptions:
• Chutneys (mango, tamarind, lemon pepper; all are high in sugar)
• Creamy curry sauce
• Dipped in batter or chickpea batter
• Fried, deep-fried
• Fritters (particularly appetizers)
• Korma (cream sauce)
• Sautéed in butter, served in butter sauce
• Stuffed and fried
Healthy Eating Tips and Tactics
• Start off with a healthy and filling soup, such as lentil soup or mulligatawny.
• Enjoy small portions of rice. If you order a biryani, request that the plain pulao not be brought to the table.
• Fill up on the plethora of vegetables and vegetarian options available. Just be sure to choose vegetable dishes that aren’t fried or cooked in a cream-based sauce.
• Opt for lean sources of protein, such as lentils, chickpeas, chicken, or seafood. Accompany them with flavorful sides like raita, dahl, and onion chutney.
• Skip traditional desserts. Opt for a cup of Darjeeling tea or perhaps even some mango slices if you see them being served.
Get It Your Way
• Many dishes can be made with your choice of protein. If you see a dish you’d like to order, but it features a higher-fat meat, ask if it can be prepared with chicken instead or skip the protein altogether and go vegetarian.
• Request that no salt be added to your dish in the kitchen.
• Specify that you don’t want any butter (ghee) added on top of your bread (kulcha, naan, or paratha).
• Ask that less paneer be used in vegetable dishes, such as saag paneer (spinach with fresh Indian cheese). This will give you more healthy greens with less fat.
Tips and Tactics for Gluten-Free Eating
• Authentic Indian restaurants offer a wide variety of naturally gluten-free dishes such as tandoori chicken, fish, and shrimp. Watch for skewered meats that may have been dusted in flour or marinades. Sauces made with maida flour or suji, and chutneys and curries may contain wheat. Other sauces may also contain wheat, so be sure to ask about the ingredients.
• The Indian breads chapatti, naan, roti, and poori all contain gluten.
• The appetizer samosas contain gluten.
• Most vegetable and lentil or bean side dishes are gluten-free. Coconut milk is gluten-free.
• Gluten-free starches include rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, papadum (an Indian flatbread made from lentils), bhajis, and pakoras (made with 100% chickpea flour or garbanzo flour). Make sure they have a dedicated fryer for gluten-free grains and other fried gluten-free foods.
Tips and Tactics to Help Kids Eat Healthy
• Order à la carte to construct a meal that is kid-friendly both in flavor and portion size. Order several dishes, such as chicken tikka, saag paneer, and a masala dish, and eat them family style so that everyone can get a small taste of several items.
• Ask for mild preparation of dishes to share with your children.
• Take advantage of the plethora of vegetarian choices. Try matta paneer (peas with paneer) or dahl, both of which are popular choices among children.
• Help your child expand his or her repertoire of accepted foods and flavors by ordering a new-to-your-child dish. If it ends up being a flop, the pulao and bread will always be there to help satiate or you can order up a chicken tikka appetizer (aka Indian chicken fingers).
What’s Your Solution?
You and your significant other are eating at your favorite Indian restaurant. You typically order among a few dishes that you are most familiar with: samosas, butter chicken, saag paneer, buttered naan, and of course, pulao (rice). As you strive to improve your eating out habits, you want to shake up your ordering routine at this Indian restaurant. But your significant other isn’t so sure about or supportive of this concept.
What are a few changes you can make to improve the overall healthfulness of your meal that won’t make your significant other feel like he or she is missing familiar great tastes or sufficient food to eat?
a) Cut down on fat by skipping the samosas in favor of a cup of lentil soup and ordering plain naan (instead of the buttered kind). If your spouse wants a samosa, ask if you can order just one. If not, take the second one home for him or her to eat later.
b) Opt for chicken masala instead of butter chicken to further cut down on fat.
c) Get your greens another way. Instead of saag paneer, try chaan saag, which is spinach with chickpeas. To up your servings of vegetables even more, take advantage of the offer to order a half or side serving of vegetables.
d) Share all the dishes with your significant other. Compensate for the decrease in food by adding a few healthy accompaniments, such as raita and onion chutney.
See the end of the chapter for answers.
Menu Samplers
Menu Lingo
• Bombay duck: this term does not describe a bird, but rather fish served sautéed, fried, or dried, along with curries and rice. It is not often seen on U.S. Indian menus.
• Cardamom: an expensive spice native to India that is part of the ginger family. Either the whole cardamom pod or only the seeds are used. This is one of the most common spices found in garam masalas (curry mixtures).
• Cinnamon: a delicate spice commonly found in curries and spice combinations. It is often dry roasted before use to release more flavor. Both cinnamon sticks and ground cinnamon are used in Indian cuisine.
• Clove: another commonly used spice in curry dishes, it is the dried flower bud of an evergreen tropical tree found in Southeast Asia.
• Coconut milk: this does not refer to the liquid found inside the coconut, rather the creamy fluid is extracted from the flesh of the coconut.
• Coriander: a fragrant spice that is often the main ingredient in curries. Both ground coriander or the whole coriander leaf (also known as cilantro) are used in Indian cooking. It is also called Chinese parsley.
• Cumin: another fragrant spice important to curry dishes. It is used either in seed form or ground.
• Curry: is not an individual spice used in Indian cooking. The word “curry” means sauce, and many spices, individually roasted, make up a curry mixture (also known as garam masala).
• Fennel: another spice used in curries. It is a member of the cumin family and, on occasion, it is referred to as sweet cumin.
• Ghee: clarified butter. It contains no milk solids. This is the ingredient that adds some of the richness and calories to Indian foods.
• Malai: a thick cream made by separating and collecting the top part of boiled milk. It is used in entrées for a thick, creamy sauce.
• Mint: used to add flavor to curry dishes and also as a main ingredient in mint chutney and mint sambal. It can also be used in biryani and as a dipping sauce for appetizers.
• Paneer: often referred to as homemade cream cheese or cottage cheese and made from milk curdled with lemon juice and then strained through cheesecloth. Paneer is used in vegetable and rice dishes. For vegetarians, it is a complete protein source.
• Poppy seeds: seeds that are ground to a powder and used in curry dishes to thicken the sauces.
• Rose water: a flavoring agent used in Indian desserts. It is extracted from rose petals by steaming them and then diluting the essence.
• Saffron: known as the most expensive spice in the world, small quantities are used commonly in Indian cooking. It is obtained by drying the stamens of saffron crocus. Saffron strands are thread-like and deep orange in color.
• Tamarind: used for its acidic quality, it is a fruit from a large tropical tree. Tamarind is a commonly used Indian spice and food.
• Turmeric: a spice that lends the yellow-orange color to commercial curry powder. It is a member of the ginger family and is commonly used in Indian cooking.
• Yogurt: a common ingredient in Indian cooking; it is always plain and unflavored.
What’s Your Solution? Answers
a) Small changes like these can add up to a big difference in the overall fat and calorie content of your meal. After a serving of tasty soup you’ll be fuller as your entrée is delivered and you won’t even miss the samosa.
b) Smart move choosing a tomato-based chicken dish over a cream-based one! If the butter chicken remains a favorite, go ahead and order it next time, but be sure to share it and/or take some home.
c) Chaan saag is a great way to get two healthy vegetables—spinach and chickpeas—in your meal. And ordering a side dish or half portion of another vegetable dish is a terrific way to help fill up on healthful vegetables.
d) Portion control is always an important healthy eating strategy. Adding extra healthful accompaniments, such as raita or onion chutneys, can help ease you into eating less food without feeling deprived.