An integral part of your north India tour must be the food, especially the sweets. Often too sweet for the non-Indian palate, the huge array of Indian confections and desserts is largely milk-based. Bengal is particularly well-known for its confections. These include the rasagulla, sandesh, rasamalai and the steaming hot gulab-jamuns. Typical of the north are the barfis (milk cakes), some of pure milk, others of coconut or various types of nuts. Crisp gold-znjelabis, dripping with syrup, made even in the tiniest bazaars all over the country, are breakfast and tea-time favorites.
Kheer, the Indian equivalent of rice pudding; sllahi tukra, a variation on bread pudding; phirni, made of powdered rice and served in earthenware bowls; and kulfi, a rich nutty ice cream, are common northern desserts. Sweets from the South include Mysore pak and the creamy payasam, while the Gujaratis are partial to srikhand made of drained, sweetened and spiced dahi. Halvas are created from ingredients as diverse as carrots, semolina, dais, eggs, or even wholemeal flour.
Finally, there is the satisfying ritual of the after-dinner pan, which is lauded for its digestive and medicinal, if addictive, properties. It is a fragrant combination of betel leaf, areca nut, catechu, cardamom, cloves and other fragrant ingredients.
Meals in the South revolve around rice, eaten with dal-based soups, thin and spicy rasams and the thicker sambars, often flavoured with tamarind. To these are added “sarnbar powder”, made up of spices such as coriander, methi (fenugreek) seeds, cumin and the pungent asafoetida. Often they are finished by “tempering”, chillies and whole spices heated in oil until the important black mustard seeds “pop”; the whole lot is then poured on the top of the dish. Dry vegetable dishes (and in certain places, notably Andhra Pradesh and Kerala, spicy meat and fish preparations) are also served with the rice, to which is added copious quantities of curd (yoghurt) and fiery pickles.
