Talk:Indian cuisine/Archive 1

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Listing on Indian Cuisine

I have a website www.indianfoodsco.com. It started of as a hobby and it has grown into a business.

I was under the impression that since I sell on my site I may not put my site on wikipedia.

Anyways I was browsing and I noticed that my competition which is ONLY a commercial site that does not have the passion or the info (I have written 600 articles on Indian food at the time when it was a hobby site) is listed on http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_cuisine.

So I listed my site as well.

I have started adding my site too but some one is taking us out. If they are allowed to be listed I should too.

Please advise.

Thanks Kavita www.indianfoodsco.com

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Editor_assistance/Requests"

No links?

Any reason this article has no hyperlinks at all? robo 00:45, 3 August 2006 (UTC)

Curry

Curry? Curry is on this very short list of famous Indian foods? Why? I suppose there's some reason for including it, but there ought to be some explanation for it. Also, for people who don't know the various native words for foods, some translation would be helpful. I'd start messing with that list, but I'd like to know how it came about in the first place. --Mothperson 19:04, 7 Apr 2005 (UTC)

I suppose it is because curry is by far the most popular Indian food item in Western cuisines. Unfortunately curry as used in English is somewhat different in meaning from its meaning in India (and very different from the original Tamil word). Arvindn 15:00, 24 December 2005 (UTC)

Page history

Due to some messy moves, redirects and renames, there is probably page history for this article (some of it deleted) scattered under the names of:

Indian cuisine
Indian food
Indian cuisine/temp

-- The Anome 13:39, 7 Nov 2003 (UTC)

Religion

is it not true that religion, such as Ashoka's conversion to Buddhism, had a deep impact on the vegetarianism of india?

A good point, and we should mention Jainism; and the veneration of cows in Hinduism. -- Karada 23:41, 14 Mar 2004 (UTC)

What about pork? Do Indians eat pork?

British Indian food

I'm a vegetarian but find it very difficult to find vegetarian indian food in supermarkets in the UK. I find this strange when I understand that much Indian food is vegetarian. Is this because most British people can't accept having a main course which contains no meat? If you go into the average supermarket and try to buy an Indian-style ready meal they all contain chicken! --Cap 18:51, 6 Sep 2004 (UTC)

British Indian food is not so much a subcategory of Indian food as an amalgamation of cuisines from all over the subcontainent, notably Indian and Bangladeshi, with both native and imperial British influences. Furthermore it varies quite substantially throught the UK and the dishes common to Scotland and the South of England are different from those prevalent in the North and Midlands of England. You'll have more success finding vegetarian Indian restaurants in London or Glasgow than you will in Newcastle. My best advice would be to learn how to cook, as in most UK cities you'll find a suburb with a large Indian population and specialist shops that import all the ingredients you could ever want. --JamesTheNumberless 13:11, 21 December 2006 (UTC)

Dosa

Removed the following content under Dosa as it seemed to make no sense:

Tends to be about at least 2 different base types of sauce, onion-based which works with only particular vegetables, and tomato-based which works with most succulent vegetables. Gujarati cuisine is pure vegetarian.

Main ingredients used include coriander, cumin seed, chilli, pepper, cinnamon bark, cloves, garlic and ginger.

CrazyHorse 18:35, 14 Aug 2004 (UTC)

Gujarat and Maharshtra are considered Western Indian states by govt of India

Then why are the put in different categories. Maharashtrian food has a little affinity with South Indian cuisine, moving to Western India

It's odd Maharashtra is not listed in South India as well as North India articles

Maharashtrian food is similar to food in Karnataka (especially the northern part). --Pamri 13:16, 15 November 2005 (UTC)

I dont know when the Maharashtra section was present in the article but I can't see it today. Also, western foo should be about Maharashtra, gujarat and Rajasthan. All 3 have a different style of cooking so I dont know how we can merge them in western. But western definately should not have British etc. That can go into Indian cousine outside India. It makes logical flow to have all directions North, south, east, west in India. --Kaveri 18:28, 6 July 2007 (UTC)

Bhaji

Perhaps someone here can help. I created a redirect from bhaji to amaranth, based on what I understand to be the Trinidad and Tobago usage. When I googled, I found that it is also an Indian dish. I changed it to a disambiguation page, distinguishing between amaranth and pav bhaji, but I'm not sure that's right. Can you lend me a hand? Thank you — Pekinensis 22:08, 28 July 2005 (UTC)

Vegetarianism POV

I feel that the bit about Indian cuisine being based on the "Indian philosophy" of "Ahimsa" is not NPOV. Are there references to Indian cuisine consisting solely of vegetarian food before the advent of Mughals? I've known that several "indigenous" people have been eating non-vegetarian food from time immemorial. -- Sundar ^{\talk \contribs} 13:31, 18 November 2005 (UTC)

Sure, we must mention the consumption of non-vegetarian foods from ancient times, which surely did exist. Even the Bhagvad Gita mentions dog eaters (chandalas). But I also feel that the emphasis on vegetarianism, and the extent to which it was and is practised in Indian cuisine being something totally unique to it, should be mentioned, and its historical roots should also be discussed. A good number of people who know little about India get curious when they see so many vegetarian dishes on the menus of Indian restaurants. A westerner who goes to India is even more surprised. I think this article should answer their questions in some way. deeptrivia 14:10, 18 November 2005 (UTC)

Yeah, I agree to your point above. Widespread practise of total vegetarianism and high intake of vegetarian food even by non-vegetarian food eaters are unique to India and need explanation. -- Sundar ^{\talk \contribs} 17:10, 18 November 2005 (UTC)

Lists

How about moving lists into separate articles like List of sweets and desserts in Indian cuisine, and providing a descriptive summary here (in paragraphs)? I think it will make the article more readable. deeptrivia 06:00, 21 November 2005 (UTC)

Everything in Regional specialties can be moved to a list. Any descriptions in that section can be merged into regional cuisine. Pamri • Talk 07:12, 21 November 2005 (UTC)

I have made the list at List of Indian dishes, classifying the dishes by region as done in List of Indian sweets and desserts . However, I am not feeling very good about this kind of classification. At times I found such a classification difficult, as in the case of Puri or Dahi vada. I feel it might be more informative to classify dishes on this page according to structure of meals, i.e., have one table for breakfast dishes, one for main course, one for snacks, one for sweets and desserts (we can merge List of Indian sweets and desserts in here), one for drinks. Of course, we can have one column for region of origin in each of these tables. deeptrivia 05:43, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

Hmm...Even I have mixed feelings about regional classifications, but I thought it to be better than no classification. Even if we classify according to the structure of meals, we will have a bigger problems. For eg; Puri/Roti is had for breakfast/lunch/dinner. I think, a compromise solution would be to classify according to the type of food (bread,rice-based, fermented, etc.,) I feel List of Indian sweets and desserts should be seperate, since it can grow considerably and hence, deserves a seperate page. --Pamri • Talk 13:20, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

Okay, then maybe we can have a List of Indian snacks too, since this too can grow large, with may kinds of Namkeens, Samosa, Pakora, Dhokla, etc. I created an article on Indian fast food, which as of now contains little apart from a small list of snacks. I think it is a good idea to classify according to type of food, as long as we choose the types in a way that is meaningful to the reader (for example, a category like "rice-based" will club together very different things like Biryani and some South Indian sweets.) I guess whichever way we classify, there will be some overlap/ambiguity. Let's come up with a classification that is most convenient for the reader. deeptrivia 13:49, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

We can fix the overlapping by having sub-sections or seperate pages (for desserts/meals). BTW, if you want any images of any food item that is not in Cuisine of India at commons, make a list here & I will try to take it if I can. --Pamri • Talk 15:20, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

Alright, let's give it a try. Cuisine of India at commons is empty. To begin with, I think it will be great if we can have one photo from each region. I'll continue expanding the List of Indian dishes, so you can choose your favorite dishes from there. Please also take a look at individual articles before taking pictures, because some of them, like Samosa, already have pictures that we can use. deeptrivia 01:53, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

Sorry, its at Indian cuisine. --Pamri • Talk 11:40, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

Great images Pamri. I've added a few here and there. It would be great to have images of Roti/Naan. Was also wondering where we should put things like Achar, Chutney and Papadum. deeptrivia 15:00, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

Pickles, etc can probably go under category:Indian_vegetarian_side-dishes or create a category called Pickles and Chutneys. You can also look at http://food.sify.com/ for some ideas on categorisation. Will try to upload those pics you asked this week. --Pamri • Talk 16:18, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

Okay, we can have List of Indian condiments. deeptrivia 17:59, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

Pending tasks

Introduction too small

I've been thinking about how to expand the introduction, but it seems the current introduction summarizes much of the article. However, I think it's really too small compared to standard FAs. deeptrivia 04:32, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

More stuff required on Regional cuisines
Indian food abroad needs cleanup
Articles nonexistent for many regional cuisines, e.g. Gujarati cuisine

deeptrivia 06:16, 21 November 2005 (UTC)

Can {{Cuisine of India}} be converted into a horizontal box. It is currently a distraction in all the list of Indian *, since the lead text is too short. --Pamri • Talk 16:23, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

Sure, if necessary we can have a horizontal box. Right now it conforms with the style of other cuisine series boxes on wikipedia, like Cuisine or Cuisine of China. I guess it might be better to work on expanding the lead text :) deeptrivia 16:59, 23 November 2005 (UTC)

At cfd

Please vote at Wikipedia:Categories_for_deletion/Log/2005_November_24#Category:Indian_cuisine_to_Category:Cuisine_of_India on a proposal to rename Category:Indian cuisine to Category:Cuisine of India. --Pamri • Talk 14:24, 24 November 2005 (UTC)

the word curry is typical to indian cuisine and should not be mixed with curries of thailand which are totally different in their flavour and taste and also the method of making them.

Pulses

At least five dozen different varieties of pulses? That sounds a bit much. Could someone provide a reference? Arvindn 15:00, 24 December 2005 (UTC)

External links (advertising)

Almost all of the external links have Google ads [1], so that they are getting a free link boost from Wikipedia. Any thoughts on how to determine which sites are notable/content-rich enough to keep? Otherwise, the external links section can get out of hand. OhNo itsJamie ^Talk 06:35, 26 January 2006 (UTC)

I agree that 4 out of 5 external links either have google ads only or have hardly any recipes to have the privilege of being listed on wikipedia. I am removing 4 links- http://www.indian-recipe.net (google ads only. Could not locate recipes), http://www.gourmetindia.com (5 recipes total), http://www.gourmetindia.com (nothing unusual or representative about this website), http://www.citras.com.my/community/discussion/forum_topics.asp?FID=6 (just a forum, not a website). I would recommend adding reputed websites like Bawarchi.com, SanjeevKapoor.com and RecipeDelights.com. At this time I am not adding any of them but moderators, please review these (and other sites) and add as needed.

Beef

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but wasnt beef widely consumed by the Vedic Aryans? I read that they used to use the cow in sacrifices and eat the meat afterwards, a popular practice. After a while, it was regarded as an evil practice and condemned afterwards. I think it was because of a lack of cattle, which the early Aryan immigrants valued as a monetary unit. -[[Afghan Historian 18:45, 27 March 2006 (UTC)]]

Could you provide a source? -- thunderboltz^{a.k.a.Deepu Joseph |TALK}13:42, 28 July 2006 (UTC)

Holy Cow by D.N. Jha. It may be controversial, but it is a source whose author is a professor of history at the University of Delhi. The controversy deserves to be addressed, but is more appropriate for the "sacred cow" page than for "Indian cuisine".--CiteCop 02:47, 30 July 2006 (UTC)

Edit War

Looks like we have some sort of edit war. People redirecting to a unknown page. Refusetobesilenced 15:40, 22 April 2006 (UTC)

Vandalism

For some reason, people keep vandalizing this page. I think it should be protected. (Lord Vader 19:24, 27 July 2006 (UTC))

Need English names for vegetables

Am adding a few more vegetables to the Indian pickle article but I cannot find English names for gunda and kerda. Does anyone know if they have English names, or know the species? Also, what is mogri? Badagnani 00:46, 21 August 2006 (UTC)

Vandalism?

I think there's likely sophomoric vandalism in the beverages section, but don't have enough familiarity with foods of the subcontinent to edit it myself. Cpeterkelly 15:46, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

Mysore Nuts are famous for their rich aroma and complex flavor. Please do not remove Mysore Nuts.

Sikandar326 18:23, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

Okay, if they're so famous why are there no Google hits? This seems to be a play on words of "my sore nuts." Of course, Mysore is a city in India, so if you insist on keeping "Mysore nuts" in the article what is the exact species and variety of nuts produced in Mysore, and why are they listed as a beverage? Let's not keep this joke running past its sell-by date, okay? Badagnani 18:30, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

Coffee is grown in Mysore. Mysore coffee beans marketed around the world under the name Mysore Nuts.

Sikandar326 18:36, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

Okay, then please explain 1) why there are no Google hits for the term "Mysore nuts"? And 2) why do you not call it "Mysore coffee"? My guess is that the reason is because it's not as funny to you. "Mysore Nuggets," on the other hand http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&q=%22mysore+nuggets%22 is a brand name of Mysore coffee beans. Badagnani 18:41, 24 August 2006 (UTC)

Mysore Nuts are round and brown and larger than average. You can even dip Mysore Nuts in chocolate and put them in your mouth! 128.122.89.195 20:29, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

I can't start the day without grabbing hold of Mysore Nuts. 128.122.89.183 23:05, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

In South India Mysore Nuts are huge! 128.122.89.198 23:07, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

There's nothing my girlfriend enjoys more than the taste of Mysore Nuts in her mouth. 128.122.89.23 23:14, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

I came across this in recent changes patrol. I'm convinced it's vandalism (its unverifiability was bad enough). I'd say remove it, and do something about the editors who keep adding it. --Coredesat talk. ^_^ 23:09, 26 August 2006 (UTC)

It's taken care of. It turns out that there was a kernel of truth (no pun intended) to it as Mysore coffee beans (marketed as "Mysore Nuggets," not "Mysore Nuts") are apparently highly regarded in India. The article was edited to reflect this, but the gag goes on (and on) here at "discussion." I agree that it is the very definition of sophomoric but such is the price of freedom, I suppose... Badagnani 01:17, 27 August 2006 (UTC)

Please check new article

Can those with expertise in Indian cuisine check the new article I have started, Chaunk? Badagnani 02:22, 11 September 2006 (UTC)

unhealthy

You forgot to mention how unhealhty desi food is! and how it will kill off the desi race --—Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.167.114.187 (talk • contribs)

South Indian Cuisine

Why is there a unnecessary importance to Udipi cuisine? It appears totally out of context. South Indian Cuisine is all of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra. It would help to rename the picture with the plantain leaf as "Traditional South Indian Serving" or something, without exaggerating the Kannada aspect.

Seeking to add pronunciation guide

Greets all. I like a lot of different foods but I also like to be able to sound like I know what I'm doing when I enter a restaurant. I've heard a lot of ppl say indian dishes different ways and would like to see a guide with sound clips of a native speaker. I added a link that was promptly deleted (sad) linking to a webpage with sound clips for a lot of different indian dishes.

Thus my question is twofold:

Is there any opposition to including or linking to a pronunciation guide?
As the page is a personal page but well-maintained and, in fact, established -precisely- as a port of information on how to pronounce indian dishes, should it be linked to or should I design a section myself for the "Indian Cuisine" page and just scrape the files from the site (with due recognition to the source)?

Thanks!