The varied delights of Indian cuisine

When I discovered Indian food many moons ago, I worked in Berlin and an Indian restaurant around the corner from my office had just opened.

When you entered, you were forgiven for thinking that the team forgot to renovate the dining room as it was sparse and almost empty bar some tables and chairs.

I went in for lunch and ordered the first item on the handwritten menu which was malai kofte. To this day, I can taste the wonderful slow cooked spices, feel the warm texture of the cashew sauce and smell the beautiful aroma coming from the steaming dish.

Since then, I have ordered this dish in many Indian restaurants and it still amazes me to this day how different the different chefs prepare it.

The closest to the original dish I found recently in Puerto del Carmen where Mr T and I spent two weeks in February. The aroma was just mouth-watering, the creaminess of the sauce with its spices was just perfect – the texture of the kofte was not as good as I had liked it but the flavours still hit the spot. We liked the dishes so much that we returned twice.

We have some lovely Indian restaurants in Cork but I think if you ever go to India, you will be surprised that none of the dishes actually taste like the ones you get here.

I had the privilege to have been cooked for by an Indian woman a few years ago and the homecooked meal was more satisfying (almost addictive) than anything I have ever eaten in any restaurant – and I noticed that the first meal back in Berlin was just that – a homecooked meal.

You will also see that a lot of restaurants only offer a certain type of cooking while the country of India holds many more surprises in food than we can imagine.

Proof is the wonderfully talented Gautham Iyers of Iyer’s on Pope’s Quay. His food is nothing like you would get in a ‘traditional’ Indian restaurant in Ireland. His samosas are out of this world and his dosas are handmade freshly every day.

I think every cuisine gets ‘tailored’ to the country it is cooked in. I am sure, Irish stew in USA tastes completely different to your mum’s stew and the ragu sauce in spaghetti bolognese is nothing like the ones we are used to here when you travel to Italy.

That actually reminds me that I haven’t been to Iyers in ages – so a visit is urgently needed.