Food!

With a lack of any new and exciting updates at this point, I'll turn instead to a topic which I know will be of interest to many of my friends and family - food!

As you might imagine, the food here in India is quite different from the food we're accustomed to in the States. I'll try to break it down meal by meal.

Breakfast
To me, the strange thing about breakfast here is how similar it is to lunch. I'm sure to a more discerning eye to dishes served at each meal are quite different, but to me they're rather similar. Breakfast at the office consists of assorted bread-like products with sauces/gravies for dipping. The sauces are, of course, at least mildly spicy. I haven't really encountered anything sweet for breakfast - pretty much everything is savory. Here's a picture of my breakfast today:



Lunch
Lunch at the office consists of a variety of Indian dishes. Again, there are many of the sauce-like things (called curries apparently - not to be confused with the curry spice from back home, which is totally unheard of here) and carb-like products to eat them with (naan, rice, etc). I've really come to like naan, and might have to seek out one of the Indian restaurants at home just to have some more of it! Desserts here are also quite good. Most of them consist of some sort of carb soaked in sugar syrup. They're all incredibly sweet, and I think a lot of Americans would find them overly sweet. Luckily I have a huge sweet tooth, and have liked them all quite a bit. Some of my favorites are gulab jamun, double ka meetha, and badshah (note - these names may be wrong...I'll need to verify tomorrow with coworkers!). Here's a picture of lunch:



Chaat
Every afternoon in the office they have chaat, which is essentially a snack in the style of Indian street food. It's all quite tasty, although to be honest I'm not sure what most of it is. The one thing I did learn the name of is panipuri, which is a little fried cup filled with a mixture of water, spices, chickpeas, etc. Here's a picture of some chaat I had last week (including panipuri on the right):




Dinner
During the week, I mostly eat dinner at the guest house, where the chef prepares a variety of different cuisines. We've had Italian, Mexican, "Continental," etc - all good, but all with a bit of an Indian flair. When I've been traveling and eating out, I've mostly had Indian food. Paneer and biryani (a Hyderabad specialty) have become staples for me when I eat out.

Other Food-Related Tidbits
- Although not at the office, and often not at restaurants, people eat with their hands. I was surprised to witness this on our Kerala trip, but my co-workers informed me that it's actually quite common. People say the food tastes better when you eat it with your hands, as it allows you to really mix in the flavors (for instance when you're eating rice with a curry).

- As such, people wash their hands regularly after eating. We went out to lunch today, and after the meal they brought each of us a little bowl with warm water with which to wash our fingers and a piece of lime to cut the grease.

- Another thing they bring you after a meal is mouth refresher. This is usually brought along with the bill, similarly to how a waiter in the States might bring you mints. It's usually a mixture of sugar crystals and fennel. Here's an example:



Although I've gotten used to Indian food, and even come to enjoy a fair amount of it, I am looking forward to getting back to the food I'm used to at home!