shameless gluttony

It's no secret that I really love food. And I really really love Indian food. When it occurred to me recently how little time I have left here, I realized I needed to start making better use of my time in accomplishing all of my gastro-goals. So last night I decided no more dilly-dallying, time to get down to business, time to get to a South Indian restaurant.

Jaipur is in North India, Hyderabad is in South India. Having now spent a long time in both places I have been able to weigh one cuisine against the other. I've tried not to be biased here and I've waited a long time to come to my verdict. But I've now officially arrived at the conclusion of which style of food I prefer.

Before I reveal my preference, I should briefly discuss the differences between Southern and Northern food. While many Indian dishes are available anywhere in India, there are certain things that are more common to certain areas and a lot of regional distinctions. In South India food is more often steamed than fried. South India also has a few very unique signature dishes like iddli, tasty little rice dumplings, uttapams, savory vegetable pancakes, and dosas...delicious dosas. In North India the food is a little greasier, a little heavier, and a lot more milk products are used. You'll find more meat dishes, more paneer, yummy Indian cheese cubes, and more naan, oven-baked flat-bread.

North India, you've put up a good fight, but the dosa just beats everything else. South India wins.

A dosa is usually described as an "Indian crepe," but it is much much more than that. When made well, a dosa is somewhat crepe-like, but crispier and more savory. It is made from fermented rice and lentil flour, so it has an unusual sour and salty taste. The dosa itself is typically very large and wrapped in the shape of a burrito. When you tear into your dosa (ravenously and with your hands if you're like me) you will find any variety of fillings, but most typically it is some combination of spicy potatoes, onions and other vegetables inside. Perhaps the most thrilling part of the dosa is the coconut chutney that is usually served alongside it. Typing this description is making me very hungry, so I have to stop now. Here's a picture:I'm glad at least I found one dosa before leaving India, now I'm just calculating how many more I can eat in the next 19 days.