Cultural Foods of India
Running head: CULTURAL FOODS OF INDIA
The Influences of Cultural Foods throughout India
Rachel Hammerling
Concordia College
FND 337: Current Issues
1
Cultural Foods of India
2
Abstract
India is the seventh largest country that involves food habits and traditions, similar to every other
country. The Indians’ traditional food beliefs are categorized into three groups: Sattvic, rajasic,
and tamasic foods. Food customs are practiced throughout India in the northern, eastern,
southern, and western areas. In India, meal composition is composed of three things: daily meal
cycles, etiquette, and special occasions. Special occasions, such as feasting and fasting are
important in the culture of India.
Cultural Foods of India
3
The Influences of Cultural Foods Throughout India
Every country has a different way of living, but more importantly they have different
food habits and traditions. India is known for its ancient times and its exotic spices. The
civilization of India goes back to the 2500 BCE, and during that time even food was a major part
of the Indians’ lives. They created traditional beliefs, meal compositions and cycles, special
occasions such as feasting and fasting, and rules of etiquettes throughout northern, eastern,
southern, and western India.
India is a division of the Asian subcontinent; which is a large area that also surrounds the
countries of Pakistan and Bangladesh, which tend to share a number of similarities in food
customs. Immigrants from India come from a selection of different religious backgrounds,
which comprise of “83% Hindu, 11% Muslim, 2% Christian, 2% Sikh, 0.7% Buddhist, 0.5%
Jain, and about 0.4% other, including Parsi and Jewish, with about 850 languages and dialects”
(Balagopal et al. 2000). This illustrates the diversity in religion and the amount of cultural
groups there are in India.
However, immigrants from India have been proven to be more likely to develop diabetes.
Balagopal et al (2000) said “One study of 153 Indian immigrants found a high genetic
predisposition to diabetes in 15% of these families, along with a trend toward increased caloric
intake and inadequate exercise.” Since there are so many genetic predispositions contributing to
diabetes, Indians need to be more aware of what they eat and to make sure they are physically
active. Indians have certain traditional beliefs that may help with health issues, such as diabetes.
According to the Indian’s traditional beliefs there are three categories in which food can
be classified: Sattvic, rajasic, and tamasic foods. Sattvic foods include milk and wheat, and
when a person is called a sattvic it is considered a great honor. Rajasic foods consist of meat and
Cultural Foods of India
4
eggs, which are said to lead to supremacy. Tamasic foods include garlic and preserved foods,
which are said to make a person sluggish if used in extreme amounts. Most foods are classified
into these three categories based on the different physiological pressures that they put forth.
Moderation is key when it comes to the Indian’s beliefs, which contributes to obesity being
unacceptable.
Vegetarianism is very common in India due to the Indians’ religious values. People in
India tend not to eat beef because cows are considered to be very symbolic, “A universal mother,
as well as the producer of a sustained supply of dairy products in a predominantly vegetarian
diet” (Balagopal et al. 200). Many Indians follow the ways of vegetarianism, which is one of
many food traditions in India. Another tradition relating to the beliefs of the Indians are the use
of condiments and spices. The Indians use a variety of spices, sometimes depending on the
weather. They use salts and chilies when the weather is warmer. They also use cumin and garlic
to add more color and flavor to some dishes. For a medical treatment, ginger, turmeric,
fenugreek, and other spices and condiments help with controlling and reducing certain diseases.
Spices and condiments take on a major role in India’s food practices, along with other things.
Eating food is a component of the Indian’s social environment, which involves eating
snacks and desserts. The snacks tend not to be all that healthy, consisting of foods higher in fat
and sugar, which can lead to health problems if these foods are eaten too much. Certain drinks,
such as alcohol are not allowed anywhere in India, but recently this seems to be changing. The
Indian meals consist of usually rice, bread, meats, desserts, and tea. Before and after eating these
meals, the Indians are supposed to clean their hands and their mouths. These food practices
occur differently throughout northern, eastern, southern, and western India.
Cultural Foods of India
5
In northern India, breakfast and lunch consist of the same foods. Balagopal et al (2000)
says that these meals “May comprise of a few servings of unleavened bread with a richly spiced
meat, poultry, or fish curry, some spiced pickles, and a vegetable dish with yogurt where
affordable.” These foods made and served at breakfast and lunch tends to be similar to dinner.
Their dinner consists of salad, rice, and a plate with lentils with usually a dessert following.
Eastern India’s most common food item is rice, but not a whole lot of information is known from
this area of India. Southern India customs involve rice at every meal, and on certain occasions
desserts are served. Breakfast and dinner include lentils and vegetables with curry, and the third
meal tends to have rice with a yogurt base and may be served with pickles.
The western India tends to consume many different fish dishes. Balagopal et al (2000)
explains their practices, “A typical meal may begin with a scoop of rice… This is generally
accompanied by a curry made of legumes, meat, poultry, or fish, a salad with yogurt, one or two
vegetable dishes, and puris (fried bread).” The beginning of the meal seems to consist more of
protein. After the first course the next foods offered are usually rice and vegetables, and then
dessert. These customs in all four areas of India create meal compositions and meal cycles that
the Indians follow.
Meal composition consists of three things: daily meal cycles, etiquette, and special
occasions. Daily cycles usually pertain to two meals along with snacks. Coffee and tea is drunk
in the morning before breakfast. When it is 9:00 AM, breakfast is eaten. Lunch is eaten at 4:00
PM with coffee and tea, and dinner is then eaten at 7:00 PM as the main meal. Meals are very
important to Indians, but snacks are also a vital part of their lives, and they make sure there is an
apparent difference between the two. For example in southern India the word tiffin is a term to
differentiate between a snack and a meal.
Cultural Foods of India
6
Etiquette is also important to the Indians when it comes to meal composition. The
Indians eat with their hands and that is said to have good manners. However, there are certain
rules, which they follow. Kittler and Sucher (2000) explain these rules, “Everyone must clean
their hands, feet, and mouth before and after eating, both morning and evening, servants who
worked with food had to shave their beards and heads, cut their nails, and bathe before entering
the kitchen; food that was cooked the previous night, that turned sour, or that was cooked twice
must be discarded; all grains, vegetables, and meat had to be washed thoroughly before
cooking.” These rules are very important to the Indians and are usually not broken due to great
dedication. People from India not only valued the etiquette rules, but they cherished certain
occasions.
Special occasions in India include feasting and fasting, which can have an effect on their
diet in many ways. These occasions are very complicated and depend on the person and group
they are a part of. Feasts involve the whole community, where even the poor get to eat. Certain
foods that are served at these feasts are served because they are symbolic. Kittler and Sucher
(2000) describe these symbols, “Rice and bananas both symbolize fertility. Betel leaves
represent auspiciousness; ghee, purity; salt, hospitality and pleasantness; mango, hospitality and
auspiciousness; and betel nuts and coconuts, hospitality, sacredness, and auspiciousness.” Every
food listed above is symbolic in a positive way, which makes sense why they would be served at
a feast. Fasting is another special occasion that can also be looked at in a positive way.
Fasting is practiced because of religious beliefs and individual reasons, which limits
certain food items that can be eaten. Some people could limit meat and poultry, and others could
eat certain foods that are said to be cleansing to the body. Fasting depends on the person, but for
Muslims they follow a strict fasting diet during Ramadan; nothing is to be eaten throughout this
Cultural Foods of India
7
time from when the sun comes up to when the suns goes down. This occasion can be looked at
as a bad idea, because it could harm people, but Kittler and Sucher (2000) conclude, “Individuals
rarely suffer from hunger because of fasting in India. In fact, more food may be consumed on
fast days than on a nonfast day.” As long as the people from India know what they are doing and
follow the rules, fasting is okay to practice.
India is the seventh largest country that is filled with people practicing great food habits
and keeping their traditions alive. Their society is based off of customary beliefs, eating meals at
certain times of the day, feasting and fasting, and having good manners throughout India. It is
important for the Indians to cherish and enhance their beliefs in order to keep their customs
thriving.
Cultural Foods of India
References
Balagopal, P., Ganganna, P., Karmally, W., Kulkarni, K., Raj, S., & Ramasubramanian, N.
(2000). Ethnic and regional food practices: Indian and Pakistani (2nd ed.). Chicago, IL:
American Dietetic Association.
Kittler, P.G., & Sucher, K.P. (2000). Cultural foods: traditions and trends. Belmont, CA:
Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
8