Lets get started!

So, lets create an Indian kitchen abroad using the foreign ingredients! Desi khana videsh mein.

Some useful cooking techniques: find here.
Recipes: find here.

What to take and what not to take?

Here comes the basic question while packing home. Lets face it!

Vessels

• Cooker set (base, lid, whistle, ring): A must in Indian cooking. A cooker with lesser depth would be better. You do get it in some foreign countries, but it will seem expensive. This is eventually because you will now start converting the foreign currency to the Indian equivalent! And yes, do not forget the cooker whistle! Its worthless if you do!
• Rolling pin: Definitely required for Indian breads. These are available in the foreign markets too. But the size and shape available there, would be a new adjusting factor if you buy it from foreign retail shops.
• A thali (Indian plate made of steel): This will be one Indian vessel serving many purposes! If it fits your cooker, it will help in many recipes!
• A Katori (steel bowl): This can again, have many purposes to serve.
• Idli cast(depending on the size of the cooker): This is a must for idlis.
• A frying pan with a thick base: This can serve many purposes. But do ensure that the base is flat to enable cooking on coil cook tops.
• Rice serving spoon
• Chai channi: A must for the tea-lovers.
• Mannual grater: Though a mixer can make a puree of the ingredient, a grater is best suited for parathas, handvo, pakodas... (I can see some mouths watering!). This is also available in most of the foreign retail shops.

Spices

I would advise you not to carry any since most of the spices are available in the foreign markets. In case you plan to go for a short term (1-3 months), here goes the list:

• Turmeric powder, Corriander powder, Cumin powder
• Asafoetida (Hing)
• Mustard seeds, Menthi seeds

Do ensure that the packets are sealed. As far as possible, brought directly from the shop.

Cereals

Again, this is not required if you plan to go long-term. For people going on a short-term, ensure that you have the following

• Wheat flour
• Rice
• Toor daal, Udad daal, Kabuli chole, Moong daal
• Poha
• Puffed rice
• Soya chunks

Chalein hum Videsh

Cooking in a foreign environment is definitely a challenge. Right from the cooking gas stove to the vegetables, everything looks so different! In order to counter this to some extent, what most of the people end up doing is fill up their bags with all sorts of Indian spices, vessels, and in some cases, vegetables too! This creates a scene in most of the foreign security checks before landing in a foreign country.

So what do we pack back home in terms of food? What Indian food stuff would be available in the foreign markets? Would the foreign security check let you take a particular food stuff? - are the basic questions while packing.

Well, the answer is simple. You will need only a basic set of Indian cooking vessels in your bag. NOTHING else! At the end of the day, you must remember that now, you are in a foreign country. You just cannot expect the same Indian food even from an Indian restaurant in a foreign country!

So shall we give up our taste? No. Definitely not. Why not dish it out on your own? Make the effort and get a reward - a happy tongue and a full tummy!

Desi Khana

Going out of your own country is a big opportunity as well as a challenge. Though you will see a new world, you always tend to miss the place where you grew up. You witness this debate between your mind and heart. And you feel this pinch just a few months after you've landed in the new country...

What is that ONE thing you miss out there? Food. Indian food. The invitingly flavorful food! Spicy, tangy, sweet... expressions go limitless!

This blog is all about cooking Indian food in a foreign country. Using the utensils, vegetables and to some extent spices available in the foreign countries. 

Watch out this space for more!