masala

As summer rolls in, here’s a list of traditional Indian foods and drinks to keep stocked in your kitchen. All these are easily available online.

The masala is an accurately measured and carefully fashioned mixture of 25, or sometimes even 60, ingredients, each of which are sun-dried, roasted and pounded.

In most Indian kitchens, the mixie plays a prominent role--whatever the cuisine, we need a good mixer-grinder to get all our masalas pounded well.

Oxford English dictionary recently added the word 'Aiyo' to its lexicon. However, this is not the first time an Indian term has found itself in this eminent dictionary. Reflecting the global popularity of Indian food, a number of Indian words have been earlier accepted in the dictionary.

There is something almost magical about the simple dark coloured beverage that seems to capture the taste buds of Indians.