Religion and Food
India's cuisine is as diverse as its regions. Its history can be traced back thousands of years. Each region's cuisine has
been influenced by the areas surrounding it, as well as India's many religions.
Food plays a major role in the practice of Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, and Sikh, all present in India. Each religion has its own rules when it comes to food preparation and eating. Major emphasis is placed on food related hygiene. Indian cuisine reflects the majority of its people are vegetarian. The rise of vegetarianism in India goes back to around 500 BC, when India saw the rise of Buddhism and Jainism. These religions preached the principle of ahimsa or "not-harming."
Hinduism, a religion that once sacrificed animals prior to eating them, also adopted this principle around the 1st century BC and from then on promoted a vegetarian diet. The development of vegetarianism in India is often linked to southern cuisine, partly because the Brahmins of some northern regions (such as Kashmir and Bengal) are not strict vegetarians.
Cuisine of North and South India
Food patterns in India can certainly be linked to a region's natural
environment and religious practices, but foreign influence also played a large part. During the 16th century, Muslims from western Asia
invaded northern India. Their affect on the culture is visible today in what was named Mughal cuisine. This Middle East influence brought
more meat dishes (kebabs, except pork), spices, nuts, and the idea of ending a meal with a dessert.
Alternately, the prominently vegetarian Hindu diet of the South features more rice, lentils, and vegetables cooked with yogurts, pickles, and chilies. Dals are common purees of chickpeas, mung beans, or kidney beans, and accompany nearly every meal.
North and South India also differ in their choice of grain, the staple of all Indian cuisine. Rice is the basis of southern cuisine, while wheat is used in the north. Hindus serve puris, a wheat bread fried in oil or ghee (clarified butter). Muslims traditionally prepare chapatis, circles of wheat dough cooked on a flat griddle and served with hot curry; and naan, a leavened bread baked in a tandoor oven. Traditionally, food is eaten by hand, using breads to scoop main dishes.