One of the things I most looked forward to in India was the food. I like Indian food but the food you get locally is very different from any version of Indian food around the world. On top of this, the subcontinent is so big that the cuisine is very localized, meaning that what you would typically get in one region might be completely different from the next state.
We are currently in Kerala - a coastal state in the very south of India. The local flavour is mustard seed, that we learned need to be "popped" in very hot coconut oil before being added to the dish you are preparing ... together with coconut (milk, pulp, flakes, water or any other form) it is the essence of Kerala cooking. With Jewish and Christian influences, the typical dish would be fish with some sort of curry (which is just the sauce that goes with it, not the spice!) and Kerala rice.
So, while we were all the way here, I could not turn down the possibility of a cooking class in Indian cuisine... I just knocked on a little door that said "Cookery Class" and we were invited the next day in the lady's own kitchen with her pots and pans to sit though a lesson about spices and powders, before cooking up a storm.
We managed to get our hands dirty making a Kerala version of the Dal Fry - lentils and coconut flakes, in this Southern Indian delicacy. We made vegetable curry, with tumeric, mustard seeds and all sorts of vegetables and we also could eat it all with great satisfaction!
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