Indian food is not just curries

I sometimes grow tired of hearing wannabe world citizens that are not of South Asian origin, say that all Indian food is a variation on curry. And by curry they mean meat and/or vegetables in a red/orange/yellow thick liquid. As recently a Chinese colleague of mine put it: Indian food does not have much variety. It's all the same. Now I know better than to engage such people in an argument, but it annoyed me.

Three Stages of Cooking an Indian Dish
An art in Indian cooking is braising. Braising is a cornerstone of Chinese cuisine as well, and basically means cooking meat or vegetables with small and variable amount of liquid. A lot of Indian dishes are prepared this way. There are three stages of cooking. The typical Indian pot for cooking this kind of food is called a Karahi or Kadai which unsurprisingly is very similar to the Chinese Wok.

1. First one sears the vegetables or meat at very high heat (presumably locking the flavor in, but I don't completely agree) to give them a firmer texture.
2. After the initial searing, you cover and cook on medium heat for another ten minutes. As you cook your dish covered, the steam does not escape and water or other juices materialize at the bottom of the pan.
   
3. Finally the heat is reduced to low until the dish is finished. One reason behind reducing the heat is to retain the moisture and liquid. The end result is more flavorful than steamed vegetables -- a unique blend of crisp outside and succulent inside.

Anyone can make a liquid curry
Anyone can make a dish with a lot of liquid. Since heat is passed by convection in a liquid, which results in slower transfer of heat, it is very forgiving. Braising is not always forgiving. You can burn the food in the first step, or make the food mushy if you're not careful. I find that many Indians living abroad do not make braised foods, because they cannot be bothered to make food that takes some effort. On the other hand, you can dump everything at once in a fair bit of liquid and voila!

Summary
Good food takes effort, no matter which culture you consider. French food takes a lot of effort because it is often prepared from scratch. Same about Persian Food. And it is the same about Indian food.

Sichuan Beef

The Sichuan a.k.a Szechuan province of China is known for its fiery cuisine. A common ingredient in Sichaun cuisine is crushed red chili pepper -- seeds and all. That is interesting because chilies are native to the Americas and reached China only in the 1600s. Before the chilies arrived to China, a native spice, the Sichuan pepper was common. The taste of the Sichuan pepper is not hot like the chili or pungent and clean like black pepper, but a little lemony and rather vague. You could not import Sichuan pepper to the US until recently.

I made a popular dish recently, called the Sichuan Beef. I used top sirloin steak and sliced it as thin as I could, but it is clear to me that I need more practice dicing things finely with a cleaver. The kitchen got a bit oily with all that frying in batches. Two pounds of top sirloin lasted of all 3 hours for 3 persons and a toddler.

Kung Pao Chicken

A staple of American-Chinese restaurants and the safest bet if you're not too familiar with Chinese cuisine, and are eating in North America. It's quick and colorful with green-yellow zucchini, red bell pepper, and soy sauce-brown chicken. Taiwanese influence would have you garnish with chopped scallions. But you must have peanuts in it, or it's not Kung Pao chicken.

I like my own version, made in a cast iron wok with potato starch instead of corn starch and with scallions. Here's a photo. I don't think I want to share this recipe just yet ;)