Travel, experience, conserve with
Walks Worldwide Jump to main menu

Bonkers About Biryani: fabulous food while trekking in India

Walking & trekking expert Will recently travelled to India. Here he shares his thoughts about the food while trekking in this interesting destination.

When people ask what I like most about India, they expect me to say something about the culture, the history, the warmth of the people, the hospitality or simply the country’s immense natural beauty. Granted these are all excellent features, but for me, there can only be one definitive answer.

The reason I keep returning to India is, without question, its marvellous food. I find myself powerless to resist the sizzle of the tandoori lamb chops or the crunch of a Pani Puri. So much so, that since my return last week from my latest trip, I have already begun to plan my next gastronomic adventure.

I have simply never experienced a culture where food is given so much importance and enjoyed so heartily – with so much thought and time going into the preparation of every meal and so much enthusiasm into the eating of it. Some ask, "Don’t you get tired of eating curry for breakfast, lunch and dinner?" But the answer to this is an emphatic "No!"

When it comes to curry, there is an abundance of variety. Us westerners use the word ‘curry’ to describe the hundreds of dishes on offer in the entire Indian subcontinent. I find this word something of an insult! How can you reduce the flavours and dishes of an entire country to a single word? Because, in India, every region, every social or cultural group has its own way of cooking, its own styles and its own unique cuisine. It would be a mass generalisation to reduce these to a single word.

In the north of India you can expect lots of dry meat and bread served up straight from a sizzling hot Tandoor oven. In Rajasthan many of the dishes have a yogurt base and paneer cheese is a staple. But the South of India is very different, you can have a masala dosa (a kind of Indian pancake) for breakfast, a thali (a selection of southern Indian curries) for lunch and some fresh fish dishes for dinner. Curries tend to be hotter in the south and recipes usually include coconut, which is locally grown. And for vegetarians, India is a delight. Indians have more vegetables than I ever knew existed and, with 40% of the country being vegetarian, they have mastered the art of vegetarian cooking.

The street food is also worth exploring. On every corner there is a man armed with a deep fryer, ready to submerge his next samosa. And curries are not just for the gastronomically adventurous. On my recent visit with my family, my mother in her late fifties and my little sister aged 11 really enjoyed the food too. And none of us got ill.

Often the food is cooked in plain view of the customers and everything is piping hot so the chances of succumbing to the dreaded, but in my experience, mythical Delhi belly are no greater than those of eating anywhere else in the world.

One of the saddest things I’ve seen in India is tourists sitting in pizza bars eating dreary margaritas when they could be in the restaurant next door sampling the most excellent cuisine on the planet. Make sure you don’t miss out by making the same mistake!

Very often, as I’ve been struggling to keep going on a long daytime walk, it has been the anticipation of what I know will be an amazing dinner in the evening that has kept me going. And with a smile on my face!