Food Lingo & Etiquette

Welcome back!

This post is a little longer, so bear with me.

You've all probably seen Indian food somewhere, and many of you have probably tried some at one point or another, but now that I'm here, I wanted to share the little tidbits and differences from what I thought I knew before vs. what I've learned these first 3 weeks.

First and foremost, food is primarily eaten with your hands. Yes, there is silverware. Nice restaurants provide silverware regardless of your order, but most of the traditional food served is eaten with your hands.  Just like eating pizza, or a sandwich or a hotdog in the US, some food it just meant to be eaten with your hands. The difference lies in that what they might eat with their hands here, we would thing is spoon/fork material.

It probably goes without saying that the cuisine in India can be very regionalized. There is still a lot of poverty and some neighborhoods are in very sad shape. I can only assume this is a recurring theme throughout much of India. Accordingly, food is not often shipped from state to state and region to region as the residents consume almost everything that is already available here. In the US, you can get "fresh" fish just about anywhere, regardless of how close you live to a coast. Here, there is not a lot of seafood unless you're along the ocean. And if you find seafood on the menu, it will be noticeably more expensive.

Where's I'm staying, there is a lot of rice used in dishes because it is much easier to come by. I've been told that in the North of India they eat more breads and less rice, probably due to availability of flour vs. rice. I can't say this for certain, but the logic makes sense, and that's the impression that I get. The most popular dish around where I stay is biryani which is basically rice cooked with seasoning and vegetables or chicken and a side of curry. When ordering chicken biryani, you actually typically get half or a whole hard boiled egg mixed in. Also, the chicken is not bite-sized pieces of deboned chicken meat like you might expect in the US. Instead, you're getting whole chucks of cooked chicken, bones and all. So when eating chicken biryani, you need to be sure you're picking through the meat carefully.

You might now be thinking "okay, fine. I'll just pick through the chicken. No problem." Remember the video I showed you in the first post about how to use the restrooms here? You can't use your left hand when eating for that reason. To say it differently, you CAN use your left hand, but that would be viewed as a disgusting habit. So when you settle down with a nice dish chicken dish, you need to use your fingers (right hand only) to scrape the meat away from the bones. It's a little trickier than you might think, and a lot messier.

Additionally, most meals come with a side of bread like naan or roti. These are similar to flour tortillas used commonly in Mexican cooking. You tear off a little piece of the bread and use that to scoop up your curry or daal. Most of the curries are pretty runny here. Basically curry is like a thick, seasoned gravy with bits of meat or paneer or maybe vegetables. Daal is sort of like a bean or lentil soup. Both of these dishes are somewhat difficult to "scoop" with a tortilla, especially for beginners like me. The people living here have been doing it since childhood and make it look easy. You would not, however, use the naan or roti (or chapati or dosa) to scoop rice. Rice is scooped with your fingers also (or if you got a spoon, that's fine too). Oh yea, and you have to tear the pieces of bread apart one-handed as well...another talent I'm still working to perfect. Most importantly, it seems people here like to share. Everyone brings their food to the table, and it's common to just politely ask to try someone else's dish and/or offer up for others to try.

Other than authentic Indian restaurants, there is a strong presence of Indo-Chinese food. This is best described as what Americans would order for Chinese, but hotter (spicy) and with of more Indian ingredients and preparations incorporated in the menu. One other thing I've learned as is that when you're presented with a typical 4-5 page menu in smaller establishments, there are almost always items on the menu that you can't actually order. For example, a restaurant might list 10 vegetarian appetizers, 10 non-veg appetizers, 10 veg entrees, and 15 non-veg entrees (plus beverages). But when it comes times to order, probably less than half the menu is actually available. When I've gone out with my co-workers, usually ordering takes about 5 minutes, and frequently the waiter returns to tell us something we've order is not available or the kitchen recommends we order something else (maybe the quality of ingredients is lacking?)

Last thing I wanted to mention: a good amount of Indians are vegetarian. I want to say it's close to 50%, which is a lot for a country of 1 billion people. Many restaurants on the street are all-veg, and nearly every restaurant offers an array of vegetarian options. In some places, they have separate lines to order "veg" or "non-veg" (as they call it) so there is no crossover. Even the Subway in the food court at my hotel has 2 separate counters for vegetarian subs and subs with meat. Meanwhile, not everyone is anti-beef, like I had thought. Sure, there's a good amount of people that are Hindu and don't eat beef, but there is also a large Christian population who eat is as well. It's just not as readily available and is usually a little pricier. If you're ordering something non-veg in Bangalore, the first choice is either chicken or mutton (lamb), followed by fish or beef, then probably shrimp is least often used/available.

Rather than ramble on about how to eat properly and talk about the different menu options, I think you get the general idea. Here are some common terms used in Indian cuisine that might help you if you want to order from an Indian restaurant in America and not look/sound completely lost. If I'm not quite correct, I apologize. I'm going by what I think I've figured out, but I'm still far from expert.

Ghee - Basically, clarified butter. Used a lot in Indian cooking, just as we would use butter.

Naan/Roti/Chapati - All are similar to American/Mexican flour tortillas. Naan would be like processed white bread flower. Roti is more like unprocessed wheat flour. All are rolled out with a little warm milk or water. Naan has a little yeast and is cooked in a tandoor oven where the bread is stuck to the side of the inside of the pot to cook. Roti is usually cooked on a flat grill. Naan seems to have a little more chew. Roti is a bit crispy, like a thin-crust pizza. Chapati is very similar to roti (again, the main difference being naan has yeast and is "baked"). From what my colleagues tell me, chapati is usually cooked in a greased pan and roti would be on an open flame, but a search online doesn't seem to distinguish between roti and chapati.

Paneer - The universal cheese of India. In the way American vegetarians use tofu, Indians use paneer. The cheese is made by separating the curd from whole milk by warming it and adding a bit of vinegar or lemon juice. Then the excess whey is drained and pressed out of the curd, and you're left with a very firm cheese that does not melt when heated. It will instead char and bubble if grilled or fried. Most Indian dishes that would be offered with chicken or mutton can be ordered as "veg" with paneer.

Dosas - Similar to Naan/Roti/Chapati, but these are made with rice flour and resemble American pancakes. They are typically used the same was as naan or chapati...you scoop up your curry or daal with little tears of the pancake.

Curry - Basically translates to "gravy." There are many different types of curry (including curry flavor...yup) that range in flavor and spice (heat). Usually curry would be made with a little oil and a lot of spices plus some chopped vegetables or puree. It's simmered over low to form a sauce, and then meat or paneer would usually be added and served over rice or alone with naan or roti for scooping. Some curry use tomato paste, some use coconut milk...it's all about what ingredients are known for the region.

Daal - These are usually a soupy side-dish served with curry and naan/roti or rice. They most often contain legumes (or "pulses") like lentils or beans.

Before departing for India I had been advised by no less than 5 people not to eat "street food" but that didn't last for very long. While spending time outside work with some of my colleagues, they introduced me to panipuri (pani meaning "water", and puri is the fried dough). These can be served in restaurants, but are also eaten along the sidewalk the way you might order a hotdog in Chicago (video). You eat until you're satisfied and then pay at the end. Our group of 4 ate about 20 of these and it cost a whopping 25 rupees (about 50 cents). They are not bad and a cheap treat, but unfortunately, they are made by hand, and it's not so sanitary as you saw in the video. I definitely picked up a throat tickle and small cold in the days after eating them.

The other dish I had that is also commonly found on the street (mine was made in a store and packaged, so a little safer) is called paan. I can safely say this is one I would absolutely turn down if offered again.

My temporary team here in Bangalore organized a potluck lunch last week, and everyone brought a dish from home or something picked up at the store to share the various different styles, preparations, and dishes found in homes around Southern India. They said this paan was sweet, but that didn't save it, in my opinion. It's basically a leaf wrapped up with spices and often tobacco inside that is stuffed whole into your mouth and chewed up (and eventually swallowed). I'm not a smoker, but I would describe this as chewing on a menthol cigarette....not great.

Well, that concludes today's lesson in Indian food from Bangalore. I hope you learned something or at least found my street-food experiences humorous. Talk to you again soon!

Transportation is Hard

Welcome back. Let's dive right in, shall we?? If you read my first post, you're all well aware of the delay I encountered getting here due to the Lufthansa strike. Since arriving, I've experienced some even more interesting/amazing situations with transportation.

I'm staying about 15 kilometers (approx. 10 miles) from the office I commute to every day. Because this is an official business trip, my company has hired me a driver to pick me up outside the hotel ever day at an agreed upon time, and drop me at work. He then picks me up at the end of my shift and brings me back. I'm sure this isn't cheap, but hey, it's a business trip, so they were counting on this.

Good thing I have a driver too, because the roads are crowded, and traffic is wild. I mentioned previously that my trip from airport to hotel at 2AM was a bit crazy, and that was with no traffic on the road. When my driver picks me up at 5PM, it's rush hour. School buses are out, rickshaws are out, other people commuting to/from work are out, and there are moped and small motorcycles galore. The rules of the road here basically dictate that the bigger vehicle has the right of way. It's everyone else's responsibility to navigate around them. I'm told by someone with local experience that the hierarchy of the road is basically this: elephants (haven't seen any....yet) --> trucks (like, work trucks) --> cows --> small cars --> rickshaws (golf carts acting like taxis) --> motorcycles/mopeds --> pedestrians.

So on a good day, my commute to work is maybe 40 minutes. On a busier day, it might take an hour. But usually it's somewhere in between. Most days I can't even look out the windows to watch the scenery passing by because I get so nervous for everyone out on the road. I've been here almost 2 full weeks now, and I've had multiple crazy encounters in such a short time. I have about 6 more weeks to go, so I'm not exactly sure what will happen next.

Commuter Day 1 (Wed, Sep. 12) - My first time commuting to my new 2-month office. I had made arrangements through my company before leaving Chicago that I would be picked up at 4PM for my first day (I think I mentioned before that I'm working Chicago hours...6PM to 2:30AM local time). I was told by a co-worker who just returned from India that it takes about an hour to get to RMZ Ecospace (a corporate business park in SE Bangalore) from my hotel. I gave myself extra time for day 1, just in case. A few minutes before 4PM my room rang, and the front desk informed me that my driver, Azmathulla, had arrived.

Azumath (I think that's how he pronounces it) is very professional and polite. Again, I'm treated almost like royalty, though I'm just a lowly desk-worker. He opens the door for me, closes the door for me, and calls me "sir" every time we chat. The car is small, but it is a real car...not a junky taxi or a rickshaw. So here we are weaving our way through traffic on winding roads...he could be taking me anywhere, but I have to assume that he's done this before because he asked me which location I was going to (we have 2 operations centers in Bangalore). We're cutting off motorcycles, I'm in awe of the random cows, goats, and dogs rummaging through the trash, and suddenly we skid and rear-end the Land Rover-sized vehicle in front of us.

Azumath puts it in park and hops out of the car (in the middle of crazy traffic) to discuss who is the bigger idiot in this wreck. Apparently, the other guy started to go left as the light was changing (remember, the lights are not followed closely, and left on red in India is light right on red in America). My driver was planning to go left also, but the big vehicle decided otherwise and stopped suddenly. No damage to the "Land Rover" and our car only cracked a headlight cover. The actual headlight was fine, but still. So I sat in the car while they worked it out and thought to myself, "this must be totally normal. Traffic is nuts, so obviously people get in crashes all the time." Well in any case, there was no insurance information or money exchanged. Azumath just got back in the car and we continued on our way. Other than pulling a U-turn in heavy traffic right in front of the access road to get me to work, the rest of the drive was otherwise uneventful.

Day 2 & 3 didn't have any such hiccups, but I was told by my driver and colleagues that the local city bus drivers were all on strike. Apparently they had just received a 4 or 5 percent pay raise, but they wanted more. Somehow buses on strike lead to less crowded roads, I guess. I don't know if people just stayed home, or if they all hopped in taxis instead. Either way, less buses somehow translates to less traffic...clearly, this doesn't apply in Chicago.

On Monday and Tuesday of this past week I didn't have any true traffic issues. Wednesday was the start of a traditional Indian celebration called Ganesha Chaturthi. Ganesh or Ganesha is the Hindu elephant-god. In a nutshell, the people of India will buy idols of the god and sing songs and chants specific to the festival. They keep the idol in their homes up to 10 days (or less, based on family tradition) and then they take the idol to a large body of water and submerge it. The link above gives more details, and the story is interesting if nothing else. Needless to say, it made for some good scenery on the commute with all the large, colourful (see what I did there?) Ganesha idols being sold along the road.

On Thursday, there was yet another "strike". This one was across the entire country for a recent hike in diesel prices imposed by the government. This strike was different than the bus strike from last week. In fact, this would be called a full-on protest in America, just short of a controlled riot. It was a planned event from 6AM to 6PM. Basically no cars were to be on the road during this time, and my colleagues at work told me to stay in my hotel all day. The hotel is near a stadium and some government offices in the center of Bangalore, so it is ground-zero for protesters. The hotel (and shopping mall it sits on top of) took extra precautionary measures to protect against anyone who might be inclined to throw rocks if the strike escalated.

From the local paper. A protective net draped over my hotel.

Finally, I've never really ridden a motorcycle. I rode a dirt bike around on some country roads in Nebraska at a friend's house one summer, but that's it. Until today. My company sponsored a weekend tournament for soccer (futbol) and throwball. The guys I've been working with on this training project invited me to come out, and of course I want to see more of the city and experience life outside my hotel room. Friday afternoon at work, Sai and Aravinda agreed that it would be best for Sai to pick me up and give me a ride to the fields on his "motorbike" (they are just not as suped-up as American crotch rockets or Harley's). Luckily everything went fine. No crashes, no falling off the bike, but I think my boss and girlfriend will both not be thrilled when they read this. I'm okay ladies! It was a little nerve wracking knowing that I was now on the low-end of the road hierarchy. Morning traffic wasn't bad, and Sai said he would take it easy, so I'm sure that helped. But I still am not comfortable with the constant beeping of cars and other vehicles alerting you that they are coming up beside you, so don't make any sudden moves.

My new team in India. L to R: Aravinda, Sandesh, Jayanth, Saicharan, and Sooraj.

That's all I've got for today. I'll keep posting these about once a week if I can. I usually have more time on the weekends, obviously. Hoping to get out and get some local photos and give you a quick run-down on the food lingo next week.

Take care!

Week 1 Down, 7(ish) to go

Hello from Bangalore!

Sorry I haven't blogged sooner. The long trip, time change, and working at night has really thrown my scheduling for a loop. I'm trying to make time to talk to people back home as well, and it's still all very new to me.

I departed Chicago on Monday afternoon for O'Hare airport. Rode the #77 bus from my place to Kuma's Corner for my final meal in Chicago for 2 months. (If you don't know by now, Kuma's is my go-to spot in the Chi.) I got the burger of the month: Black September. This burger is topped with braised goat, spinach, a black garlic sauce, and a rosemary(?) funnel cake. Goat was chewy, but the spinach and garlic added some amazing flavors. Washed it all down with a 3 Floyds Alpha King, and for a minute I was tempted to stay.

Yes, that is awesomeness oozing out onto the pretzel roll.

I hopped in a cab, and planned to arrive at O'Hare a little more than 2 hours early. I was under the impression international flights required a little added time for check-ins. Such was not the case. I flew business class (thanks company!) and got to skip the line....which was only one other couple in front of me at that moment. Security was fast. I guess Monday afternoon is not a busy time. So I was at my gate in about 20 minutes. Also, this was my opportunity to check out those secret lounges for "members only" in the airports. Let me tell you, the hype is justified. Free Espresso machine, Pepperidge Farm Milano Cookies, fruit, bottled water, soda, etc....just a free snack lounge with free Wi-Fi basically. So I guess it was still worth it to go 2+ hours early, but had I not just eaten the behemoth above, I would have definitely indulged more at the airport.

The flight from O'Hare to Frankfurt, Germany went by pretty quickly. This was my first time on a Boeing 747, I think. I've flown many times before, but I usually end up on the planes that are one aisle down the middle with 3 seats on each side, if not smaller. It was certainly the first time where flying business class meant more than a free drink and a seat near the front. That was part of it, but the luxury came in the form of fully reclining seats (not my pic). The trek to Germany was about 8.5 hours. They dimmed the lights, and most passengers slept a good portion of the trip. I watched movies instead of sleeping. MIB 3 (meh), Battleship (bad but entertaining), and Moonrise Kingdom (typical Wes Anderson, whom I enjoy). The one nervous moment was hitting some heavy turbulence (the pilot later said there were wind gusts of 250 miles per hour...yikes!) over the Atlantic Ocean.

On arrival in Germany, I had to change terminals. In doing so, I had to pass through security again. This was much slower than O'Hare. Lots of people leaving Frankfurt on Tuesday morning. I finally made it to my gate and again hit up the member's lounge. More free noms like espresso, fruit, water, etc. But at the Frankfurt airport they also had frankfurters (I know, right?) and sauerkraut, pastries (it was breakfast time, locally), and beer on tap! Since my clock was feeling midnight, I had a dog and a brew. I crashed out for about 2 hours in their sleeping quarters/quiet room before finally boarding my flight to Bangalore.

This time I slept most of the trip, only waking up occasionally to eat the airline meal service. It was actually pretty tasty, for "airplane food." You can check out the photos on my Facebook page. Getting through customs went pretty smoothly. I had to wait a bit for my bags, but no big deal there either. Then, the fun began.

As I started pushing the baggage cart out of the airport, I knew to watch for "my driver" who had been prearranged by my company. He was to be holding a sign with my name on it. Immediately upon exiting the secure area, I was approached consecutively by various tax drivers asking if I need a ride or help with my things. Living and working in Chicago for 5 years has given me thick enough skin to ignore panhandlers, so I basically used the same tactics and walked past everyone. Luckily, as soon as I exited the airport and hit the sidewalk, my driver was front and center. I say luckily, because there were easily 100 men holding signs with names and companies printed on them.

It was now after 1 AM local time, and traffic was almost nil for the drive to my hotel, and that's a very good thing. For one thing, in India they drive on the left, which is a strange feeling the first time you do it. Accordingly, everything happens opposite to what you'd expect in America. A left turn happens quickly and effortlessly, just as we would a right-hand turn in America. Also, they pass on the right, typically. These things take a little getting used to if you haven't spent time in Great Britain, etc. Additionally, they use their bright lights and horn to signal they are passing someone (as opposed to a turn signal) because lanes are basically a suggestion. In some cases, so are traffic lights. Every time we barreled through an intersection, I half-expected to be side-swiped by another vehicle.

The culture shock wasn't bad, as I've seen a few movies depicting the Indian lifestyle and crowded populations and had been told it was mostly accurate. Indeed, the streets are often lined with garbage. Sidewalks are broken up in many places, and the houses and shops all run together with the occasional temple/shrine thrown in between. Most are adobe brick or stucco houses with ribbed metal doors and windows. 4 out of 5 buildings look to be under construction. Basically, it's very dilapidated. My hotel is quite the opposite.

I have so much more I can tell, but this post is already dragging on. Suffice it to say, I still haven't told you or showed you much about my day-to-day life. But don't worry. I have at least 7 more full weeks to take pictures, record videos, and tell you stories. Believe me, there are many good stories to come, and I want to keep you interested and coming back for more ;)

For now, I will leave you with another video.....this is also very real, but varies from person to person. Already plenty of first-hand experience here to back it up, tho I cannot verify the brief history lesson at the beginning. Some of the other search results were a little more condescending, so hopefully no one takes offense to this as none is meant.

The Flight That Wasn't

Hello, I'm Matt! Hopefully this does not come as a surprise to you since you're already here. This is my blog about my upcoming trip to the country of India.

A quick overview of my trip....I work for a bank (you can easily find the company online, but since this blog isn't sponsored or "approved", I'll just leave the name out for now) with operations worldwide, including a major foothold in Bangalore, India. If you have no idea where Bangalore is, or want to know any general (unverified) information on the country, you can check out the wiki page here.

As I write this, I should be checking in at the Oakwood Premier Prestige hotel in Bangalore....but I'm not. My original travel dates were to be departing from O'Hare Airport in Chicago on September 6 at 3:20 PM CST on Lufthansa. My scheduled arrival at Bangalore International Airport was to be at 12:30 AM IST (India Standard Time) on Saturday, September 8. But none of that happened due to a strike for higher wages by Lufthansa cabin employees (not the pilots). I have been re-booked for Monday at the same time, and it looks like the strikes have been put on hold as the employer and employees union have agreed to settle the wage disagreement using arbitration. If all goes smoothly, I'll be checking in to my temporary home around this time on Tuesday. Bangalore is 10.5 hours ahead of Nebraska/Chicago time, so it will actually be very early Wednesday morning for me.