India is basically a continent with many countries in one. Communities, cultures, cuisines change after every 100 miles. There are 28 states a handful of Union Territories and each state will offer you atleast 2-3 cuisines. So I hope you get the picture of how diverse India actually is. Also there is no such thing as an Indian cuisine but a list of cuisines from India. And there is no such thing as curry spice in India. Curry basically translates to a sauce or gravy cooked with different spices and which spices are cooked together, defines the curry. Barbequed and fried items are not curries unless a sauce or gravy is added to the dish. The north indian curries are dairy based whereas the south indian curries are coconut or groundnut based. You will also find plenty of cuisines to try from various regions in India. The more popular cuisines are - Mughlai cuisine - (Delhi, North Indian) dishes eg Mughlai chicken, Changezi, Nihari, Mughlai Paratha, Haleem, Keema, Pulao, Kadai, Pasanda, Mughlai biryani,etc Kashmiri cuisine (Kashmir, North Indian) - Rogan Josh, Goshtaba Punjabi cuisine - (Punjab & Delhi, North Indian) eg Tandoori Chicken, Butter Chicken, Tikka Masala, Sarson ka Saag, Rajma chawal, Palak Paneer, Amritsi Kulcha, Chole Bhature, Chana Masala, Dal Makhani, Naan, Bhatura etc Tamil cuisine - (Tamil Nadu, South Indian) eg Dosa, Idli, Uttapam, Vada, Chettinad Chicken, Chicken 65, Sambar, Pongal, Payasam, Upma, Ambur Biryani etc Malyalee cuisine - (Kerela, South Indian) eg Prawns in coconut gravy, karimeen fish, Beef Masala fry, Puttu, Appam, Idiyappam, Fish Molee, Thalassery Biryani, Banana chips etc Kannada cuisine (Bangalore, South Indian) - Udupi Masala Dosa, Bisi Bele Bath, Kori Roti Awadhi cuisine - (Lucknow, North Indian) eg Musallam, do Pyaaza, Korma, Galouti Kebabs, Malai kofta, Rumali roti, Chaat, Aloo gobhi, Gulab Jamun, Badami Chicken, Lucknowi biryani etc Bengali cuisine- (Kolkata, East Indian) eg Fish in Mustard gravy, Mutton Kosha and Chaap, Mishti Doi, Prawn Malaikari, Bhapa Ilish, Muri Ghonto,Aloo Poshto, Luchi, sandesh, rasogulla, Jhal Muri, Kolkata Biryani etc Goanese cuisine- (Goa, West Indian) eg Vindaloo, Xacuti, Cafreal, Sorpotel, Bebinca, Dangar, etc Gujrati cuisine - (Ahmedabad, West Indian) eg Dhokla, Khandhvi, Khakra, Shrikhand, Kadhi, Thepla, etc Marathi cuisine - (Mumbai, West Indian) eg Pav Bhaji, Misal Pav, Vada Pav, Chicken Kolhapuri, Batata Vada, Modak, Bhakarvadi, etc Andhra cuisine (Hyderabad, South Indian) - Pulihora, Pootharerkulu, Ulava Chaaru, Hyderabadi Biryani Indo-chinese - (Kolkata, Shillong) Chowmein, manchurian chicken/pork, sweet & sour pork, chilly chicken/pork, springrolls, Szechwan, etc Sikkimese cuisine ( North East Indian) - Momos Dishes from my community are exotic and you won't find them in Indian cities, except places which are within 100miles from where I am. That is again how diverse India is. Indian food is definitely spicy, as in a whole gamut of spices are used as ingredients while preparing the dishes, hence it's very flavorful. But that does not mean every dish packs in heat. Only dishes which have a significant amount of chilly peppers will be hot. Infact some dishes are even on the sweeter side because of the use of dairy products and dried fruits. A typical Indian meal is eaten in a thali. A thali refers to the plate that a thali meal may be served on. The idea behind a thali is to offer all the 6 different flavours of sweet, salt, bitter, sour, astringent and spicy on one single plate. According to Indian food custom, a proper meal should be a perfect balance of all these six flavours. So a typical normal Indian thali would consist of the following- 1. Rice 2. Flat bread 3. Lentil soup (dal) 4. Appetizer ( papad/Papadum) 5. Fried vegetable 6. Vegetable cooked in a gravy sauce 7. Fresh salad vegetable 8. Choice of Meat (chicken/mutton/fish) 9. Curd 10. Pickles / chutneys 11. Sweet dish Dishes served in a thali vary from region to region and cuisine to cuisine in the Indian subcontinent and are usually served in small bowls, called katori in India. These katoris are placed along the edge of the round tray, the actual thali. Sometimes a steel tray with multiple compartments is also used. The number of dish items may increase if you are inviting a guest home. But in some restaurants, people go overboard with the thali concept, where, each thali consist of 40-50 dishes. You can search for- Dara Singh thali Bahubali thali Big Boss Thali Ravan Thali to get an idea of what I mean. Here are some Thalis from different states - food-ndtv-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/food.ndtv.com/food-drinks/13-grand-indian-thalis-you-need-to-try-at-least-once-in-your-life-1758079?amp_js_v=a6&amp_gsa=1&amp=1&akamai-rum=off#referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com&amp_tf=From%20%251%24s&ampshare=https%3A%2F%2Ffood.ndtv.com%2Ffood-drinks%2F13-grand-indian-thalis-you-need-to-try-at-least-once-in-your-life-1758079 The most important thing about Thalis is their unlimited refills concept. Here are some tips on eating Indian food - 1. Start off with starters like a kebab or tandoori platter usually served with tamarind sauce, mint or yoghurt sauce. 2. Next we then have the flat bread (roti, chapati, naan, puri, paratha, kulcha, bhatura) www-indiafoodnetwork-in.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.indiafoodnetwork.in/amp/food-stories/the-ultimate-guide-to-the-breads-of-india/?amp_js_v=a6&amp_gsa=1 with some of the side dishes, either vegetarian or non vegetarian curry aka gravy aka sauce. You tear the bread and scoop out the meat along with sauce/gravy/curry. The warmer the bread the more the flavors and less chewy. 3. Then we take the rice into the plate and have it with the lentils or veg/meat sauce/gravy/curry and clean it all up. The hotter the rice, the more chance your mouth will get burnt. And If you are having the biryani rice, you take it with a salan gravy and a raita based yoghurt dip. And it's a complete meal on its own. There are 20+ varieties of biryanis depending on which community is cooking it and the region from where it's from. And many will argue that vegetable Biryani is not a biryani. www.whatsuplife.in/different-variety-types-biryani-india 4. Finally finish off with a sweet desert either gulab jamun, rasogulla, kheer, payasam, barfi, sandesh etc We don't scoop out the bread and rice and the sauces/gravy/ curries together at the same time. Also many people eat samosas in their meals on KZfaq but then Samosas are usually eaten as a snack during tea time. Also some people have just the bread or rice along with the side dishes as eating both bread and rice at the same time can be too heavy in a single meal. If you are feeling adventurous and plan on eating with your hands, especially rice, you pour the curry sauce on the rice then use your fingers (not the palm) to roll the rice to somthing like a ball, then take the thumb behind the rice ball, take your hand close to your mouth, and then push the rice into your mouth with your thumb. Would love to see you cooking out more Indian meals from various cuisines from India. ☺️