# Curry and pasta?



## JustJoel

Would it be too weird to serve, say, chicken tikka masala or malai kofta on pasta instead of on rice and/or with naan? I know that the ultimate answer to this question is “try it and see, coward!” I just would like to know _before_ I try it is if there’s a reason _not _to try it. It’s certainly not something I’ve seen in Indian cookbooks (or Italian ones, for that matter), or on Indian restaurant menus (Italian restaurants: see above).

Indian food, although it’s gaining some respect here in the States, is still much more popular across the Pond. Is curry pasta something that seems odd or off to you over there? When you hear “baked curry ziti,” for instance, do you think “hmmmm interesting,” “that’s so last century,” “had some yesterday from the local takeaway,” or “the very idea makes me retch?”


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## CakePoet

No...  you can use chapati, poppadoms, Bombay potatoes , roti, doza , Appam and Pathiri with currys  so why pasta?


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## JustJoel

CakePoet said:


> No...  you can use chapati, poppadoms, Bombay potatoes , roti, doza , Appam and Pathiri with currys  so why pasta?


Well, there’s a question I left out of my post!

I like pasta, and it’s easy for me to chew it, although I usually have to cook dried pasta a little past al dente. It’s also fast, easy, and readily available. And it’s a good magnet for fathers flavors of the sauce, especially if you finish cooking it in the sauce.

So that, for me, is “why pasta.”


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## JustJoel

PS It just occurred to me that curry udon is very popular in Japan and 
Korea. There’s an example of curry on pasta, although udon is quite different from Italian pasta, it’s still a noodle! And Japanese curry isn’t Indian curry; they’re only remotely related. But it’s still described as “curry.”


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## Rascal

I make my own and buy takeaway sometimes, curry and rice, not pasta. I wouldn't even try it. Indian is addictive here, I dry roast my own seeds and grind to make my own Garam masala. My tandoori chicken is heaven.

Russ


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## CakePoet

Well make Japanese  curry with udon then.  
Also there is minute rice, microwave rice and you can cook it to mush if it to hard to chew. 
I make curries most  Saturdays, but now I am having a wee break  but then we are back to  Thoran khozi and  Korma , I do a really good black curry.


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## CakePoet

Also the idea of because the same name, the are they same isnt true. Trust me, you cant exchange  Danish pölsa for Swedish pölsa.


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## JustJoel

CakePoet said:


> Also the idea of because the same name, the are they same isnt true. Trust me, you cant exchange  Danish pölsa for Swedish pölsa.


The same, no. I already stipulated that. They’re “remotely” related. And there’s packaged, baked naan, as well as minute rice and instant rice. And I’ll certainly cast your vote in the “what’s the point?’ column. I’ve got to ask alternate question though. Why _not?_ “Just because there are so many other things” has been stated; are there _other_ reasons not to fuse the two? Too starchy, or intrusive, or, I don’t know, it loses the Indian quality?


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## CakePoet

Well why fuse them? 

Also  curries are not one thing, there is many and yes there might be one that perfect with pasta  but rice suck up liquid better then  pasta and that is what is needed in a good curry dish.  You need something to absorb the spices and sauce, not coat as pasta do.


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## CraigC

Funny, the first thing that comes to mind when curry is mentioned, is Thai curries. Yes, they serve curry with noodles. Of the Indian stuff I've tried so far, I'd rather have Thai.


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## buckytom

What Craigsy said.

Think of Singapore Mei Fun, which is angel hair like pasta with veggies and meats in a  curry sauce.


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## larry_stewart

I make a Burmese dish that is basically a coconut based curry that is served over pasta ( supposed to be rice noodles, I prefer linguini).  Its my sons favorite dish,

I say go for it.  The pasta won't make it taste  bad, and will be a nice vessel to absorb  the sauce.

I occasional put chili over pasta and I love  it.


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## CraigC

larry_stewart said:


> I make a Burmese dish that is basically a coconut based curry that is served over pasta ( supposed to be rice noodles, I prefer linguini).  Its my sons favorite dish,
> 
> I say go for it.  The pasta won't make it taste  bad, and will be a nice vessel to absorb  the sauce.
> 
> *I occasional put chili over pasta and I love  it.*



Love it! I also add sharp cheddar and raw sweet onions.


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## Rocklobster

buckytom said:


> What Craigsy said.
> 
> Think of Singapore Mei Fun, which is angel hair like pasta with veggies and meats in a  curry sauce.


Beat me to it..we call it vermicelli up here..one of my fave Chinese dishes..


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## buckytom

Little worms?

I'd rather think of it as hair. 

Lol. Really skinny spaghetti. That's better.


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## Rocklobster

buckytom said:


> Little worms?
> 
> I'd rather think of it as hair.
> 
> Lol. Really skinny spaghetti. That's better.


Yeah..worms, hair, either one. Better than hairy worms, I guess..


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## buckytom

You mean Leaf's fans? Absolutely.


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## Rocklobster

Getting sickening up here with their recent good fortunes and my Habs dwelling in the basement.


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## PrincessFiona60

Try it on the pasta, Joel.  See if it affects the flavor too much for you.  You know, as well as I do, there is nothing wrong with adventure and trying out new things.  Eat what you love!


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## CharlieD

I see why you are asking. I would be too. i believe that there are some foods that just do not play well together. However Curry chicken and pasta, even the one cooked past al dente (incidentally I hate al dente) for sure will work.


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## roadfix

Kare-e udon!


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## CakePoet

Well here is the thing, you go curry and then just make a broad sweep. The person didnt ask about  Japanese or Thai curries but suggest Indian curries. 

So if you do want  Karee Udon or Khao Soi, why not  make that instead of  tikka masala with udon? 

The dishes has the same name but are far from the same thing ,   Indian curries relay  on the rice or bread to suck  up the sauce while Kare udon uses the sauce to coat the udons, see the difference?  

But yeah   people should eat what they like and mix, who knows vanilla ice cream might be totally lovely on a donut with grav lax.


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## PrincessFiona60

Maybe because the person likes the flavors of Tikka Masala,  but is unable to eat the rice?  Pasta is a worthy and neutral device, potatoes would even be a good choice. When you have problems chewing or a dietary preference, you should be able to make or suggest changes without people screaming about "authenticity."


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## CakePoet

Sorry, people should just eat what they want and not care.  

I just wonder what rice the person used to cook?  A basmati is so soft and so is jasmine, I do remember that parboiled was chewy ( havent had that for years) and so was brown rice.


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## CraigC

CakePoet said:


> Well here is the thing, you go curry and then just make a broad sweep. *The person didnt ask about  Japanese or Thai curries but suggest Indian curries.
> *
> So if you do want  Karee Udon or Khao Soi, why not  make that instead of  tikka masala with udon?
> 
> The dishes has the same name but are far from the same thing ,   Indian curries relay  on the rice or bread to suck  up the sauce while Kare udon uses the sauce to coat the udons, see the difference?
> 
> But yeah   people should eat what they like and mix, who knows vanilla ice cream might be totally lovely on a donut with grav lax.



The title didn't specify Indian curry. When someone starts a post with "Curry" the first thing that pops in my mind is Thai curry. If the OP had put "Indian" in the title I would not have opened the thread.


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## buckytom

If there was ever a food that lent itself to interpretation, Curry would have to be near or at the top of the list.

I just had a West Indian curry-like dish a few weeks ago, called Espegetti ak Makroel', or smoked mackerel in what could only be called a spicy dry curry, that was served mixed with spaghetti and Scotch Bonnets.

(The more common fish used is smoked herring, or Aranso', but my coworkers mil made this for me after I gave him some of my whole smoked mackerel)


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## tenspeed

larry_stewart said:


> I occasional put chili over pasta and I love  it.


  Time for a road trip to Cincinnati for a visit to Skyline Chili.

https://www.skylinechili.com/ways.php

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cincinnati_chili


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## Mad Cook

JustJoel said:


> Would it be too weird to serve, say, chicken tikka masala or malai kofta on pasta instead of on rice and/or with naan? I know that the ultimate answer to this question is “try it and see, coward!” I just would like to know _before_ I try it is if there’s a reason _not _to try it. It’s certainly not something I’ve seen in Indian cookbooks (or Italian ones, for that matter), or on Indian restaurant menus (Italian restaurants: see above).
> 
> Indian food, although it’s gaining some respect here in the States, is still much more popular across the Pond. Is curry pasta something that seems odd or off to you over there? When you hear “baked curry ziti,” for instance, do you think “hmmmm interesting,” “that’s so last century,” “had some yesterday from the local takeaway,” or “the very idea makes me retch?”


I don't see why you shouldn't eat curry with pasta. When you think about it naan bread is sometimes served instead of rice and naan (other Indian breads are available)and pasta are really only cousins (ie made with flour of one sort or another.)

Anyway - "Chaq'un a son gout" as the French say - I know people who eat chip butties ("butty" = British vernacular for a sandwich), chips with curry sauce, and jam with cheese. So why not have whatever you want on your plate. When I was a student I shared a flat with Ann who was an ex-*public school girl who was a "Cordon Bleu" cook and Sandra, an Anglo-Indian girl whose mother sent her back to college at the beginning of term with a box of goodies including _curried_ Cornish pasties.

(* A "public school" in GB is a whole different thing to a public school in the US. Ann's public school was short-listed for the Queen's daughter!).

Try your curry with pasta and see if you like it.


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## CharlieD

CraigC said:


> The title didn't specify Indian curry. When someone starts a post with "Curry" the first thing that pops in my mind is Thai curry. If the OP had put "Indian" in the title I would not have opened the thread.



Speaking of necessity of being clear. I, on the opposite side, right away thought about Indian curries.


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## Rascal

Indian curries DONT go with noodles. They do however come with a naan. States people just don't get it I think. You need to visit the uk to see how popular it is. You're be strung up if you served it with noodles.

Just saaaaying

Russ


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## GotGarlic

Rascal said:


> Indian curries DONT go with noodles. They do however come with a naan. States people just don't get it I think. You need to visit the uk to see how popular it is. You're be strung up if you served it with noodles.
> 
> Just saaaaying
> 
> Russ


Rascal, we get it. The OP has problems chewing, so asked the question. Authenticity is not always the primary goal.

Also, ever heard of fusion cuisine?  It's been a major trend here for years.


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## larry_stewart

GotGarlic said:


> Also, ever heard of fusion cuisine?  It's been a major trend here for years.



I was thinking the same exact thing.  I actually did a search ( the day this thread was started ) and found many Indian Fusion restaurants some here and some in New Delhi in which some type of curry is served with some type of noodle.

Not sure why some people are so afraid of mix and matching cuisines or trying something new.

If no one ever tried anything new or anything out of their region cooking and eating would be very boring.

Ever since trade has existed there has been some kind of mixing up cuisines, difference  spices, ingredients ...


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## Rascal

GotGarlic said:


> Rascal, we get it. The OP has problems chewing, so asked the question. Authenticity is not always the primary goal.
> 
> Also, ever heard of fusion cuisine?  It's been a major trend here for years.



Fusion sometimes ends as confusion. But I get it. I don't try to change things like fish n chips, it's what it is, curry n rice. Italian with fettucine, my fave. To each his own, I'm addicted to curries, I make really good curries, well so my family and friends say so. I'm on a few a merry can food sites so the subject has been broached there, not many interested in Indian cooking on those sites. Just my observations. Hope I didn't upset anyone.

Russ


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## GotGarlic

No one is upset. Just saying, the fact that we're more adventurous with food doesn't mean we don't understand the traditional ways  Wanting something other than the traditional way of doing things is a primary reason why most of our ancestors came here


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## CakePoet

rascal: thank you .

The reason I said Indian curries is because  curries the person used as example are   Indian, well   Tikka Masala isnt, it was invented in Glasgow by Indian  restaurant who had left over chicken tikka . 

But what do I know, I live in the land of meatballs.  Oh yeah my husband is Scottish and  as wedding gift from his father I got my husbands favorite  curry recipes and I been cooking Indian curries for the last 8 years and  oddly enough  UK has strong  Indian curry culture.

And rice should be soft, it should has a softer chew then pasta al dente, that confuses me, but then again I dont use uncle ben rice or parboiled.


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## PrincessFiona60

Until you have a problem with chewing AND swallowing different textures, you won't understand.


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## CakePoet

Well, the rice they have here for people who has chewing and  swallowing is a  very soft sticky rice and they avoid pasta because  of the texture.   Yes, I know Swedish old people are different but  the idea  should be the same? Hence I ask what type of rice, since rice isnt one thing as most seam to think.


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## PrincessFiona60

Each person is an individual, the _OP_ has a problem with rice. Doesn't matter why, he has a problem with rice!


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## buckytom

You know, I think we're on to something here. How to make whole wheat pasta taste good: Tikka!


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## Rascal

Rice has to be basmati btw. 

Cakepoet... Care to share 1 recipe from Scotland please.? I spent a couple of weeks in Inverness years ago. Never had a curry there.

Russ


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## CakePoet

I can give you mince and tatties  that is a rather typical  Scottish dish.


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## Rascal

BB





CakePoet said:


> I can give you mince and tatties  that is a rather typical  Scottish dish.



That's not what I asked??  Hmmm.

Russ


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## PrincessFiona60

Rascal said:


> BB
> 
> That's not what I asked??  Hmmm.
> 
> Russ




Re-ask your question, English is a second language for CakePoet and she may not have understood your request.


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## caseydog

Wow, how did this become an argument?

Make some curry and some pasta, and eat it. If you like it, make it again. If you don't like it, don't make it again. That's what cooking is all about, IMO. You make stuff. You eat it. You decide if you like it, or not. Nobody can make that decision for you. 

CD


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## taxlady

I thought the question was more along the lines of "is there a gotcha that I should consider before making pasta with a curry?" BTW, I can't think of a gotcha.


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## caseydog

taxlady said:


> I thought the question was more along the lines of "is there a gotcha that I should consider before making pasta with a curry?" BTW, *I can't think of a gotcha*.



Either can I. It is an experiment that will cost ten bucks, maybe. Just do it. If it doesn't work out, don't do it again -- and tell us about it. 

CD


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## larry_stewart

Kinda  like I said earlier, if no one experimented and tried eating new things, we'd still be eating local  roots and berries like our ancient ancestors. With the invention of trade and travel began the mixing of different ingredients, spices .... 

I think he was curious about our opinion as if it would work.  I personally think it would.  Although Ive never done it with Indian curries, I have had other Asian curries  over some sort of pasta and it was great.  If someone disagrees with not trying something new or nothing a culinary purist , let them stick to eating roots and berries.  

Heck, being a vegetarian/ vegan, Im about as close to eating roots and berries than anyone here  , and I still mix and match other cuisines (roots and berries from other regions, of course  )

And more importantly , if there is a chewing issue, and pasta works for him, who is anyone to argue that it should be served with rice, which apparently he has more difficulty with ).

Now if you want the best of both worlds, assuming chewing function-wise, you can handle it,  try using orzo which is a pasta similar in shape to rice.  That being said, you may have the same chewing issues with it as you do rice, if size and shape are the issue.


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## CakePoet

Rascal, most recipe I use are Madhur Jaffery and  that you can google.

Sad that you never went to  Saffron Indian or Bengal Tandoori when you were in Inverness.


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## Mad Cook

larry_stewart said:


> I was thinking the same exact thing. I actually did a search ( the day this thread was started ) and found many Indian Fusion restaurants some here and some in New Delhi in which some type of curry is served with some type of noodle.
> 
> Not sure why some people are so afraid of mix and matching cuisines or trying something new.
> 
> If no one ever tried anything new or anything out of their region cooking and eating would be very boring.
> 
> Ever since trade has existed there has been some kind of mixing up cuisines, difference spices, ingredients ...


Here, here!


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## Mad Cook

Rascal said:


> Indian curries DONT go with noodles. They do however come with a naan. States people just don't get it I think. You need to visit the uk to see how popular it is. You're be strung up if you served it with noodles.
> 
> Just saaaaying
> 
> Russ


Actually there is nothing in the Sub-continent that is actually called "curry". It's a catch-all name for any spicy foods and what is churned out in Indian/ Pakistani/Bangladeshi/etc., restaurants is what the proprietors think the British (and probably the Americans) want the food to be like. The word "curry", which just comes from "kari", the Tamil general word for "sauce", was wished on the food of the Sub-continent by the Brits of the colonial era, very few of whom bothered to learn the local languages, customs or recipes of their "subjects".

(One of my student flat-mates came from Darjeeling and had a British father, from a family which had been domiciled in India for 4 or 5 generations, and an Indian mother.)


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## Mad Cook

caseydog said:


> Wow, how did this become an argument?
> 
> Make some curry and some pasta, and eat it. If you like it, make it again. If you don't like it, don't make it again. That's what cooking is all about, IMO. You make stuff. You eat it. You decide if you like it, or not. Nobody can make that decision for you.
> 
> CD


Bravo!Three rousing cheers for common sense!


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## buckytom

The staid British idea of curry is no longer an absolute truth.

Enough time has passed, and enough "Americanization" has occurred that Indian nationals, co-workers of mine, say that curry is a commonly used culinary term in Southern Asia.


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## CakePoet

True but the  curries the person used to start with was  one Glaswegian curry and one Indian, the  person never said Thai or Japanese and so I based my statement on what said person used as an example . 

Had said person said I need a Thai noodle curry recipe  I would gladly have given  the person a Khao Soi recipe.


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## Kitchen Barbarian

So to the folks whinging on about how pasta is SO non-Indian, pasta IS, in fact, regularly used in Indian cooking.  They call it "vermicelli" or "semiya". It most often pops up in desert recipes, but is used in savory cooking as well.

https://snapguide.com/guides/cook-indian-style-vermicelli/
https://food.ndtv.com/recipe-vermicelli-upma-855092
https://food52.com/recipes/27330-south-indian-style-noodles-with-vegetables-vermicelli
 Spicy Indian Noodles recipe | How to make Spicy Indian Noodles
https://www.carveyourcraving.com/perfect-veg-hakka-noodles-indo-chinese/
https://recipes.timesofindia.com/recipes/veg-hakka-noodles/rs53523261.cms

Arguments about "authenticity" are usually stupid.  Sure, sometimes something is SO FAR OFF for the cuisine in question that you might as well not try to make the connection at all.  But I've had know-it-all-white-guys rag on me for supposedly "inauthentic" Indian recipes THAT WERE TAUGHT TO ME BY MY SOUTH INDIAN MOTHER IN LAW WHO WAS BORN IN 1911 and never went more than 5 miles from home in her life.  The woman didn't even speak English.  She taught me by DEMONSTRATION and sign language.  Yet I had one of these jerks tell me she had obviously been "polluted" by contact with Westerners - and I was the first non-Indian she had ever met in her life, in 1983, when she was already 72 years old.

And while we're at it, referring to the UK as a source for authenticity in Indian cooking is ridiculous.  I'm sure things have improved there over the years (as they have here) but the vast majority of "indian curry" over there has been of the Yellow Glop variety.  Remember who invented "Major Grey's".

There are a LOT of "staples" in the Indian diet that ARE NOT "authentic" because they came from the New World and didn't make their way to India until the 18th or 19th centuries.  Like potatoes, tomatoes, and that now-considered-wholly-"authentic"-and-ubiquitous fruit, HOT PEPPERS.

CUISINES EVOLVE.  They do not stay the same.  So contribute to the evolution in whatever way suits you.

So for this purpose, just toss the nonsense about "authenticity" out the window and give it a try.  If you like it, do it again.  It might help to chop the pasta so you don't have long strands.


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## Rascal

KB, got that off your chest,lol.

Russ


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## buckytom

Well said, KB.


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## Mad Cook

Kitchen Barbarian said:


> So to the folks whinging on about how pasta is SO non-Indian, pasta IS, in fact, regularly used in Indian cooking.  They call it "vermicelli" or "semiya". It most often pops up in desert recipes, but is used in savory cooking as well.
> 
> https://snapguide.com/guides/cook-indian-style-vermicelli/
> https://food.ndtv.com/recipe-vermicelli-upma-855092
> https://food52.com/recipes/27330-south-indian-style-noodles-with-vegetables-vermicelli
> Spicy Indian Noodles recipe | How to make Spicy Indian Noodles
> https://www.carveyourcraving.com/perfect-veg-hakka-noodles-indo-chinese/
> https://recipes.timesofindia.com/recipes/veg-hakka-noodles/rs53523261.cms
> 
> Arguments about "authenticity" are usually stupid.  Sure, sometimes something is SO FAR OFF for the cuisine in question that you might as well not try to make the connection at all.  But I've had know-it-all-white-guys rag on me for supposedly "inauthentic" Indian recipes THAT WERE TAUGHT TO ME BY MY SOUTH INDIAN MOTHER IN LAW WHO WAS BORN IN 1911 and never went more than 5 miles from home in her life.  The woman didn't even speak English.  She taught me by DEMONSTRATION and sign language.  Yet I had one of these jerks tell me she had obviously been "polluted" by contact with Westerners - and I was the first non-Indian she had ever met in her life, in 1983, when she was already 72 years old.
> 
> And while we're at it, referring to the UK as a source for authenticity in Indian cooking is ridiculous.  I'm sure things have improved there over the years (as they have here) but the vast majority of "indian curry" over there has been of the Yellow Glop variety.  Remember who invented "Major Grey's".
> 
> There are a LOT of "staples" in the Indian diet that ARE NOT "authentic" because they came from the New World and didn't make their way to India until the 18th or 19th centuries.  Like potatoes, tomatoes, and that now-considered-wholly-"authentic"-and-ubiquitous fruit, HOT PEPPERS.
> 
> CUISINES EVOLVE.  They do not stay the same.  So contribute to the evolution in whatever way suits you.
> 
> So for this purpose, just toss the nonsense about "authenticity" out the window and give it a try.  If you like it, do it again.  It might help to chop the pasta so you don't have long strands.


Bravo, Kitchen Barbarian!


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## Mad Cook

buckytom said:


> ]The staid British idea of curry is no longer an absolute truth.
> 
> 
> Enough time has passed, and enough "Americanization" has occurred that Indian nationals, co-workers of mine, say that curry is a commonly used culinary term in Southern Asia.



Exactly! And it never was "an absolute truth.

"India" is a huge sub-continent and food varies as much as the people. As well as  Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, all varieties of Christians and many other religions, to say nothing of long-established former British families who stayed after independence, there are centuries old Jewish communities (when Marco Polo visited India in the 12th century he found a long-established Jewish trading community and there is one Jewish community claims to be descended from merchants sent by the biblical King Solomon!).

Difficult to be too picky about "real" Indian cooking when you have such a wide culinary history as that. 

(History teacher at it again!!)


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## buckytom

It's easier to categorize, or compartmentalize something in order to understand it. 

But to be a part of something is to be fluid with it. 

I guess that's why they call people stuck in their ideas "sticks in the mud".

Getting back to Southern Asian pasta, go for it, or become a muddy stick.


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## CakePoet

So why do even  have cooking forums when the answer is always do as you please?


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## CraigC

CakePoet said:


> So why do even  have cooking forums when the answer is always do as you please?



I don't know, sharing ideas and recipes maybe.


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## CakePoet

But there is no right or  wrong way of a recipe, it just do as you please , so how can we share recipes?


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## PrincessFiona60

Maybe the problem here is the OP needed to try something new in order to BE ABLE to eat. He asked it it would be doable...it is doable.



He was not looking for authenticity, but a substitute to be able to eat.


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