Indian cuisine is not the most popular in Moscow, so worthy restaurants can be counted on one hand. Nevertheless, she has a lot of fans, including among vegetarians and vegans. In addition, food flavored with unusual spices attracts variety seekers, and spiciness in restaurants can almost always be adjusted. “Big City” tells where to try Indian specialties – big thali, palak paneer, biryani, samosa, dal and other dishes.
To begin with, it is worth saying a few words about what Indian cuisine is. First, it is very diverse. What is eaten in the north and by the sea will never be eaten in the south – it simply does not exist there. In Moscow, we can try both.
Secondly, beef is not eaten in India because cows are sacred animals. Pork is also almost non-existent. Of the meat, chicken and lamb are popular, but many do not eat them either and are vegetarian or vegan. This is understandable: most of the year in many states there is intense heat and you simply do not want meat. Various types of legumes are popular.
The sea is far from being everywhere, so the states where fish and seafood are cooked can be counted on the fingers. In addition, in India, absolutely everything is cooked with spices and spicy, and seafood does not like this.
Young paneer cheese is very popular – in Russia it is remotely similar to Adyghe cheese. It is prepared in different forms: in tandoor and in different sauces, for example, in spinach (palak paneer is one of the most popular Indian dishes).
The basis of the cuisine is dishes in different sauces – it can be chicken, lamb, cheese or vegetables. The sauces are very different – from classic curry to unusual ones made with coconut milk or from tomatoes with different types of spices, which can drastically change the taste. Everyone is served rice.
Other important “chapters” of Indian cuisine are the “pilaf” biryani, tandoor and thali dishes.
The famous Indian apartment in a very unusual place for this format – on the Patriarch’s Ponds. And yet, the “apartment” has been here longer than most of the trendy restaurants around.
Everything here is special: starting with the fact that it really looks more like an Indian apartment “from the picture”, where the “residents” hardly speak Russian, and ending with the fact that there is no menu here.
In “Moscow – Delhi” you can have lunch and dinner thali – this is a large tray with rice in the center, and plates with various vegetarian dishes around it – here and gave, and vegetable salad, and raita, and paneer (Indian cheese). The dishes change regularly, but they are always adapted to the local taste – most of them are not spicy at all.
There is no alcohol here at all, and on some days sitar sounds – an instrument for performing classical Indian music. All together creates a pacifying atmosphere in which one wants to contemplate in a rhythm different from Moscow.
A network of corners with Indian food, and quite authentic. There are points on the Danilovsky market, in Briquette Market and MDM, and a full-fledged cafe operates in the IQ quarter of Moscow City.
The menu primarily includes different types of curry, traditional dishes of chicken, vegetables and cheese in thick sauces and dishes from the tandoor. All of them, as a rule, are served with rice and naan, an Indian thin wheat flatbread.
In addition, there are two types of “shawarma” in Indian style: cutti rolls with cheese and chicken. Both – with a lot of vegetables and seasoned with Indian spices. Indian biryani pilaf is also worth a try, and for vegetarians and vegans – dal, a thick bean soup. Portions are quite large: many dishes can be safely taken for two (for example, biryani and dishes in sauces).
Another small chain of one restaurant on Mira Avenue and several corners. The chefs are mostly from India and do not speak Russian, and the names on the menu often do not add understanding of what kind of dish they are offering – the description, pictures and consultations of the cashier save.
The corners themselves, the menu and the food look so that there is no doubt about authenticity, except that they adapt the spice. And this is true: if a person from Russia is prepared a dish of classic Indian spiciness, he will hardly be able to eat more than one spoonful, with the exception of lovers of especially spicy food.
The menu has all the classics, and quite a few dishes with lamb – they love it in India. For vegetarians and vegans, there is also a lot of things – paneer in various sauces, and vegetable and tofu dishes. Portions are large, cooked quickly, served in traditional Indian dishes, which is especially nice.
Another fairly authentic Indian restaurant should be looked for near the Ulitsa 1905 Goda metro station. The interior here is not at all like the fashionable restaurants of Moscow, and it cannot be called solemn – that’s why it is even more interesting. You need to go here for food.
The menu has salads that are not popular in India, and among them the completely non-Indian “Greek” and “Caesar” side by side with the Ayurvedic Health salad of chickpeas, green peas, red beans, sweet corn, red and green peppers with Indian spices in olive oil.
The rest is worth studying in sections: soups, hot appetizers from vegetables and seafood and meat, tandoor dishes, hot dishes from chicken, young lamb and seafood, rice dishes, vegetable dishes, desserts and bread. Everything is very traditional – from naans to palak paneer, malai kofta and lamb vindaloo from northern India.
A more modern Indian restaurant – without traditional decor and furniture, but with lots of plants in the hall and neon lights. True, it is located in a very atypical place for such establishments – next to the Izmailovsky Kremlin.
Justifying the name, they offer several types of thali, and with geographical affiliation – from the north and south of India (the cuisines in different states differ very much) and from Delhi. In addition to all the classic dishes in sauces, biryani and paneer in different variations, Thali has momo (Tibetan dumplings) and samosas, both in vegan versions and with chicken.
