Indian Food: Curry, Spices and Naan – answers and explanations
Here are the answers to all 15 questions in the Indian Food: Curry, Spices and Naan quiz, each with a short explanation. From tandoori and biryani to samosas, dosas and chai – how well do you know Indian food? Haven't played yet? Take the quiz first and compare your score.
Play the quiz · 15 questions1. Which spice gives many curries and dal their bright yellow colour?
Answer: Turmeric
Turmeric is the spice that gives curries and dal their bright yellow-gold colour. It is made from the dried, ground root of a plant in the ginger family, and its colour comes from a pigment called curcumin.
2. Naan and tandoori chicken are traditionally cooked in what kind of oven?
Answer: A clay tandoor
Naan and tandoori chicken are traditionally cooked in a tandoor, a cylindrical clay oven heated by charcoal or wood. Naan dough is slapped onto the oven's hot inner wall, and the meat is cooked on long skewers lowered inside.
3. Paneer, used in dishes like saag paneer, is what kind of food?
Answer: A fresh, non-melting cheese
Paneer is a fresh cheese that does not melt. It is made by curdling hot milk with an acid such as lemon juice or vinegar and then pressing the curds. Because it keeps its shape when heated, it works well in curries and grills.
4. The South Indian dosa is a thin crispy pancake made mainly from rice and what?
Answer: Lentils
Dosa batter is made by soaking and grinding rice with urad dal (black gram lentils). The batter is left to ferment, usually overnight, before it is spread thin on a hot griddle, which gives the dosa its slightly sour taste.
5. Raita, served to cool spicy dishes, is mainly made from which ingredient?
Answer: Yoghurt
Raita is a yoghurt-based side dish that cools the mouth when eating spicy food. It is often mixed with cucumber, mint, onion or tiny fried gram-flour balls called boondi, and seasoned with roasted cumin.
6. The fiery curry vindaloo originated in which Indian state, with Portuguese influence?
Answer: Goa
Vindaloo comes from Goa. It grew out of the Portuguese dish carne de vinha d'alhos, meat cooked with wine and garlic, which Goan cooks changed by using vinegar and plenty of chillies.
7. The Indian staple dal is a dish made mainly from what?
Answer: Lentils or split pulses
Dal means dried split pulses, such as lentils, peas or beans, and also the stew made from them. It is an everyday staple across South Asia and is often eaten with rice or flatbreads.
8. Which curry-house classic is known as one of the mildest, made with cream and nuts?
Answer: Korma
Korma is a mild, creamy curry that is often made with yoghurt, cream and ground nuts such as cashews or almonds. Its roots are in Mughal court cooking, and in British curry houses it is the usual choice for people who don't like heat.
9. Which spice, sold as small green pods, is a key flavour in masala chai?
Answer: Cardamom
Green cardamom comes in small pods and is the main flavour in masala chai. The tea is spiced black tea brewed with milk, and it often also contains ginger, cinnamon, cloves and black pepper.
10. Chicken tikka masala is often claimed to have been invented in which British city?
Answer: Glasgow
The best-known story says chicken tikka masala was invented at the Shish Mahal restaurant in Glasgow in the 1970s. Chef Ali Ahmed Aslam is said to have made a tomato-based sauce for a customer who found his chicken tikka too dry.
11. The Hindi name of the spice blend 'garam masala' roughly translates as what?
Answer: Hot spice mix
In Hindi, 'garam' means hot or warm and 'masala' means a spice mixture. The 'heat' refers to spices thought to warm the body in Ayurvedic tradition, such as cinnamon, cloves and black pepper, rather than chilli heat.
12. The ghost pepper, once ranked the world's hottest chilli, comes from which country?
Answer: India
The ghost pepper, or bhut jolokia, comes from northeast India, in states such as Assam, Nagaland and Manipur. In 2007, Guinness World Records named it the world's hottest chilli. Hotter peppers such as the Carolina Reaper have since taken that title.
13. Which Indian drink is popular in sweet, salty and mango versions?
Answer: Lassi
Lassi is a yoghurt-based drink from the Punjab region. It comes in sweet and salted versions, and mango lassi, made with mango pulp, is a favourite in Indian restaurants around the world.
14. A curry-house jalfrezi is typically stir-fried with which vegetables?
Answer: Green peppers and onions
Jalfrezi is a stir-fried curry, usually made with green peppers, onions and green chillies. The name is often linked to 'jhal', a Bengali word for spicy heat. It became popular in British India as a way to reheat leftover meat.
15. The fried, filled pastry known as a samosa is usually what shape?
Answer: Triangular
A samosa is a fried pastry, usually triangular or cone-shaped, filled with spiced potatoes, peas, onions or minced meat. It came to India from Central Asia and the Middle East, where it was known as sambusa.