Gori Girl

Indian Survial Guide: How to Eat Indian Food (Part I)

During their travels in India, my uncle and mom really enjoyed eating with their hands, as you can see from the photo above. This is the traditional way of eating in India… but not all Indians are perfectly traditional. If you look closely at my husband, Aditya, pictured on the right, you’ll notice he has a fork on his plate, since he doesn't care to eat rice with his hands. I, too, have a fork - you can just see it spearing some delicious chicken in the far right of the photo. I'm using a fork because when I try to eat rice with my hands, I end up with some on my lap, down my blouse, and somehow in my hair - it’s just not pretty. The photo of my family chowing down demonstrates the two main things you need to know about eating Indian food: it’s traditionally done with your hands (mostly the right hand actually – more on that in a bit) AND it’s okay to not be traditional. If you’re uncomfortable eating with your hands, then don’t. No one will look down on you, or think less of you if you ask for silverware. However, for those of you interested adventuring outside of Western-style table manners, I have a few hard-learned tips and tricks to help you chow down politely.