3 South Indian Dishes That Are Healthy And Delicious

South Indian cuisine has a very rich and interesting history behind its evolution and growth. Encompassing the cuisine of the four South Indian states namely Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu, the food from these states is both rich and delicious. Andhra cuisine is considered as extremely spicy and hot because of the generous use of chilli powder and tamarind. On the other hand, Karnataka cuisines is very diverse and has a whole range of delicacies with generous use of jaggery, palm sugar and minimum chilli powder. Since the percentage of vegetarians are higher in the state, vegetarian dishes enjoy a lot of popularity. In addition, Udupi cuisine is an integral part of Karnataka cuisine. Kerala cuisine is very diverse and is a mix of vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. While the Hindus, particularly the Nambudiris and Nairs enjoy vegetarian dishes, the Muslim communities enjoy non-vegetarian dishes. A typical Tamil meal has a combination of both spicy and non-spicy dishes. Except for Brahmins and some non-Brahmin castes, Tamilians enjoy non-vegetarian dishes. Many of their dishes are typically mixed and eaten with steamed rice, which is the staple food of the region. So overall, South Indian dishes are not just diverse, hot and spicy but are healthy and nutritious as well. In this article, we explore three food items from South India that are high on not just flavor but nutrition as well.

Idli: A classic dish that is an integral part of the South Indian cuisine, idli is made from fermented rice and black gram. Mostly eaten at breakfast or as a snack, idlis are generally served in pairs and are generally accompanied with chutney or sambar. Some of the health benefits of idlis include the following:

• Each idli has only 39 calories and contains almost no amount of fat, saturated fat or cholesterol. Consuming less than 16 grams of saturated fat and 300 milligrams of cholesterol reduces the risk of heart diseases and stroke in a substantial manner
• A single idli has 2 grams each of protein and dietary fiber as well as 8 grams of carbohydrates. This is therefore one of those few low carbohydrate dishes that you can snack on without gaining weight. For maintaining a healthy body, a person requires 50 grams of protein and 225 grams of carbohydrates on a daily basis. When a person has adequate protein it facilitates muscle repair and carbohydrates provide energy for daily activities. On the other hand, fiber promotes healthy digestion. While men need between 28 and 34 grams of fiber and women between 22 and 28 grams daily
• Idli is steamed so it is easily digestible while the use of dal and rice is a good combination as the amino acids present in them, complement each other perfectly

                           

Sambar: One of the most common dish in the South Indian cuisine, Authentic Sambar is a lentil based vegetable stew or chowder based on a broth made with spices and lentil. It is tasty, spicy and an amazing low calorie accompaniment. The spices which include turmeric, cumin, curry leaves, etc. contain a lot of antioxidants and promote a healthy mind and body in various ways. The lentil provide protein while the vegetables in the sambar act as fiber. Additionally, adding sprouts to sambar is a good idea as this helps to lower the cholesterol and provides nutrients like folate, magnesium and vitamins.

Dosas: Made from lentil and rice batter, dosas are thin, crepe like pancakes that are a essential part of South Indian cuisine. Some of the major nutritional benefits of dosa are as follows:

Calorie and fat content: Dosas are healthy because they are low in calories and fat. An 86 gram serving of dosa contains only 162 calories which is very less compared to the daily recommendation of 2,000 gram. Additionally, they also contain very less saturated fat (2 grams) which is a good thing as saturated fat increases the risk of heart diseases. According to the American Heart Association, saturated fat should be restricted to about 16 grams per day so that the risk of heart disease is decreased effectively.

                

Protein: Dosas are relatively high in protein, as it contains 5 grams in each 86 serving. This amount is 1 gram less than the protein amount found an egg provides, but is 0.5 gram more than what a normal pancake would provide. Protein is extremely important in the human body as it helps to build muscle and may help you to reduce weight if you consume a reduced calorie diet.

Besides, these three dishes, the menu of a South Indian restaurant contain a number of dishes like rice, various types of vada, utthapam and desserts. These food item are aimed at making your meal experience not just enjoyable and tasty but nutritious and healthy as well. Further with so many South Indian restaurants that are gaining immense popularity across the country, enjoying a South Indian meal is now a very easy and convenient affair.

Source: http://goarticles.com/article/3-South-Indian-Dishes-That-Are-Healthy-And-Delicious/9180983/

Vaango-A Preferred Destination for An Authentic Vegetarian South Indian Dining Experience

Vaango, a southIndian restaurant chain is a first-of-its kind initiative where authentic South Indian food is offered in a strikingly modern ambience.

South Indian restaurant chain, Vaango was started 2 years back by Devyani International with a shivmani performance, as an element of its expansion journey. The brand name means come in, in Tamil and looks forward to change the South Indian food experience. Built on the QSR model, its brand features have been planned on customer’s approach and likings, established in an internal study that was carried out amongst the restaurant’s target audience in key markets. 

Vaango, a dosa restaurant is a first-of-its kind initiative where authentic South Indian food is offered in a stunningly modern ambience. Built on the QSR model the menu has age-old delicacies from areas across South India, comprising a broad range of Dosas, Vadas, Idlis, Rice dishes like Curd Rice, Tamarind Rice and sweet dishes like Rawa Kesari and Kasi Halwa. The Menu moreover has a health section that consists of Neer dosas, Appams and Ishtew.  One is also able to get pleasure from a visual delight of getting to observe crunchy dosas being prepared at the Live Kitchen. All at a reasonable price choice. Vaango presently has outlets in Delhi NCR- making them the best south Indian restaurants in noida and gurgaon to look forward to.

The accomplishment of Vaango is based on creating a ‘WOW’ experience for their consumers via taste, ambience, welcoming service, live reaction with dynamic digital communications.

Since they believe in enriching their guest experience, they put lots of stress on event based promotions where they connect with their visitors with food offerings, visual elements, games as well as competitions during Friendship Day, Onam, Navratri & Diwali, Pongal, Valentine’s Day. The visitor reaction for this has been very helpful.

These programs have helped Vaango stand apart from opponents and allowed them to build up a large reliable client base.

One more feature that has made vaango unlike other brands is Innovation. Vaango has constantly revived product as well as brand experience with innovation, freshness, diversity and important event based offerings with overall one of its kind presentation, a few such examples are:

• The first ever Kuttu Dosa was offered in Navratris

• A Festival with exclusive Wheat as well as cucumber dosas and “make your Own Dosa” concept

• First ever heart formed Utthapam launched for Valentine’s Day

• Independence Day entertainment with 3 colored Idlis as well as Utthapams

• Launch of multicolored idlis on Hol
• The first South Indian food brand to be digitally active with online reaction means, live FB kiosk at restaurants.  

For more details just visit at:http://www.vaango.in

South Indian food- Admired by people world over

Cuisine from Southern Part of India is enjoyed by most people across the world. South Indian food is well-known for its exciting flavors and mouth-watering dishes.

Indian cuisine is a combination of different regional styles. There is no single word that describes Indian food. To a certain extent, its variety is its base. If you would like to have a right understanding of this cuisine, its regional food is something you just can't miss. Spices are used in great quantity all over the country. However, it is the difference of spices and food preparation techniques that distinguish one region from another.

South Indian food is one of the top preferences of food lovers when it comes to treating their palates. The majority of times, when you ask somebody from India about what cuisine they like eating out, you'll surely get an immediate answer, "South Indian".

South Indian cuisine: The Southern part of the nation makes use of spices, fish and coconut generously. Moreover, due to the close proximity of the shoreline, a range of seafood is also eaten by them. In Tamil Nadu, tamarind is utilized to add tanginess in dishes and it is what that differentiates it from other cuisines. In Andhra Pradesh, red and green chillies are used a lot and it surely makes food very hot. Appams, dosas, idli sambar and rice puttu are well-known dishes of this state of the nation. In fact, Dosa is world renowned.

The entire custom of eating dosas for breakfast time is an experience of its own. The dosas are prepared one at a time and served hot, fresh off the pan, with spoonful of salty and sour tasty chutney, highly spiced sambar and gunpowder. It's an exquisite combination of flavors and textures - the crunchy dosas, the soft, diluted authentic coconut chutney and the hot gunpowder. It's more or less a war to observe who is able to eat more dosas until everybody is stuffed to a bursting point. Dosa is usually explained by 5-star hotels as a crunchy lentil pancake, served with coconut delight and a hot lentil soup. On a second thought, that's a pretty good explanation.

If you are a food lover and would love to try mouth-watering south Indian dishes from the finest specialized south Indian restaurants in the country, then you must visit the temple of south Indian cuisine; Vaango. The chain of restaurants is broadly known to offer the best of south Indian food to patrons from all over world.

Vaango’s outlets are designed with an open kitchen concept that’s been derived from the principle of outstanding quality & cleanliness: You can now enjoy watching your Dosa being prepared, just before you.

To know more about South Indian breakfast menu visit www.vaango.in