How Indian Food Is Built on Six Tastes

Ayurvedic food philosophy groups all flavors into six tastes, or rasas: sweet (madhura), salty (lavana), sour (amla), pungent (katu), bitter (tikta), and astringent (kashaya).

Ayurveda holds that everything in nature, including food, is composed of five elements (panchamahabhuta): space, air, fire, water, and earth, and each of the six tastes is linked to a pairing of two of these elements.

Ayurveda associates each taste with effects on the three doshas, or constitutional energies: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha.

A traditional South Indian or North Indian thali is often deliberately composed to include dishes representing several of the six tastes in one meal.

Sweet-tasting foods in Ayurveda include not just sugar but also rice, milk, and ghee, and are traditionally considered calming.

Gulab jamun is a sweet dessert of deep-fried milk-solid dough balls soaked in rose- or cardamom-scented sugar syrup.

Rasmalai is a sweet dish of soft cheese (paneer) discs soaked in sweetened, cardamom-flavored milk.

Kulfi is a dense, traditional South Asian frozen dairy dessert often flavored with cardamom, pistachio, or saffron.

Chole bhature, a North Indian dish, pairs a spiced chickpea curry (chole) with deep-fried leavened bread (bhature).

Idli and dosa, popular South Indian staples, are made from fermented rice-and-lentil batter and are typically served with sambar (a lentil-vegetable stew) and coconut chutney.

Dhokla is a steamed, savory Gujarati cake made from a fermented batter of rice and chickpea (gram) flour, giving it a mild sour tang.

Amchur (dried, ground green mango) is a common souring agent used in Indian cooking in place of, or alongside, tamarind and lemon.

Rasam is a thin, tangy South Indian soup typically flavored with tamarind, tomato, and black pepper.

Pungent Indian dishes get their heat from ingredients like chili peppers, black pepper, ginger, and garlic rather than from a single 'pungent' spice.

Chaat masala is a tangy, slightly sour spice blend—usually built around dried mango powder and black salt—sprinkled over snacks and fruit.

Karela (bitter gourd) is a vegetable prized in Indian cooking specifically for its bitterness and is often pan-fried or stuffed with spices.

Neem, a tree native to the Indian subcontinent, has intensely bitter leaves that are used sparingly in some regional dishes and traditional remedies.

Kadhi is a yogurt-based curry thickened with chickpea flour and tempered with spices such as mustard seeds, cumin, and fenugreek.

Lentils (dal) are a staple protein source across nearly all regions of India and are often described in Ayurveda as having an astringent quality.

Pomegranate seeds, valued for their astringent quality, are commonly added to raita (a yogurt side dish) and fresh salads in Indian cuisine.

Naan is a leavened flatbread made with wheat flour, yeast, and often yogurt or milk, traditionally baked in a clay tandoor oven.

Roti (also called chapati) is an unleavened whole-wheat flatbread made simply from flour and water and cooked on a flat griddle (tawa).