Common Types Of Dairy Products That Can Be Found In Indian Cuisine

 

India is renowned for its diversity, in regards to languages, religions, cultures and even food. The varying culture and climate prevalent in distinguished parts of country causes different types of food items to dominate each region. Each and every part of India has over the decades evolved its own unique cuisine, which largely tends to be based on its dominant cultures and whichever crops thrive locally. However, dairy is one of the items that are extensively used in almost all of these regions. In fact, hardly any other cuisines lay emphasis on dairy products more than Indian cooking.  Milk products appear in multiple forms in Indian dishes, and now you can even purchase Indian dairy products in Australia to whip some of these delectable culinary delights right at your home.

A wide variety and types of dairy products can be found in Indian cuisine. Here are some of the most common ones:

• Ghee: Ghee basically refers to fully clarified butter and is used extensively throughout India. It can be used both as a condiment and cooking oil. Butter tends to be melted, the moisture is cooked off, and the milk solids separated and removed to prepare milk. As ghee is free of any type of milk solids, it can easily be used for deep-frying and can be stored at room temperature. Adding a spoonful of ghee to a dish can significantly augment its overall taste and flavor.
• Paneer Cheese: This is a mild-tasting fresh cheese made by acidulating hot milk with lemon juice, vinegar or other food acid, subsequently separating the curds from the whey. The curds are then strained and pressed to the desired texture. Rather than going through the hassle at home, you can easily buy the best Indian paneer in Australia as well. Paneer is both custardy and slightly chewy, and it tends to hold its shape well and resists melting. Typically paneer is cut into cubes and pan-fried, then added to a variety of other dishes, like stewed spinach or saag paneer and peas or matter paneer.
• Khoya: Khoya is an ingredient that can be most commonly found in Indian desserts and sweet treats. Khoya is a form of solid,  thickened milk  that is used extensively in preparing a variety of dishes. You can get khoya in Australia with ease today, and use it to prepare a variety of mouth-watering sweet dishes.