The Diverse West

Western India, especially the state of Gujarat, is known for its dairy produce, which plays an important part in the mainly vegetarian daily diet. The generous Gujarati thali (large platter) meals are famous throughout the country. Rajasthan, to the north of Gujarat, is home to many vegetarians, and the food there has a unique richness and flavour due to the amount of pure butterfat ghee used.

The west is home to a vast patchwork of paddy fields, and their raised borders and coconut palm trees are a memorable sight. Along the coastline there is plenty of fish and shellfish, and this, combined with rice, forms the basis of the daily diet of the coastal population. Root vegetables, lentils and groundnut oil are also produced and used in everyday cooking, and mangoes, coconuts and cashews grow in profusion.