We desis are so much in love and addicted to Indian cuisine that even when we go abroad, some of us look for an Indian restaurant serving Dal Tadka and Butter Naan. Hence, when someone pointed out how our curries can be ‘too spicy for small tummies,’ it irked a lot of people online. Because, inko kon samjhae ki our yummy lentils and delicious curries are far more flavourful than spicy?
American author and host Padma Lakshmi was among those who were shocked when a non-Indian family objected to feeding their child Indian food, reported Republic World. Padma stumbled upon a blog wherein the dad of a 9-year-old expressed how he felt offended when his son’s Indian friend’s parents (who apparently are doctors) fed him ‘chicken curry, lentils and vegetables’ without consulting him beforehand.
Sorry… what? https://t.co/nXxlvDggLl
— Padma Lakshmi (@PadmaLakshmi) August 11, 2020
Here’s what he wrote:
People online were offended by the dad stereotyping Indian cuisine as spicy, and some pointed out that not all Indian curries are spicy.
Here’s how they reacted:
Not surprising from the “mayonnaise is spicy” crowd; our only recourse is to continue to educate each other.
— ⚜️Rob Anderson for Louisiana (@RobAnderson2018) August 11, 2020
My kids have been eating Indian food since they were 2 or 3. It is still one of their two most requested foods for takeout (other is Thai). Get to know other cultures and new people. It will make you a better person and their food is usually fucking amazing.
— 🌊Will SoCal🌊 (@willsocal) August 11, 2020
The only danger of introducing Indian food to kids is that it’s so damn good, they may never eat anything else (said by mom who gave toddler sag paneer who is still loving it 15 years later) 😋
— Margaret Hetherman (@hetherman) August 11, 2020
I wish someone had fed me Indian food without asking when I was nine.
— Christian McIntire (@McintireReal) August 11, 2020
If my son had curry at a friend’s house, my only concern would be “did you send leftovers for me??” 😂❤️
— Jackie Sanders (@JackieSandersNY) August 11, 2020
But don’t they know, curry is a gateway food! It could lead poor Chris to dislike home cooking and to be become a risky eater, craving for spicy Mexican, sushi with overdoses of wasabi or Chinese street markets! DEEP-FRIED BATS!!!
— Tralfamadorian🌊 (@EirolltheThird) August 11, 2020
And this Indian mother was made to feel bad because she shared one of the greatest lifetime experiences of getting to eat a home cooked meal from a new culture with a sweet boy! This makes me so mad.
— Ashley Lane (@laaane) August 11, 2020
How dare they let my child experience…flavor?! He may never like the bland underseasoned food we serve him again!
— Timothy E Kaldas (@tekaldas) August 12, 2020
Maybe the parents are jealous that their kid finally got to taste food with flavors
— Avraham 😷 Bronstein (@AvBronstein) August 11, 2020
Oh no NOT THE CURRY 🤯
who gets mad when their kid goes over to a friend’s house&actually eats more than just chicken nuggets/pizza rolls?Your kid had a nutritious home cooked meal.They could have been like “this is one more kid than I’m used to feeding here’s some hot pockets” pic.twitter.com/9khWEIziEd— MISS ARGENTINA (@jadeeamazing_) August 11, 2020
To no one’s surprise, a lot of videshi Twitter users also shared fond memories of Indian dishes they relish.
My Dad was originally from Manchester, England and grew up eating curries. He instilled a love for Indian food in me. Just last week I made a great chickpea and spinach curry. The hotter the better! pic.twitter.com/G16Md8KKBl
— James Byrne⚖️ (@AttorneyByrne) August 11, 2020
Were it not for dinners at my childhood friends house, I would never have known the perfection of a pumpkin curry, dry okra with black mustard seeds or lentils and spinach. At that point in my life everything was fried, or boiled to death.
— Jillian Alcott (@Jcalay) August 11, 2020
Chicken curry is ok…but the Punjabi version…oo..thats a world apart!
— The Realist.🇮🇳 (@xxSachinx) August 11, 2020
Said this in another thread, but I’d be ecstatic if my kid ate chicken curry, because then I wouldn’t eat 12,000 calories of chicken curry all by myself whenever we got Indian take out
— Bob Nolan (@sublimeidealist) August 11, 2020
Literally just had saag paneer for lunch. Frozen, but still better than all the other food out there. I just moved, and my first mission is to find good Indian in my new ‘hood.
— (((Texy Lefty))) #BidenHarris2020 😷🇺🇸 (@TexyLefty) August 11, 2020
The worst thing that happened to me after eating curry was a nap afterwards. And even that was my fault because I ate, like, 8 delicious servings.
— BLM – Warren Dem – Veteran US Navy 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 (@spartacuswords) August 11, 2020
There’s nothing better than leftover curry for breakfast!😋
— Holly Dietz (@hollygdw) August 11, 2020
Well, we understand that everyone has a different taste palate and not everyone has a strong threshold to Indian spices, but all lentil dishes and curries aren’t spicy, are they? What do you think of the dad’s concern? Tell us.
Cover image: Right