You may have heard of dal, chutney and biriyani. Most Indian dishes are elaborate as they involve herbs, spices and lots of passion! If you can’t figure out all the spices just buy a readymade pack. It makes the job so much easier! However, here are three easy recipes from Indian cuisine that you can use to impress your dinner guests.

Raita
This yogurt-based delicacy is a favorite in India as it helps to beat the Indian summer! Not only is it quick to prepare but it compliments almost any meal. Here’s how it’s made. Beat 1quart of natural yogurt till it is smooth. Then add a pinch of salt and some sugar to it. Grate one large cucumber and let out the extra water. Add this to the yogurt and sprinkle with half a teaspoon of mint, chili powder and ground cumin seeds. All these add to the extra flavor and now it’s ready to serve! Yes, it’s that easy!

Fruit lassi
Here’s another one for summer. Add two cups of yogurt, one cup of ice water, 1 cup of milk, 1 tablespoon of rose water to a blender and blend well. Take a fruit of your choice (preferably ripe bananas or mangoes) and blend it along with the previous mixture of yogurt. Sprinkle some almonds on top and decorate with some mint leaves. Now you have a great drink to sip on while eating those spicy meats.

Tomato chutney
This tasty treat comes from down south. It’s a perfect side accompaniment to rice or chapatti. Further it can be bottled and refrigerated for months! Grind 84 gms of mustard seed into powder form. Chop 224 gms of ginger and grind it in 1pt of vinegar. Cut 112 gms of garlic finely. Cut 56gms of chillies lengthwise in half. Chop 2 kgs of tomato and keep aside.

Heat the oil well till it smokes. Then cool it a bit and add 28 gms tumeric, 84 gms cumin powder and 56 gms chili powder. Mix it well with the oil. Add the tomatoes, some vinegar, 0.5 kg sugar and 56 gms salt. Cook till the oil floats up to the top. Cool the mixture and bottle it for future use.

There you have it! Three easy recipes from Indian cuisine that is especially great for the summer. The next time you have guests over, go Indian! Well, they’ll appreciate the effort, that’s for sure!