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Italian Wine Pairings for Indian Food, Page 3
Pairings at a Glance
Showing 21–30 of 39 dishes
Chicken pakora
Chicken pakora is the Punjabi chickpea-flour fritter: chicken chunks marinated in yogurt and Kashmiri chilli, dipped in besan batter with ajwain and fried. The yogurt marinade plus fried-coat asks for fizz or acid-led white. Franciacorta DOCG and Fiano di Avellino both pair cleanly.
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Hyderabadi biryani
Hyderabadi biryani is the Deccan royal version: kachchi technique layers raw marinated mutton under par-boiled saffron rice, sealed and cooked dum-style so the meat juices infuse the grain. Characteristic sour-yogurt tang. Etna Rosso (Nerello Mascalese) handles the mutton-saffron register; Gewürztraminer Alto Adige is the aromatic white answer; Moscato d'Asti DOCG for off-dry heat buffer.
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Paneer tikka
Paneer tikka is the vegetarian tandoor staple: cubes of paneer marinated in yogurt with turmeric, chilli and garam masala, skewered with onion and bell pepper, cooked to charred edges. Franciacorta and Conegliano Prosecco Superiore lift the char while respecting the fresh paneer. Falanghina del Sannio is the still-white alternative.
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Paneer tikka masala
Paneer tikka masala is the vegetarian counterpart to chicken tikka masala: yogurt-marinated grilled paneer cubes in a tomato-cream-spice gravy. Grill-char on the cheese adds smoky edge. Etna Rosso (Nerello Mascalese) handles the char-plus-cream combination better than most whites; Gewürztraminer covers the aromatic white side; Moscato d'Asti the off-dry sweet register.
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Prawn masala
Prawn masala is the dry Punjabi-style sauté: peeled prawn wok-fried with onion-tomato masala, ginger-garlic and chilli, finished with coriander. Less gravy than a curry; the prawn-sweet meets medium heat. Falanghina del Sannio and Vermentino di Gallura match the prawn-plus-spice register; Frappato (Cerasuolo di Vittoria) is the low-tannin red answer.
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Tarka dal
Tarka dal is the everyday North Indian daily dal: yellow lentils (toor or moong) simmered with turmeric, finished with a tarka (tempering) of cumin and mustard seed sizzled in ghee. Simple, aromatic, lentil-umami. Falanghina del Sannio DOC and Pinot Grigio from Friuli Colli Orientali both sit cleanly; Frappato is the low-tannin red.
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Black dal
Black dal (kali dal, urad dal) is a dense Punjabi slow-cook staple: whole black urad lentils simmered with cream, butter, ginger and garam masala. Close cousin to dal makhani but typically less tomato-heavy. Etna Rosso (Nerello Mascalese) and Barbera d'Asti both carry the cream-lentil weight; Gewürztraminer is the aromatic-white alternative.
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Kerala prawn curry
Kerala prawn curry (chemmeen curry) is the Malabar-coast signature: prawns in a coconut-milk gravy with mustard seed, curry leaf, green chilli, turmeric and black-tamarind kudampuli. The mustard-oil backbone and sour tamarind are non-negotiable. Falanghina del Sannio DOC and Fiano di Avellino DOCG both sit with the coconut-sour axis; Vermentino di Gallura is the saline-mineral alternative.
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Lamb bhuna
Bhuna is a Bengali-origin dry-braise technique: the meat is cooked slow with masala paste until the oil separates and the sauce clings. Lamb bhuna is a British-Indian curry-house staple with medium heat, deep-onion-tomato base and caramelised edges. Nero d'Avola from Sicilia DOC and Primitivo from Puglia both carry the meat-fat-spice register; Etna Rosso brings the acid-led mid-weight alternative.
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Shahi paneer
Shahi paneer is a Mughlai royal-kitchen dish: paneer in a cashew-almond-cream gravy perfumed with saffron, cardamom and rose-water. Sweeter and subtler than butter or tikka masala. Gewürztraminer Alto Adige and Moscato d'Asti both match the saffron-rose aromatics; Falanghina del Sannio is the dry-aromatic alternative.
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