Washington, Oct 7 (SocialNews.XYZ) Indian spices are carrying a “part of Indianness” into American homes as their appeal expands beyond flavour to health, wellness and everyday food habits, India's Ambassador to the US Vinay Mohan Kwatra has said.
Kwatra said the growing presence of Indian spices in the United States reflected a cultural connection that stretched far beyond their commercial value.
“But I think spices are much more than trade,” Kwatra said at a special reception at India House here celebrating Indian spices.
“What is more crucial, in my personal view is that through these spices, we bring, a very important, part of Indianness to the American homes,” he said.
The event brought together members of the American Spice Trade Association, food industry representatives and guests at the Indian Ambassador's residence.
Kwatra described spices as one of the enduring threads running through Indian civilisation, linking contemporary Indian households with generations stretching back millennia.
“I always, tell people, and I firmly believe in it, that if there is one thing which through the generations stretching back to millennia has not changed in the Indian society, it is the spices,” he said.
“I take the same spice that my mother got me used to, she took the same spice that her mother got her used to, and story stretches back from generations to generation.”
That tradition, Kwatra said, was increasingly finding a place outside India.
“What is most exciting is that the network of that expansion now stretches the world over,” he said.
The Ambassador used turmeric to illustrate how an ingredient long embedded in Indian life has entered contemporary American food culture.
Kwatra recalled his previous posting in Washington from 2010 to 2013 and said turmeric latte was not something he remembered seeing in American cafes at the time.
“I don't recall going to the cafes in the US and coming across turmeric latte. I don't think, I don't think it was there, on the menu of the cafe,” he said.
Kwatra contrasted its relatively recent popularity in American cafes with turmeric's centuries-old use in India, including its place in Ayurveda.
He said turmeric had played “a very, very central and very, very important role” in the traditional Indian system.
In a separate interaction with IANS, Kwatra said Indian spices had a history going back millennia and were becoming increasingly familiar to Americans.
“What is really gratifying to us is that over the years, we have managed to not only bring Indian spices to the American homes, but also made the American society understand the holistic and the health benefits of the Indian society,” he said.
“So the consumption of Indian spices or it's spread in the US society is not simply a function of flavor in the food.”
“It is actually a flavor in the life because of what it's, how, how, how, how well it is, for your own body and for your own holistic health,” he said.
Kwatra said the objective was for Indian spices to become more deeply integrated into American food habits.
“The idea is that the Indian spices should not only, spread far and wide in the US society, but also get integrated into the American food habits,” he said.
The Ambassador also connected the growing interest in spices with another contemporary food trend — the increasing popularity of organic products.
He argued that what is now described as modern healthy eating often has deep roots in older food practices.
“I mean, we say organic food is a very trendy thing. Organic food is actually the old food, and, and old healthy food,” Kwatra said.
“So in a way, modern trend is to go back to your roots, at least in so far as this part is concerned.”
“Food and the spices definitely do,” he added.
Kwatra said simply marketing spices was not enough to establish a lasting connection with consumers. Their history and their relationship with food and lifestyles needed to be understood.
“It's, it's part of my upbringing. And I don't think you can market the spice that way,” he said.
Indian spices have travelled across continents for centuries and have played a significant role in India's historical commercial and cultural contacts with other parts of the world. Ingredients such as turmeric, cumin, chillies, fennel and black pepper remain central to cooking across different regions of India.
Their profile in the United States has widened alongside greater familiarity with Indian cuisine and Indian-origin food traditions. Products and drinks using ingredients such as turmeric have increasingly moved beyond specialised Indian outlets into the broader American food and wellness market.
Source: IANS
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