Quantifying culinary diversity across countries.

Compare countries

Cypriot vs Indian food & cuisine

Compare
Flag
Flag
Cyprus

VS

India

Cyprus

India

The average Cypriot daily plate size is

The average Indian daily plate size is

1948 g.
1463 g.
Icon

Grains

Icon

Fish and seafood

Icon

Produce

Icon

Eggs and dairy

Icon

meats

Icon

Sugar, fats and nuts

Icon

Grains 418 G

WHEAT

340 G

RICE

21 G

CORN

28 G

BARLEY

20 G

RYE

0 G

OATS

1 G

MILLET

0 G

SORGHUM

0 G

OTHER CEREALS

8 G

Icon

Grains 506 G

WHEAT

174 G

RICE

282 G

CORN

19 G

BARLEY

3 G

RYE

0 G

OATS

0 G

MILLET

21 G

SORGHUM

7 G

OTHER CEREALS

0 G

Icon

Produce 531 G

PULSES

7 G

VEGETABLES

253 G

STARCHY ROOTS

57 G

FRUITS

214 G

SEA PLANTS

0 G

Icon

Produce 541 G

PULSES

40 G

VEGETABLES

246 G

STARCHY ROOTS

82 G

FRUITS

168 G

SEA PLANTS

0 G

Icon

Meats 218 G

POULTRY

78 G

PORK

104 G

BEEF

19 G

MUTTON AND GOAT

12 G

OTHER MEAT

1 G

OFFALS

4 G

Icon

Meats 16 G

POULTRY

8 G

PORK

1 G

BEEF

4 G

MUTTON AND GOAT

2 G

OTHER MEAT

0 G

OFFALS

1 G

Icon

Fish and seafood 69 G

FISH

43 G

SEAFOOD

26 G

Icon

Fish and seafood 22 G

FISH

21 G

SEAFOOD

1 G

Icon

Eggs and dairy 480 G

EGGS

22 G

MILK AND DAIRY

446 G

ANIMAL FATS

12 G

Icon

Eggs and dairy 224 G

EGGS

11 G

MILK AND DAIRY

204 G

ANIMAL FATS

9 G

Icon

SUGARS, FATS AND NUTS 232 G

NUTS

10 G

SWEETENERS

163 G

SUGAR CROPS

0 G

VEG OILS

43 G

OILCROPS

16 G

Icon

SUGARS, FATS AND NUTS 154 G

NUTS

5 G

SWEETENERS

58 G

SUGAR CROPS

37 G

VEG OILS

24 G

OILCROPS

30 G

Icon

Herbs

OREGANO

PARSLEY

PURSLANE

ROSEMARY

THYME

BAY LEAVES

MINT

CILANTRO

CURRY LEAVES

FENUGREEK LEAVES

HOLY BASIL

LEMONGRASS

Cyprus
Common
India

OREGANO

PARSLEY

PURSLANE

ROSEMARY

THYME

BAY LEAVES

MINT

CILANTRO

CURRY LEAVES

FENUGREEK LEAVES

HOLY BASIL

LEMONGRASS

Icon

Spices

ALLSPICE

MAHLAB

BLACK PEPPER

CINNAMON

CLOVES

CORIANDER

CUMIN

DRY CHILI

AJWAIN SEEDS

ASAFOEDITA

BLACK CARDAMOM

BLACK CUMIN

BLACK MUSTARD SEEDS

FENNEL SEED

GINGER

GREEN CARDAMOM

KOKUM

MACE

MANGO POWDER

MUSTARD SEEDS

NIGELA SEED

SAFFRON

TURMERIC DRY

Cyprus
Common
India

ALLSPICE

MAHLAB

BLACK PEPPER

CINNAMON

CLOVES

CORIANDER

CUMIN

DRY CHILI

AJWAIN SEEDS

ASAFOEDITA

BLACK CARDAMOM

BLACK CUMIN

BLACK MUSTARD SEEDS

FENNEL SEED

GINGER

GREEN CARDAMOM

KOKUM

MACE

MANGO POWDER

MUSTARD SEEDS

NIGELA SEED

SAFFRON

TURMERIC DRY

Icon

Aromatics

FENNEL

MASTIC

ORANGE

TOMATO

GARLIC

LEMON

ONION

CHILI PEPPERS

GINGER

LIME

PANDANUS LEAVES

TURMERIC

Cyprus
Common
India

FENNEL

MASTIC

ORANGE

TOMATO

GARLIC

LEMON

ONION

CHILI PEPPERS

GINGER

LIME

PANDANUS LEAVES

TURMERIC

Icon

Condiments

CAROB SYRUP

HONEY

OLIVE OIL

OLIVES

POMEGRANATE MOLASSES

TAHINI

TOMATO PASTE

WINE VINEGAR

YOGURT

CLARIFIED BUTTER

JAGGERY

MUSTARD OIL

TAMARIND

Cyprus
Common
India

CAROB SYRUP

HONEY

OLIVE OIL

OLIVES

POMEGRANATE MOLASSES

TAHINI

TOMATO PASTE

WINE VINEGAR

YOGURT

CLARIFIED BUTTER

JAGGERY

MUSTARD OIL

TAMARIND

India

SEASONINGS

Indian cuisine has a sophisticated flavor-building logic, built on 4,000 years of philosophy.  Spices serve as medicine, art, and spiritual practice together. Indian seasonings dance between bold and subtle, hot and cooling, earthy and tangy, always striving for balance, saatvik. Ayurveda recognizes six fundamental tastes that must be balanced in every meal: sweet (madhura), sour (amla), salty (lavana), pungent (katu), bitter (tikta), and astringent (kashaya). This balance is achieved with thali, a concept where one meal consists of multiple small dishes designed to complement each other’s flavors.

The combination of bitter, astringent, and pungent tastes – alongside sweet, sour, and salty – is a key reason why Indian food stands out globally and tastes so distinct.

Unlike Western cuisine’s complementary approach, Indian cooking deliberately contrasts flavors through spice combinations that create harmony through opposition. Take, for example, mango pickle, aam ka achaar. This pickle combines the intense sourness and astringency of raw mango with fiery chili powder, pungent mustard oil, and salt. The flavors oppose and intensify each other, yet after time spent melding, they balance and complement in the finished pickle.

Indian seasoning works in layers to introduce taste at every stage of the dish. You don’t just throw in cumin and call it a day. First to go is the tadka tempering, flavouring the oil with mustard seeds, cardamom pods, or fennel seeds. This technique creates a ‘continuous presence’ of multiple flavors throughout the cooking process. Later, mid-cooking spice additions develop complexity. Finishing touches provide brightness to dishes. You might add turmeric early to cook off its bitterness, but garam masala goes in last – aromatic and unboiled. Each step builds a scaffolding of flavor that lingers on the tongue in waves.

Masala simply means a spice mixture, which by no means is simple.  It’s an umbrella for any combination of spices that can either be wet or dry. No two kitchens have the same masala. Even salt is added at a specific stage to bind flavor. Garam Masala literally means ‘warm spice blend’.  This blend creates what’s called a ‘warming’ effect – not heat like chili peppers, but a sense of internal warmth. Core components of garam masala are cinnamon, green/black cardamom, cloves, nutmeg, black pepper, and cumin. Many recipes also include bay leaves, mace, coriander, star anise, and fennel seeds. Again, the variations are endless.

Masala dabba is a popular spice storage container used in local kitchens. It has a number of small cups, often seven, placed inside a round or square box, filled with:

ASAFOEDITA. Provides umami depth – its pungent raw smell transforms into musky complexity when heated in oil.
TURMERIC POWDER. Golden color, anti-inflammatory benefits, peppery-woody taste.
CUMIN SEEDS.  Nutty, earthy warmth, essential for tempering and ground spice blends.
BLACK MUSTARD SEEDS. Characteristic popping sound and nutty flavor.
CHILI POWDER. Color and mild heat.
CORIANDER. Citrusy, earthy notes.
GARAM MASALA completes the essential seven.

Read more
Back to Top