If you're in Austin for the big SXSW tech and music trade show, you may be wondering where you can grab some grub in between panels and parties.

From classic Texas BBQ to some out-of-this-world tacos, there's plenty of great food in Austin. 

Inspired by lists created by Zagat and Foursquare, we've compiled a list of the restaurants you should check out during SXSW. 

The Salt Lick

18300 FM 1826, Driftwood

3350 Palm Valley Boulevard, Round Rock

3600 Presidential Boulevard, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport

You can't go to Texas without getting BBQ, and the Salt Lick is arguably one of the most fun places to do it. Residents and visitors to Austin are crazy about their brisket and ribs, and it's all cooked on the most insane pit you'll ever see. The original location is about 20 miles outside of Austin, in Driftwood, in addition to locations in Round Rock and the airport.  

Chuy's

1728 Barton Springs Road

1050 North Lamar Boulevard

4301 W William Cannon Drive

This classic Tex-Mex chain is "always a good time," according to Zagat reviewers. It's known for its generous portions and strong drinks.

Uchi

801 South Lamar Boulevard

This may not be your typical Austin cuisine, but it's a treat nonetheless. Zagat gave this longtime sushi favorite top marks in food quality and popularity with residents. The sushi dishes are inventive and unique, like a foie gras nigiri and tuna sashimi made with goat cheese. 

New York City's ancient sewers have a very new problem on their hands.

Some of those "flushable" wipes that have been aggressively marketed to the hygiene obsessed, are actually not so flushable.

They're supposed to breakdown by the end of the sewage cycle. But that's not happening. 

They mix with other materials, like grease and oil, subsequently gunking up the century-old architecture that carries and cleans the waste that flows from New York's homes, apartments, and office buildings, according to a new report by The New York Times.

And it's a problem that's costing the city millions to fix. It's spent more than $18 million in the past five years on wipe-related equipment problems, city officials told the NYT. The volume of solid waste that doesn't break down and must be extracted from the city's wastewater treatment plants has also doubled, thanks to the wipes.

The problem is one that plagued London in 2013. A "fatberg" of wipes and cooking oil weighing up to 15 tons, according to the utility company that disposed of it, Thames Water, clogged up the London sewers.

The president of a trade group representing wipes manufacturers, Dave Rousse, told the Times that he believes that a majority of the sewer issues stem from “non-flushable wipes inappropriately flushed.

Many officials from cities all of the country disagree, however, saying that the standards for a product branded as "flushable" are not stringent enough, and the wipes don't break down in the small amount of agitation sewage typically encounters.

A bill introduced to the New York city council last month, which has the backing of Mayor Bill de Blasio, would reclassify and ban advertising wipes as "flushable" if they're proven to make it through the city's sewer system unscathed.

SEE ALSO: Here's what New York City looked like in 1905

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Olive Garden's business has been under scrutiny since a hedge fund published a 294-page takedown of the brand criticizing its breadsticks strategy, inauthentic menu, and "barely edible" food.

Shareholders responded by replacing the company's entire board. The new team promised to turn around Olive Garden's business, which has suffered in an overall casual-dining slump.

We went to lunch at a Manhattan Olive Garden on Friday, and it was obvious that the overhaul is helping business.

First, we were seated immediately. In the past, Olive Garden would make customers wait longer than necessary in hopes of encouraging them to buy drinks at the bar and make the restaurant seem busier than it really is.

The "false-wait" system underestimated customers' intelligence and was frustrating.

We received a menu that clearly stated the lunch specials, an improvement over the previous menu, which featured a confusing mix of combinations, promotions, and deals.

With the lunch special, you could order soup, salad, and breadsticks for $8.99. For a few more dollars, you could add a small portion of pasta.

Our waiter offered us a wine sample, which we declined. He then asked if we wanted dipping sauce for our breadsticks. We accepted marinara, which was a $4.49 upcharge.

The dipping-sauce charge is an easy way for Olive Garden to pad customers' checks even higher.

My lunch companion and I received five breadsticks. This isn't in keeping with Olive Garden's previous policy of one breadstick per person, plus one, but we were happy to have extras.

Less than five minutes after ordering, our food arriveed. This speed is key to capturing the lunch customers, who need to get back to work in a timely manner.

The chain's menu items could still use some work.

In the presentation, Starboard criticized Olive Garden for serving dishes that were "astonishingly far from authentic Italian culture, such as burgers and fries, Spanish tapas, heavy cream sauces, more fried foods, stuffed cheeses, soggy pasta, and bland tomato sauce."

Many of these items remained on the menu.

The pasta came with meat sauce on top, whereas Starboard had said it tasted better mixed in. But making major changes to the menu takes time, so we'll wait and see what Olive Garden does.

About 25 minutes after arriving at the restaurant, we already had our check, complete with the customary Andes mints. We asked for breadsticks to go and received an order of seven packed neatly in a pouch.

Our lunch experience at Olive Garden was speedy and efficient. It's clear that the brand has made some much-needed changes to customer service. It's possible customers are noticing the difference, too. By the time we left the restaurant had filled up.

SEE ALSO: El Pollo Loco's business is on fire

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Psychology research verifies that the stories we tell ourselves matter.

A new study from Northwestern University shows that folks who fit the classic mold of "good people" — those who care about others while also having high well-being and mental health — have life stories that share remarkably similar narrative arcs. 

In two to three hour interviews, researchers Dan McAdams and Jen Guo asked 157 people between the ages of 55 and 57 to describe their lives as if they were novels, complete with main characters, recurring themes, and turning points. 

According to McAdams and Guo, the people who cared the most for future generations all told their life stories as "redemption narratives." 

From the study's abstract: 

The story's protagonist (a) enjoys an early advantage in life, (b) exhibits sensitivity to the suffering of other people, (c) develops a clear moral framework, (d) repeatedly transforms negative scenes into positive outcomes, and (e) pursues prosocial goals for the future.

In McAdams and Guo's study, the adults who were the most generative — or socially engaged — acted out a similar story of redemption in their everyday lives.

In "The Art and Science of Personality Development," McAdams argues that there's a link between the suffering felt early in life and the redemption that follows: 

Failure may ultimately result in victory, deprivation may give way to abundance. Importantly, the narrator describes an explicit causal link between the prior negative event and the resultant enhancement...

For example, a woman is devastated by a romantic breakup, but then finds the partner of her dreams. A student flunks out of college, then finds a great job. A boy endures extreme poverty as a child, but when he grows up, he comes to believe that early suffering made him a better person.

McAdams notes that while not everybody identifies with every turn of the redemption narrative, adults who are more generative conform to the narrative arc than those who are less so.

If the story of redemption sounds familiar, that's because it's a narrative arc that you can spot again and again in our mythological and literary traditions. 

One of the most notable accounts is the story of Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha. The traditional account is that he was born into a sheltered royal life, but when he witnessed the way people were getting old, sick, and dying outside of the palace, he resolved to figure out how to deal with the problem of suffering. This motivated him to study the mechanics of the mind in meditation, yielding the foundational insights of what we today call Buddhism, a system of understanding that's helped people for generations. 

The Jungian psychologist and comparative mythologist Joseph Campbell argued that historical, mythological, and literary narratives show up in our everyday lives. We find ourselves called to go on quests like Joan of Arc did when she united France; are filled with righteous anger like when Jesus threw the merchants out of the temple; or get caught up in star-crossed love affairs like Romeo and Juliet. 

What's fascinating about McAdams and Guo's study is that it evidences how the narrative arcs that we know so well from our various cultural traditions animate our lives.

It seems that the most pro-social people — the Nelson Mandelas and Aung San Suu Kyis of the world — embody these redemption narratives. 

The good news is if you're not happy with your life story, the research shows that you can edit it, too.

SEE ALSO: Here's How Changing Your Life Story Can Make You More Successful

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Over the course of five generations, the Bush and Walker clans have amassed fortunes and political power beyond belief. The family is worth a reported $60 million and has seated two members in the Oval Office.

With former Florida governor Jeb Bush, son of George H.W. Bush and younger brother of George W. Bush, as a GOP front-runner for the 2016 presidential election, we're looking back at how his family came to earn such influence.

This retrospective includes insights from Jacob Weisberg's exhaustive biography, "The Bush Tragedy" and more, as well as vintage photos.

Check out our visual guide on the Bush-Walker family lineage »

Samuel Prescott Bush, son of a minister, lay the foundation for the family’s fortune. Known as the grand patriarch of the Bush clan, he was an Ohio steel and railroad executive.

He worked his way up from an apprenticeship to become president of Buckeye Steel Castings Co., the country's third largest producer of steel couplers at the turn of the century. Samuel rubbed elbows with the Rockefellers and cofounded the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Source: Columbus Business First, New York Times

Samuel had a son who wanted nothing to do with his father’s manufacturing ventures. He would carve his own success story.

When asked what is the best pillow to use, Dr. Jan Lefkowitz of Body in Balance Chiropractic did not say memory foam, down, or synthetic.

In fact, he said a pillow most people have never heard before — Chiroflow.

“You fill it up with water and it has different recommended amounts so that you can customize it for how big you are,” he explained to Business Insider. “It looks like a regular foam pillow but then you fill it with water, your head displaces the water and it fills the curve of your neck perfectly.”

Dr. Lefkowitz insisted he wasn’t trying to shill for the company — he said you can buy Chiroflow on Amazon and he gets no profits from talking about it. 

He just says it’s that good.

The Chiroflow has been around for 20 years since the inventor Maurice Bard suffered a whiplash injury. His chiropractor told him to place a “waterbag” under his pillow to give him cervical support and alignment, and Bard realized he could create a pillow with a similar structure for other neck injury sufferers.

His final design features a top layer of polyester that feels like a standard pillow with a compartment that you fill with tap water. You can adjust the support level to soft, medium, or firm by adding or removing water. Once you have your optimum level, you don’t need to change the water for an entire year.  

“The water chamber is enclosed by a therma-shield to prevent any heat transference from the your head to the water chamber and visa-versa," Nick Ortega, the sales and marketing manager for Chiroflow, explained to Business Insider. “This prevents the likelihood of mold or any other bacteria to grow within the water chamber.”

Dr. Lefkowitz isn’t the only one backing up Chiroflow. It has become the top selling chiropractic pillow and was even peer reviewed in a clinical study in 1997 by the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, which found that it reduces neck pain and improves quality of sleep.

From the study, which was in the “Official Journal of the American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine and the American Academy of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation”:

The water-based pillow was associated with reduced morning pain intensity, increased pain relief, and improved quality of sleep. The duration of sleep was significantly shorter for the roll pillow. Overall SIP findings showed a significant advantage for the waterbeds pillow over the roll pillow and standard pillow.

Amazon reviews are also astoundingly positive, with the majority of reviewers saying it’s been the only pillow to help their necks and that it helps them sleep better than any other pillow. 

The reason Chiroflow is beloved by chiropractors is because its design allows your head to displace the water and fill up the space between your neck and the mattress, thus keeping you spine aligned — a very important design function, according to Dr. Lefkowitz.

“The main idea is you have to keep your spine parallel and neutral,” he told us. “From head to toe, you need to be in a straight line.” 

The pillow also self-adjusts throughout the night so that sleepers don’t continually wake up to readjust their pillow, leading to better nights of sleep.

So if you’re like almost half of the American population that’s not getting enough sleep, perhaps it’s time to try a new pillow.

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The Bush-Walker family remains one of the most polarizing and powerful political dynasties in American history.

Most known for putting two of its members in the Oval Office, Bushes have also served in both the executive and legislative branches of the federal government. These political successes followed lucrative ventures in both the oil and financial industries.

With former Florida governor Jeb Bush, son of former President George H.W. Bush and younger brother of former President George W. Bush, as a GOP front-runner for the 2016 presidential election, we're looking back at how his family came to earn such influence.

The graphic below depicts the family lineage of W. and Jeb. 

Click to learn the epic story of how the Bushes took over America »

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Despite its strong fanbase, not a lot of people know about a secret menu at Shake Shack. So we took a shot at ordering a secret menu item the burger chain once experimented with years ago. It's called the Peanut Butter Bacon Burger, and it needs to be brought back to life. Watch and find out why.

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Each year on March 17, the Irish and Irish-at-heart come out in droves to pubs and parade routes to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland.

In the US, St. Patrick's Day serves as a valid excuse to wear green and drink. But there's enough rich Irish culture to last the whole year round.

We scoured Celtic folklore, online forums, the Bible, and even our favorite Irish pub in New York City to find some beautiful and just plain weird sayings used on the Emerald Isle.

Some of the sayings are historic, out-of-use proverbs with original Irish Gaelic translations (today, as little as 30% of the population in the Republic of Ireland speak Irish). Others are examples of modern slang said in English, the shared official language.

Here are 15 Irish expressions to break out on St. Paddy's Day:

1. May the road rise up to meet you.

You may recognize this popular blessing (in Irish Gaelic: Go n-éirí an bóthar leat) from Catholic weddings or cross-stitched pillows in Nan's house. One of the main characteristics of Celtic Christianity is the use of images of nature to show how God interacts with people. "May the road rise up to meet you/ May the wind be always at your back/ May the sun shine warm upon you face ..." uses everyday images to mean, may God remove obstacles in your journey through life.

2. Sláinte!

In an Irish pub, patrons toast each other sláinte (pronounced "slaan-sha") as they clink glasses of Guinness. Derived from the Old Irish adjective slán (which means "safe"), sláinte literally translates as "health" and is used as a stand-in for the more time-consuming "I drink to your health!"

3. What's the craic?

Greetings like "Any craic?" and "How's the craic?" give rise to potential awkward misunderstandings for tourists, because craic is pronounced like "crack." The most straightforward definition is fun or enjoyment, and it can substitute for "How are you?" A typical response is "divil a bit," which means "not much."

4. May the cat eat you, and may the devil eat the cat.

Consider this insult a double whammy. By saying, "Go n-ithe an cat thú is go n-ithe an diabhal an cat," the speaker wishes that a cat gobble up his enemy like a can of Fancy Feast, and that the Devil eat them both. It's a surefire sentence to Hell.

Curses are far more detailed and nuanced in Irish culture, as compared to the traditional F-bombs dropped in the U.S. Here's another popular mouthful of an insult: "May you be afflicted with itching without the benefit of scratching." Burn.

5. Two people shorten the road.

Company makes the journey fly, as evidenced by one anecdote from Celtic folklore. In it, a father asks his son to "shorten their journey" to see the king, and refuses to continue on foot when the son doesn't know how. Frustrated, the son asks his wife what to do. "Every one knows that storytelling is the way to shorten a road," she says. They set out the next morning, and the son weaves a tale the whole way to White Strand. Lesson learned: Giorraíonn beirt bóthar.

6. Story horse?

Move aside, Wishbone. "What's the story, horse?" — abbreviated as "story horse?" — is how you ask a buddy what's up. It's a less breezy greeting than its American counterpart, and invites the other person to really dive into what's been going on in life.

7. On me tod.

A lonely lad says, "I'm on me tod," if he's riding solo at the bars that night, or alone in general. Tod Sloan was an American jockey whose mother died when he was young, whose father abandoned him, and whose incredibly successful horse-racing career came to an end when he moved to the U.K. and was ridiculed for his Western riding style. Sloan was always said to be "on his own."

This expression is one of the best-known examples of Cockney rhyming slang, a phrase construction that involves taking a common word and using a rhyming phrase of two or three words to replace it. "On my Tod Sloan" rhymes with "on my own"; but in typical Cockney fashion, the word that completes the rhyme ("Sloan") is omitted.

8. Acting the maggot.

Friend's messing around, being obnoxious? Acting the maggot. Phone taking forever to deliver an iMessage? Acting the maggot. Comparing someone or something to a wriggly little white worm means they're behaving like a fool.

9. You son is your son today, but your daughter is your daughter forever.

A man is only a son until he takes a wife. But as a daughter gets older, she will stay near the family, draining it of money and time for years to come. In Irish Gaelic, it's Is é do mhac do mhac inniú, ach is í d’iníon d’iníon go deo.

10. 'Tis only a stepmother would blame you.

There's no need to be embarrassed or feel badly about committing a small offense, if the deed is so insignificant that only a jealous, belittling stepmother could find fault with you.

11. We're sucking diesel now.

When things are going exceptionally well and you've found success, not by luck but by your own merit, pat yourself on the back by saying, "I'm sucking diesel." Or, celebrate that your Oldsmobile Diesel started up for what could be the last time.

12. S---- in a bucket.

Behold the raunchiest Irish slang used in sports: the English curse word "s---" with an "e" tacked on the end. It's pretty self-explanatory. When the Republic of Ireland's footballer James McCarthy recently tackled the ball into his own net, giving Serbia its first goal of the game, spectators at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin were certainly mumbling this under their breath.

13. That one suffers from a double-dose of original sin.

The Bible proposes that when Adam ate the forbidden fruit, he cast a state of sin on all of mankind. Today, if a child is particularly mischievous, he's said to have been twice-cursed by Adam's slip-up.

The phrase became popular in the 1880s, when proponents of British rule over Ireland attributed the Irishmen's depravity of character (and the famine, some argued) to their second helping of original sin.

14. Christ on a bike!

Considered blasphemous by some Christians, the odd turn of phrase is a way of saying, "I can't believe what I'm seeing." First "#HotJesus," now this. 

15. State o'you.

A popular exclamation used in inner Dublin, "Look at the state o'you!" implies that a person's attire, personal hygiene, intoxication level, or general demeanor is worrisome. One might describe his drinking companion as being in a "bleedin' state" if he "gets pissed" or "wrecked" on lager at the pub.

Thanks to New York's The Gael Pub's Irish bartenders Ronan Carter, of County Sligo, and Rory Galligan, of County Cavan, for helping us research this story.

SEE ALSO: 13 Things You Need To Know This St. Patrick's Day

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You don't need to go to Dublin for a true Irish pub experience; it's likely there's already an authentic pub right in your neighborhood. You just need to know where to look.

With St. Patrick's Day coming up, we found the best Irish pubs in 19 big cities around the US, according to Yelp, with the best drinks, the best food, and the best craic (that's Gaelic for "good times").

ATLANTA: Brick Store Pub

125 East Court Sq., Decatur

When three friends searched for a neighborhood pub that poured a great pint and couldn't find one, they decided to open their own. The Brick Store Pub rotates 22 draft beers, and offers another 75 in bottles. The upstairs is devoted exclusively to Belgian beers.

On Saint Patrick's Day the pub will have live music, special beers, and "food features" available for customers.

AUSTIN: Draught House Pub & Brewery

4112 Medical Pkwy.

The Austin, Texas, beer scene is buzzing, and a lot of the action happens at Draught House. With more than 70 beers on draft, many from Texan breweries, Draught House also offers a few home brews of its own.

The food is solid, too — not made in house, but from pub-curated food trucks that park outside ready to serve the regulars.

BALTIMORE: Mick O'Shea's

328 North Charles St.

Mick O'Shea's happily mixes its Irish heritage with a liberal sprinkling of Baltimore pride. Regulars rave about the happy hour deals, as well as the local Maryland crab soup.

On St. Paddy's Day grab yourself a traditional Irish breakfast, starting at 9 a.m., and then come back at 5 p.m. for live music.

Texans pride themselves on the quality of their barbecue, and there are plenty of great places to grab some ribs and brisket all across the state. 

According to Scott Roberts, owner of Texas' famous Salt Lick BBQ restaurant, "The United States is the best damn country in the world, and Texas is the best damn state in the country – doesn’t that just logically mean that we would have the best damn barbecue?"

The Salt Lick has three locations in the Austin area: the original in Driftwood, another in Round Rock, and a newer stand at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. The restaurants are regularly ranked among the best BBQ joints in the country. 

When the first branch opened in 1967, it was just a limestone pit built into the Roberts' family land. Over the more than 50 years since then, they've built an entire restaurant around the original pit, adding indoor lighting, running water, and all of the other amenities necessary to a functional restaurant. 

Roberts' family roots are in South Carolina, Georgia, and Mississippi, but, according to Roberts, their Southern recipes have been "Texafied" over time.

"When they left that region in the 1870s, their recipes didn’t contain ingredients such as chili dulce and cayenne pepper. Those were added after they got to Texas," he told Business Insider last June. 

There's a lot of stuff to choose from at the Salt Lick, but Roberts says there's one meal that stands out. 

"Definitely the Family Style Dinner (all-you-can-eat beef brisket, sausage, pork ribs, potato salad, cole slaw and beans, for $19.95 per person), which gives you a taste of everything, followed up with peach or blackberry cobbler with ice cream, and a slice of pecan pie to go," he said. 

According to the Salt Lick, a normal year will see over 750,000 pounds of brisket, 350,000 pounds of pork ribs, and 200,000 pounds of sausage smoked to perfection on their enormous open-fire pit. That's a lot of barbecue. 

Roberts released a book in December 2012 called The Salt Lick Cookbook: A Story of Land, Family, and Love, where you can read more about the Roberts family history and get some recipes to try out yourself. 

Check out the fire pit in action in this episode of Man v. Food from 2009. 

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San Francisco's annual St. Patrick's Day parade is today. 

Starting at the corner of Market and 2nd Street and running to Civic Center Plaza, the parade calls for an all-day celebration. 

Whether you want to fuel up before the parade or avoid the mayhem somewhere quiet, there are plenty of Irish pubs you can visit to get in the spirit today. 

Our friends at Yelp have helped us round up the best of them. 

Irish Times

500 Sacramento Street, Financial District

Irish Times is a popular FiDi destination, especially during happy hour and sports games. 

According to their Facebook page, they'll be open starting at 9 a.m. the day of the St. Patrick's Day parade.

The Little Shamrock

807 Lincoln Way, Inner Sunset

Dating all the way back to 1863, the Little Shamrock offers a wide selection of beer in a friendly atmosphere.

Cozy up with some board games on the couches, or try a round of darts.

Blackthorn

834 Irving Street, Inner Sunset

This pub is decked out with TVs, which make it a great place to check out the day's sports games.

There's also a bunch of pool tables and a back patio. 

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Last evening, we arrived in Austin for South by Southwest, the equivalent to nerd spring break. Tens of thousands of technology lovers invade Texas to hear influencers speak on panels, attend parties, and learn about new innovations.

So far, no startup is really breaking out, although there is some chatter about live streaming apps like Meerkat and Periscope.

But there is one service a few CEOs and investors in California are talking about that they say is like Netflix for flying. Surf Air is a members-only private jet service that only operates out of a few west coast hubs. For $1,750 per month, its users can fly unlimited from Santa Monica to San Francisco, Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, San Diego or Santa Barbara. The company is a few years old.

There's no standing in long security lines or waiting an hour at a terminal. You just show up, give Surf Air your name, and board the 8-seater aircraft.

We first heard about SurfAir from Hotel Tonight CEO Sam Shank (who we've been begging to launch a last-minute plane ticket discount service. He keeps telling us no.) An LA investor who was at Pinterest's BBQ today at SXSW also said he just signed up for Surf Air.

No more endless lines, crazy airports or stale peanuts," SurfAir boasts on its site. "I can close a deal and fly back in time to watch my daughter's game."

Here's the promo video.

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It’s a scientific fact that Indian food tastes good, mainly thanks to the abundance of spices and flavors.

There’s also quite a variety in Indian cuisine, with dishes ranging from North to South and sometimes by kitchen to kitchen. Punjabi, Bengali, Rajasthani, Goan, Gujarati, and Maharashtrian are just the tip of the delicious iceberg.

And that doesn’t even take into account all of the Anglicized versions of classic Indian dishes, from curry to chutney.

Here are nine authentic Indian dishes you should try instead of the Western knockoffs.

Instead of chicken tikka masala, order chicken tikka 

As the story goes, an Indian chef named Ali Ahmed Aslam invented chicken tikka masala dish while cooking in Scotland. The improvised mixture of yogurt, cream, spices, and tomato soup was poured over chicken after a customer complained about the meat being too dry. Wherever it originated, the dish caught on with the Western palate.

And while the sauce does add a lot to the flavor of the dish, a much more authentic meal to try would be chicken tikka, boneless chicken pieces baked on skewers after marinating in spices and yogurt (basically tandoori chicken, but without the bone).

Instead of eating naan with every meal, try making rotis instead

Most British and American eaters will only consume their Indian food with a side of naan bread. And while the naan is the same baked fluffy flatbread that is eaten in India, it’s usually only reserved for special occasions.

Roti is the bread-of-choice in India. Roti is unleavened wheat-flour bread that is thinner than naan, and can be paired with just about anything from honey and cream for breakfast to curries.

Instead of dishes made with curry powder, try using a more unique mixture of spices 

What we think of as “curry” are dishes that have been cooked with curry powder, typically with pre-mixed flavors of turmeric, ginger, chillies, and coriander, among others.

But the word “curry” was coined by the English and is an oversimplification of Indian cuisine, which uses a variety of spices (masalas) all individually added as you cook so that the mixture is much more unique and varying depending on the region and sometimes by specific kitchen. 

A few of the key spices to have on hand are turmeric powder, cumin seeds, coriander power, cinnamon, red chili or cayenne powder, cardamom, ginger, garlic, and mustard seeds. Don’t be afraid to branch out and experiment.

Instead of mango or “Major Grey’s Chutney,” try different kinds of chutneys

Chutney was a favorite among the British when Imperialism was still in its heyday. The most famous was Major Grey’s Chutney with mango, vinegar, raisins, lime juice, onion, tamarind, and other spices.

But there are so many different chutneys to try, most of which are less jam-like and more runny than the Anglo-Indian counterparts. 

In Indian cuisine, chutneys can range the gamut from sweet to savory. Pineapple, coconut, olive, walnut, and fig are just some of the variants — it it’s a fruit, spice, or herb, you can make a chutney with it.

Instead of eating kedgeree, try the much more authentic khichdi

Though American readers may not be as familiar with kedgeree, it’s a type of British curried rice usually made with smoked haddock and hard-boiled eggs with some curry powder thrown in. Needless to say, it is a British version of an authentic Indian dish. 

It likely originated from khichdi, a rice and lentils dish that varies heavily by region. No matter what recipe you choose, it’s generally considered to be comfort food and makes a fantastic side. It ranges from plain (lentils, rice, and salt) to chock-full of veggies and spices.

Instead of ordering mulligatawny soup, try rasam over rice

Surprise, surprise — another British version of a classic Indian recipe. Mulligatawny, loosely translated as “pepper water,"  is made with chicken or lamb broth, vegetables, and lots of spices. 

It’s based on a sauce known as rasam that’s typically eaten with rice, though it can also be eaten as a soup. It’s usually prepared with tamarind juice, tomato, chili pepper, pepper, and cumin, though there are many different kinds of rasam to enjoy. 

Instead of the Anglicized comfort food meatball curry, order malai kofta

Meatball curry is an Anglo-Indian comfort food classic with minced beef or chicken, coriander, chilies, potatoes and more all simmered into a delicious and easy meal.

For a more authentic and still tasty counterpart, try malai kofta. It’s a North Indian meal with fried vegetable balls and tomato-based gravy with coriander, cumin, chillies, cardamom, cream, and more. This is a good one for any vegetarians out there, too.

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