What equipment is used in Indian cooking?

Equipment which is used in Indian cooking can range from many different things:

Bhapa - This technique is simply steaming , usually banana leaves or in foil. This is used in Eastern India and other parts of India for fish and vegetables.

Bagar/Chowk or Sambara - This is the process of tempering foods with final addition of spices and ghee. It is used for most lentil dishes.

Talna - This is the term for frying both deep and shallow. Tikkis and kababs are cooked this way.

Karahi or the Indian Wok - This is usually a smaller cast iron wok shaped pot. the shape of this is extremely useful for deep frying since it transmits the heat evenly.

A small heavy bottom skillet - This is useful for dry roasting the spices. The appropriate way to roast the spices is to do them in small batches and for a few minutes.

A crock pot - This is used for stews that need a slow cooking time. It retains the flavour and lets the stew simmer without any attention.

Sarashi - pair of metal tongs, these are useful for turning breads and other hot foods.

Mortar and Pestle: A good marble mortar and pestle is useful for the coarse grinding of spices and herbs.

Basic Food Processor: Indian cooking entails an enormous amount of chopping, pureeing and pasting. This device is worth its weight in gold in the time it saves.