Taste of India Is a Culinary Adventure for a Cause

STATE COLLEGE — As of May 2023, Penn State Global Statistics recorded that 1,837 international Penn State students hailed from India. On Saturday, April 13, in the Mount Nittany Middle School cafeteria, the Association for India’s Development at Penn State will host the Taste of India Food Festival. The event is from 5 to 8 p.m.; however, entry times are slotted into two sections — 5 to 6:20 p.m. and 6:40 to 8 p.m.

AID Penn State is managed by student volunteers, whose primary cause, according to its website, is “to provide financial aid to various projects working towards a social cause in India, such as promoting literacy in villages, shelter for the less privileged, women empowerment, post trauma rehabilitation, awareness campaigns or relief operations after natural disasters.” 

The first Taste of India Food Festival was held in 1998. Since then, attendance has steadily grown each year.

“Indian cuisine is vast with dozens of regional subtleties, something local restaurants are unable to capture,” shared AID Penn State President Pramudit Tripathi. “Our menu includes food from different regions of India, cooked authentically by local Indian families.”

This year, the festival menu offers a wide range of foods such as sambhar, a spicy South Indian lentil stew with vegetables, tamarind and aromatic spices; Amritsari chole, a North Indian curry made with chickpeas, tomatoes, onions and aromatic spices; bhel puri, a savory street food made with puffed rice, vegetables, tangy tamarind chutney and spices; and kulfi, an Indian dessert made with condensed milk and cream and flavored with pistachios, saffron and rose water.

A complete list of food offerings can be found on AID Penn State’s website, which also includes a list of allergens in each dish.

In addition to the diverse range of food options at the festival, Indian jewelry will be available for purchase. Mehndi, often referred to as henna, will be available for participants to have body art done. Additionally, palm readings will be offered.

Proceeds of the event will go towards AID Penn State’s mission of “empowering communities through volunteer work and grassroots-level development projects.”

“This year we are raising money for a small school providing good quality education to children to migrant workers for a fee of about $2 a month in a small village in Northern India,” Tripathi shared.

Tickets can be purchased on the AID Penn State website and are $25 for adults, $20 for students and $12 for children aged 5 to 12.