How much does Indian food smell matter to others?

@cabinhost - Absolutely, new guests will care. I live in Washington state and we have a high concentration of Indians that are employed by Microsoft and other tech giants. Even after short term stays (30-60 day stays), apartment complexes have had to replace the carpet and repaint the walls in an attempt to get rid of the smell, and with no luck. My friend said they are often unable to rent out these apartments, so you are spot on with being concerned… Unfortunately, I don’t have any tips on how to get rid of the curry remnants. I think a hood fan might help, but probably not enough.

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Thai cook with curry all the time, although it smells a bit different and doesn’t seem to linger as much. Not sure what the major differences are between Indian curry and Thai curry though.

So you’re saying that you would permit the cooking of Thai curries, but not Indian curries; yet you say you’re not discriminating?

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You couldn’t be more wrong. Banning the use of curry is not banning an ethnic group.

Curry is one food item, or a mix of spices actually… It’s not used only by Indian people and is not exclusive to Indian dishes. And Indian people eat many things that don’t contain curry.

My partner loves curry, I hate it. I cannot stand the smell. So he rarely cooks with it.

I hate the taste and smell of cilantro. If I were to ban it, would that make me a racist toward Mexicans? Of course not. It definitely makes be biased against nasty cilantro though. I won’t ban it though as it’s nasty ass smell doesn’t linger for days, like curry.

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Nope, didn’t say that at all, actually. You might re-read my last post.

Yes, the use of a good fan whenever one is cooking reduces cooking odors. It has to be a strong fan, has to be used all the time when food is being cooked and the screen must be washed regularly.

I was responding to your last post where you say that Thai curries smell different and don’t seem to linger as much.

Yes, I know what post you’re referring to. At what point did I say that I would permit Thai curry and not Indian curry? Oh that’s right, I never said that.

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@Niika_Daria_Briskin - I am completely sympathetic with you.

I had an Indian family stay for a week. Lovely people (though the dirtiest guests yet) and cooked for us on their last night. But I had to shampoo the carpets, empty the cabinets and clean them thoroughly, and wipe down the walls.

And there IS a difference. I’ve had families cook bacon in the same space, and the odor lingered for a day. Same with all other foods, Chinese and otherwise. The Indian family cooked last February, and in spite of all my cleaning, I STILL detect the odor, but don’t know what else to clean to eliminate it.

Excellent ventilation is a must, and just be prepared to scrub every inch of the kitchen.

If I rented a place that had a faint odor of curry I might not care. Depends on how strong it is.

Good luck! Let us know how it works out.

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The difference is subjective. I love Indian food and cook it all the time. I don’t find that the odor lingers. To me, the proof is that Indian restaurants smell fine. I hate bacon and never cook it. When guests have cooked bacon, I have to scour every inch of my kitchen and wash the screen for my vent hood several times to get rid of the lingering odor. Objectively, bacon has much more fat than curry and fat is what clings to surfaces and goes rancid.

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Students… for 2 months??? That alone should be a red flag.

I would set very strict rules for cleaning and cooking, what ever kind of ethnicity
And tell them you will check your property regularly during their stay.

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True. However, supermarkets here sell the spices pre-mixed as “curry” rather than the premade sauces.

I imagine that as hosts, it’s our responsibility to ensure that previous guests do not inconvenience those who are coming in future. For that reason, we should have systems in place to avoid issues such as cooking smells - be they extractor fans or whatever.

I am not Indian but cook Indian food once or twice a week. I also cook Italian / French food with lots of garlic. I cook Mexican food weekly too.

I admit that I have never had Indian guests cooking in the apartment. I’ve had Chinese who leave the apartment smelling of grease. To be fair, so do a lot of American guests who fry steaks etc.

It’s not a cultural issue.

We’re lucky here because a couple of hours (because of the local breeze) I can get rid of cooking smells in just a couple of hours by opening the windows.

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Buy or rent an ozone machine and run it for a day or so after they leave. Make sure you have an extractor fan and that they use it.

Didn’t I read in another thread here that those are dangerous in some way?

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I personally love curry, and use it left and right in my cooking. I love Indian restaurants and was always wondering how do they keep this smell under control.
I add curry everywhere even in soups. And then my house has the smell. I have several oil burners, and i turn them on during cooking and after. I keep them on for hours. They sell them everywhere in stores. Its a small glass oil holders,you just need to buy essential oils, or wax like candles.

If you allow kitchen, then the risk is always there that different nations will bring different smells. I would definitely be worried about 5 young people living in a place for 2 months, and their cleaning routine. Judging by comments here Indians are noticable for love of cooking, and not cleaning well after themselves. I had only one experience with Indian family and it was awfull. They stayed only 2 night and this is all they did all days long is cook, and not clean after themselves. Mess was horrendous.

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Has anyone else had the experience of Indian guests cooking first think in the morning, then leaving their food out all day on the counter? My one group that stayed more than a day did this. However, they felt like it was ‘dirty’ to leave clothes unwashed at the end of the day. But leaving food sit out all day was comfortable.

(I did draw the line here, and told them they had to put the food away in the fridge)

I had an American couple do that. They cooked a pot of chili (with meat) to take to a party before they went to bed. I asked them if they wanted me to put it in the refrigerator. They held the outdated belief that you have to wait for food to cool completely before you put it in the refrigerator. They left the chili out on the stove burner over the pilot light all night. I hope none of the guests at their party got sick. The really crazy part is the the person who made the chili is a dentist which I thought would mean that she would understand the danger of bacteria.

India is the second most populous country in the world. Any generalization about their personal habits will only apply to a fraction of them. All the Indian guests I’ve had have been meticulously clean.

Does this mean anything worn that day had to be washed?? For example - no wearing a pair of jeans twice in a row?

I am guilty of leaving food out and eating it much later. I would not do this if I was in an area that attracted ants, bugs, etc. Or sometimes with my rental it is fruit fly season so that would be a big no no. But in my own home (if no mice are around) I have been known to cook something in the morning and just nibble on it all day long.

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Yes - they explained that, because of the heat and pollution of where they live they felt that they must wash their clothes every day.