The Most Popular and Best Dishes You Should Try in India
Indian cuisine is one of the richest and most diverse in the world, known for its bold use of spices and perfectly balanced flavors. India's culinary background is unique and rich, drawing on an innovative blend of spices, from the relaxed curry of North India to the fiery colour palette of South India, enabling foodies to find a wealth of flavours and dishes to explore. Moreover, the wide choice of Indian bread would make a Parisian bakery feel ashamed. Let's get acquainted with 15 popular Indian dishes that you can't miss when visiting India.
Show key points
- Indian cuisine stands out globally for its rich diversity, bold use of spices, and meticulously balanced flavors that vary from region to region.
- Dishes like biryani, tandoori chicken, and chicken tikka masala showcase India's mastery in blending spices and creating deeply flavorful meals.
- The concept of Thali exemplifies the Indian philosophy of achieving harmony in taste, offering a complete meal with every flavor profile on one plate.
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- Street foods such as pani puri, samosas, and chaat reveal the cultural vibrancy and culinary creativity found throughout India's bustling cities.
- Traditional drinks like lassi and masala tea not only complement the country’s spicy dishes but also reflect India's ability to transform simple ingredients into memorable beverages.
- Indian desserts like gulab jamun and faluda balance the often-spicy main courses with rich sweetness and unique textures.
- The attention to detail, from ingredient selection to cooking technique, plays a significant role in making Indian cuisine a captivating and unforgettable experience for locals and tourists alike.
1- Biryani:
Biryani is a traditional dish of rice that you cannot ignore on your way to discovering Indian cuisine. The chef uses sticky and fragrant basmati rice that is only found in India, seasoned with saffron, herbs, onions, garlic and cardamom and then lightly cooked, followed by chicken, goat or lamb meat. Biryani is usually eaten with frozen milk and grilled eggplant to impart extra flavor.
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2- Curry:
Considered the national spirit of Indian cuisine, the popularity of the famous curry is similar to the popularity of Korean kimchi or Japanese sushi. The curry comes in the form of a thick sauce, cooked with vegetables and meat, and served with rice or bread. Indian curry sauce is made with yogurt, fresh milk and cream, which imparts a unique sour and fatty taste that the visitor cannot ignore when discovering Indian dishes.
3- Thale:
Thali is one of the Indian dishes that tourists often encounter in this country. It's basically a tray with many different dishes, including basmati rice, naan bread, bean curry, pickles, potatoes, unsweetened yogurt, some desserts... The perfect balance between sour, spicy, salty, sweet, bitter and fatty flavors according to the concept of Indian eating.
4- Grilled Tandoori Chicken:
Grilled Tandoori Chicken is based on the famous Indian grilled chicken recipe and is the only one worth a visit when visiting this place. It can be baked in the traditional way in a clay oven or seasoned with yogurt and placed on the grill. The special flavor of roast tandoori chicken is based on tandoori masala - a spice mixture consisting of coriander seeds, ginger and turmeric.
5- Chicken Tikka Masala:
It is a special Indian dish characterized by a pleasant and warm taste that is often served in family meals. It consists of chicken marinated with tikka masala powder, unsweetened yogurt with chili powder and ginger powder, which is suitable for most Indians. The sauce is also made from hot spices, cream and tomato paste, creating a unique taste for the dish.
6- Bunny Buri:
Another very popular dish on the streets of Indian snacks is pani puri. Fry the cake at home in a hollow round shape. The seller punctures a small hole in the cake and adds the filling, including mashed potatoes, peas, onions, bean sprouts and spices before delivering them to customers.
7- Samosa cake:
Samosas - vegetarian dumplings are a type of snack that is very popular all over the streets of India. Samosa cakes are usually in the shape of a triangle, stuffed with sweet or savory fillings depending on the preferences of the gourmets. The usual sweet fillings are marinated potatoes, onions, peas or lentils. The salty filling can be lamb, beef or minced chicken. The cake can be fried or baked and served with mint sauce.
8- Valoda dessert:
Valoda is a unique Indian cold dessert. The glass of faluda is stuffed with dried fruits, nuts, syrup and a pinch of sweet basil. It is a very suitable dessert for visitors after eating spicy or fatty dishes.
9- Lassi yogurt:
This is a unique drink from India and its main ingredient is goat milk. The traditional lassi has a salty taste and distinctive aroma of Egyptian fennel, while modern lassi has a cold sweet taste, mixed with yogurt, sugar, rose water and pureed fruits such as mangoes, bananas and peaches.
Indians and tourists often enjoy lasi on hot summer days as a refreshing drink.
10- Dosa coils:
Dosa rolls are a popular Indian dish and are very popular on the streets. Its shell consists of bean paste, fermented rice flour and potatoes. Dosa rolls can be served with spicy curries or other dipping sauces depending on gourmet preferences.
11- Lamb Curry by Josh Rogan:
Josh Rogan's Fresh Lamb Curry is the most popular fresh mutton curry in West India. The main ingredients of the dish are lamb, onions, tomatoes and spices, which are seasoned with a sauce of the essence of chicken blossoms and Kashmiri pepper to create a beautiful red color. Josh Rogan has been very elaborately processed for a long time, and the meat is very tender and rich in flavor. It is one of the Indian dishes that visitors should not miss.
12- Chat:
India's most famous street dish Chat is the most popular snack in northern India, with a spicy and fatty taste that "tears the tongue" and the visitor cannot stop eating it. This dish contains simple ingredients, including fried flour, potatoes, onions, coriander, chili peppers and a blend of chat masala spices, served with a thick, sweet and exotic sauce.
13- Gulab Jamun Fried Milk Cake:
Gulab Jamun is a fried milk cake made from leftover milk, fried, then soaked in rose water for a while to absorb the flavor. When eaten, you'll feel the sweet crispy taste with the scent of roses spread throughout the cake, making it irresistible.
14- Naan flour bread:
Naan is a very popular baked commodity in India, consisting mainly of flour and dry yeast, and is often served with meals. Naan cake has a fairly simple way of making, the dough is first kneaded and formed into thin round cakes and baked. It can be grilled with crispy bread, butter and garlic, and the cake comes in a variety of flavors.
15- Masala tea:
Masala tea has been around for over 5,000 years in India and has been more loved than coffee because of its very special taste. Tea is made from milk, sugar, water, tea and ginger. First, cook the milk in a large saucepan, add sugar and water to form a consistency, then add tea and stir well, and finally add plenty of ground ginger to give it a spicy taste. Masala tea has a mild sweetness, tea aroma and ginger warmth, both of which are delicious and healthy for the body.
Indian dishes pay special attention to the purity of ingredients and precision at every stage of processing, enough to impress any picky guest. This elaborate processing is one of the factors that attract tourists from all over the world, and make them live an unforgettable experience.
