When you love Indian cuisine, listed below are a couple of easy-to-make, popular Indian side dish recipes to get you began. Stop doing takeouts and make your favorite restaurant-style side dish at home.
What does an Indian meal consist of?
The thought of what constitutes a whole Indian meal can vary from one household to the opposite. Also, what’s served during parties or get-togethers is different from an on a regular basis meal.
Let me elaborate.
For instance, most on a regular basis Indian lunches/dinners include servings of white rice or rotis (sometimes each) with dal or a curry accompanied by vegetables and/or protein (paneer, egg, fish, chicken, etc.). Some households serve homemade yogurt and/or raitas together with the meal, while some serve it at the tip to complete off the meal. Desserts are often reserved for special occasions resembling festivals, birthdays, etc.
Dinner parties normally start off with savory appetizers like onion bhaji or Punjabi samosa served with tamarind and green chutneys accompanied by drinks (alcoholic/non-alcoholic). After an hour or so, once the guests have settled in and have had a probability to mingle, the following course is served, the most important course.
An Indian most important course, especially at parties, includes a minimum of 3-4 dishes. While curries are a must, people often serve biryanis too. They are often accompanied by side dishes resembling plain or mildly-flavored rice, Indian flatbreads (roti, parathas, puris), dals, raitas, salads, and vegetable or protein-based side dishes.
The ultimate course is, in fact, desserts which is the proper solution to wrap up a meal.
I hope this helps you understand how an Indian meal can differ depending on whether it’s an on a regular basis meal or a social occasion.
Note: For recommendations on the way to plan an ideal Indian party, take a look at this post – Indian party menu ideas with recipes and suggestions! You’ll have all of the resources you have to make your next get-together an enormous hit!
Now that you might have a basic understanding of what constitutes an Indian meal, let me get back to the unique intent of this post – sharing a group of delicious Indian side dishes that’ll provide help to plan and make a whole Indian meal, be it for parties or for busy weeknights.
Don’t worry; now we have covered most of your Indian restaurant favorites on this list. When you are on the lookout for a selected recipe and may’t find it here, just leave us a comment, and we’ll get that taken care of.
Rice side dish
Of all of the Indian sides, rice might be the most well-liked. They’re easy to make, budget-friendly, and are available together in a short time. Listed below are a couple of of my go-to Indian rice recipes which might be perfect with curries and dals.
Quick Pot Basmati rice
I even have used rice cookers up to now and have made rice over the stovetop, too, but making Basmati rice within the Quick Pot is my absolute favorite method – it takes less time than rice cookers and is hands-free, unlike making it on the stovetop.
You will love how Quick Pot cooks Basmati rice – fluffy and with each grain distinct and a lot faster than a rice cooker. Get the recipe below and learn the way to make the proper Basmati rice.
Quick Pot Jeera rice
After a protracted day at work, our hungry stomach often demands a satisfying meal that doesn’t take hours to make. That’s when a very good recipe for jeera rice will come in useful. This dish goes very well with dal and curries.
Fragrant Jeera Rice (Cumin rice)
Quick Pot Sona Masoori rice
In India, making Basmati rice is commonly reserved for special occasions. Depending on the region, the selection of on a regular basis rice may differ. At home, we ate a whole lot of sona masoori rice.
The sort of rice is medium-grain (sometimes known as short-grain) rice which is widely used and very fashionable in South Indian cuisine. Most famously, it’s an integral ingredient used through the Pongal festival (take a look at this Quick Pot ven pongal recipe).
It goes very well with curries and dals or to make fragrant coconut rice.
Quick Pot Sona Masoori rice
This foolproof recipe for Quick Pot sona masoori rice is fluffy and perfectly cooked in under half-hour.
Easy yellow turmeric Rice
Homemade Indian Yellow Turmeric Rice has never been easier than this 20-minute Quick Pot recipe. Made with anti-inflammatory turmeric, this fragrant rice recipe makes the proper side to curries, seafood, chicken, and more!
Indian Yellow Turmeric Rice (stovetop + Quick Pot recipe)
This yellow turmeric rice recipe comes together in only 20 minutes with the Quick Pot for a vibrant side dish that pairs with curries, seafood, chicken, and more!
Moong dal khichdi
Khichdi is such a flexible dish. It may be served as a whole meal by itself or as a side dish to enhance any meal.
One pot Moong dal khichdi
A healthful and nutritious meal – Moong dal khichdi constituted of rice and moong dal (split lentils) is comfort food at its best. This one-pot, 5-ingredient meal is simple in your stomach and is ideal for all ages.
Vegetable masala khichdi
Not very different from the easy masala khichdi recipe above, this spiced-up version is just pretty much as good and comforting.
Vegetable masala khichdi recipe
This hearty masala khichdi recipe is Indian comfort food at its best! Made with rice, lentils, and veggies, this easy, one-pot dish makes for a whole meal. It is ideal for busy weeknights.
Curd rice (thayir sadam)
The delicately flavored curd rice (also often called thayir sadam or yogurt rice) is an ideal solution to cool your palate after a spicy meal. Learn the way to make this comfort food in under half-hour.
Classic Curd rice (thayir sadam or yogurt rice) recipe
This classic curd rice (thayir sadam or yogurt rice) is a befitting finale to a luxurious spicy meal. Make this comfort food in under 30-minutes.
Helpful articles on Indian cooking
Latest to Indian cooking? These articles will get you began very quickly.
Indian flatbreads
From dunking into curries to dipping in pickles and raitas to scooping up a side dish, flatbreads are an integral a part of the Indian food plan. Listed below are a couple of of the favored Indian breads that go well with curries and side dishes.
Roti/chapati
The most important challenge with rotis is to make them soft and puffy. Don’t worry; I’ve gotten down all the ideas and tricks to nail an ideal roti or chapati.
Roti / Chapati / Phulka Recipe
Learn to make soft and overvalued rotis like a professional – Are your rotis turning out like frisbees? Follow this recipe to make soft Rotis or Chapatis each time!
Paratha
That is a straightforward paratha recipe so that you can start with. The step-by-step photos on this post will teach you the way to make round, square, and triangular parathas very quickly.
This foolproof recipe for plain paratha ends in essentially the most crispy and flaky layers possible – just follow the step-by-step recipe!
Naan (Plain, butter, and garlic)
Though naan is traditionally made in a clay oven (tandoor), you may make it at home without one. This easy-to-follow post will teach you the way to make pillowy soft plain, butter, or garlic Indian naan bread at home using your stovetop.
Plain, Butter and Garlic naan recipe
Easily make pillowy soft naan bread with this plain, butter, and garlic naan recipe.
Poori
Poori is a deep-fried bread that is commonly served for brunch or lunch with aloo bhaji (spicy potato side dish) or shrikhand (sweetened hung yogurt). The recipe below offers you all the ideas and tricks to make puffed-up pooris.
Poori is a deep fried Indian bread commonly consumed as breakfast or sometimes as a meal accompanied by Aloo Subzi (Potato gravy). Here’s a fail-proof recipe to make those overvalued pooris that all of us love!
Vegetarian side dishes
Try a number of the popular vegetarian side dishes which might be perfect for on a regular basis meals in addition to special occasions. We love eating paneer (Indian cottage cheese) and include it in our food plan a minimum of once per week.
Kadhai paneer
Restaurant-style kadhai paneer is made with freshly ground spices, chunks of paneer, and a mix of onions, peppers, and a spicy masala sauce. It’s a filling vegetarian dinner, perfect for busy weeknights.
This restaurant-style Kadhai paneer is made with freshly ground spices, chunks of paneer, and a mix of onions, peppers, and a spicy masala sauce. Serve it with fresh roti or naan for a filling weeknight dinner.
Palak paneer
If you might have never had palak or saag paneer before, consider it as a mildly spicy, creamy curry constituted of spinach and cottage cheese. The silky texture makes it a preferred dish to dunk your naans in. Try this recipe below.
Quick Pot Palak Paneer / Saag Paneer Recipe
This easy and simple Palak Paneer (saag paneer) recipe is a healthier tackle the favored restaurant-style spinach and cottage cheese curry. Learn the way to make it quickly using an Quick Pot or stovetop.
Paneer makhani
Learn the way to make your favorite take-out curry – restaurant-style paneer butter masala or paneer makhani at home in lower than 40 minutes!
Follow this easy and simplified recipe to make Restaurant-style Paneer Butter Masala or Paneer Makhani at home!
Matar paneer
Matar Paneer recipe combines green peas (matar) with cottage cheese cubes (paneer) in a This delectable dish with a touch of garam masala pairs very well with warm rotis or naans.
Paneer lovers rejoice! Here’s a delicious and creamy, easy restaurant-style matar paneer recipe that you simply’ve got to envision out.
Aloo palak (potato and spinach curry)
This comforting recipe for aloo palak (aloo saag) comes together in under half-hour for a delicious vegan side dish. Made within the Quick Pot or on the stovetop, this straightforward potato and spinach curry pairs perfectly with fresh roti, paratha, or rice.
Healthy, hearty, and prepared in under half-hour, this straightforward recipe for aloo saag makes a delicious vegetarian entree perfect for busy weeknights.
Masala aloo (spicy Bombay potatoes)
Easy, flavorful, and crispy, this Quick Pot Bombay Aloo recipe comes together in half-hour for a side dish your whole family will love. With directions for Quick Pot and stovetop, you may easily make this vegan and gluten-free spiced potato recipe any night of the week.
Spiced Bombay Potatoes (Masala Aloo)
Fluffy on the within and crispy and spiced on the skin, these roasted Bombay Potatoes are a vegan and gluten-free side dish you may easily whip up in your Quick Pot or stovetop in under half-hour.
Aloo Sabzi (easy Indian potatoes)
Learn the way to make this classic Indian potato recipe in under half-hour using a pressure cooker like Quick Pot. This versatile dish is simple to make, and it is ideal for individuals who are recent to Indian cooking.
Easy Indian Potatoes / Aloo sabzi / Batata Bhaji
Aloo Recipe – This classic Indian Potato recipe is that this easy and quick side dish that is ideal for individuals who are recent to Indian cooking. Pair with rice and dal to make a whole meal or savor it with rotis or pooris
Jeera aloo
Indian cuisine is understood for its lavish use of spices and for being time-consuming. When you find yourself starting to cook Indian food, these facts alone could make it intimidating. Don’t worry; there are enough and more Indian food recipes that might be made in lower than half-hour and wish just a couple of spices. This jeera aloo recipe is one such example.
Jeera Aloo Recipe – Made by sauteeing potatoes (aloo) in a tempering of olive oil and cumin (jeera) seeds, this straightforward yet delicious side dish is ideal for individuals who are recent to Indian cooking. Pair with rice and dal to make a whole meal.
Aloo gobi
Aloo Gobi is the quintessential Indian way of cooking potatoes (aloo) and cauliflower (gobi). It’s a classic side dish that’s best served hot with warm rotis.
Aloo Gobi is a vegan and gluten-free dish that’s an everlasting favorite in any respect Indian restaurants across the globe. Learn the way to make this Punjabi-style cauliflower and potato curry in lower than half-hour using an Quick Pot or over the stovetop.
Baingan bharta
Baingan bharta is a smoky-flavored curry made by mashing fire-roasted eggplants and cooking them in a wealthy onion-tomato gravy. A preferred dish from North India, Baingan bharta pairs well with roti or rice.
Making Baingan Bharta (roasted eggplants) is simpler than you think that. All you wish is patience and a very good recipe :-). Make this delectable dish today!
Bhindi do pyaaza
When you love okras, this dish is for you. Made with a copious amount of onions and bhindi (okra), in fact, this side dish pairs well with rotis.
Stir-fried Okra and onions (Bhindi do pyaza)
Bhindi-do-pyaza or stir-fried okra with onions combines okra with twice the quantity of onions and a couple of spices to create a tasty dish that could be a hot favorite with okra lovers. This caramelized onion and okra dish takes all of 20 minutes to cook and goes well with rotis and dal.
Bhindi masala
This air fryer bhindi recipe is an excellent easier version of my already easy bhindi masala recipe. Not only does the air fryer make this Indian okra dish easy to organize, however it also cooks okra perfectly and isn’t in the slightest degree slimy. This makes air fryer okra a preferred dish even with kids, especially when served with fresh roti or rice, accompanied by dal.
Air Fryer Bhindi Masala Recipe (Indian okra)
You will love this air fryer version of Punjabi bhindi masala. It comes together in lower than half-hour with little or no hands-on time and yields perfect results each time!
Cabbage kootu
Cabbage kootu is a straightforward South Indian side dish that needs lower than half-hour to cook. Pairs well with rice accompanied with sambar or rasam.
Quick Pot Cabbage Kootu Recipe
Beans poriyal
Beans poriyal is traditionally revamped the stovetop, but this Quick-Pot version will blow your mind – since it pressure cooks in zero minutes.
Beans poriyal (Green beans with coconut)
Beans poriyal is a South-Indian way of stir frying green beans with a minimal amount of spices and freshly grated coconut. For many who like their vegetables with a little bit of crunch, you’ve to envision out this recipe on the way to make Beans poriyal in an Quick Pot.
Turiya bhaji
Turai or Tori vegetable (ridge gourd in English) might be made either as a curry or a dry side dish. Get the recipe to make South Indian-style turiya or perey upkari. It is a straightforward dish made by stir-frying the gourd and ending it with a coconut garnish.
Turai / Turiya / Peerey Bhaji
This quick and simple Turai recipe is a keeper. It takes only a couple of ingredients and steps and yet yields a delicious and satisfying side dish.
Non-vegetarian side dish
A few of these non-vegetarian side dishes also double up as appetizers or starters. Try these amazing chicken, seafood, and egg-based side dishes.
Tandoori salmon
This salmon tikka cooks on the pan or in a pressure cooker using Mealthy CrispLid to attain that fresh out-of-tandoor flavor.
Spicy and tangy bite-size pieces of salmon are grilled to perfection to make this delicious dish that takes lower than half-hour to make.
Tandoori chicken
While Tandoori chicken is commonly served as a starter/appetizer, it makes an awesome side dish with naan too.
This authentic Tandoori chicken recipe will make essentially the most flavorful and authentic chicken that’s crisp on the skin and succulent on the within – similar to it’s speculated to be! The recipe includes each Quick Pot and oven version.
Tandoori chicken tikka
This delicious, tender Tandoori chicken tikka recipe takes only half-hour! Try making it in your stovetop or an air fryer!
This quick and simple Tandoori chicken tikka recipe is a straightforward appetizer dish that’s barely charred on the skin and succulent on the within. Make this over the stovetop or grill it using Mealthy CrispLid. All it takes about half-hour of cook time!
Chicken ghee roast
Chicken Ghee Roast is made by stir-frying (or roasting as they call it in India) chicken in fairly copious amounts of ghee (clarified butter) and a medley of spices. This recipe is really considered one of a sort – I highly recommend you are attempting it!
Chicken Ghee Roast Recipe
Indulge your senses with this straightforward and simple recipe to make the enduring Kundapur chicken ghee roast (a fiery and tangy delicacy from Mangalore) at home.
Masala egg roast
For days while you don’t need to make an elaborate meal, make this easy masala egg roast recipe that goes well with a side of curd rice.
Masala Egg roast is ideal for days when you must make a fast, easy, and healthy dish to feed your kids once they come home ravenously hungry after school or from their activities.
Dals
When you grew up in an Indian household as I did, there’s a high probability that you simply had dal (lentil soup) for considered one of your meals. Listed below are a couple of of my favorite dal recipes that I continually make at home.
Dal palak (spinach dal)
Mildly spiced and oh-so-creamy, this spinach dal (dal palak) recipe comes together in under half-hour for a protein-packed meal everyone will enjoy. This hearty, vegetarian spinach dahl cooks up in a single pot for a comforting meal you may easily pair with fresh rice or roti.
Dal fry
This recipe for dal fry comes from my mom’s kitchen and is fabulous when you ask me. I do know I’m biased, but I’d love so that you can try it and share your opinion.
This recipe for Dal Fry could be very near my heart since it comes from my mom’s kitchen. That is my humble try and recreate the hearty and lip-smacking dal my mom makes in an Quick Pot. Stovetop recipe is included as well.
Tadka dal
With toor dal as its key ingredient, this tadka dal is simple to make, needs only a couple of ingredients, and makes for a nutritious accompaniment to roti or rice.
Tadka dal – one pot lentil soup
Dal makhani
If you might have never had Dal Makhani before, consider it as a creamy, lightly-spiced curry constituted of whole urad dal and red kidney beans (rajma). You could possibly easily overpower the dish with spices but don’t. The celebs of this dish are the lentils – allow them to shine.
Quick Pot Dal Makhani Recipe
Restaurant-Style Dal Makhani – You have to do that creamy delicious lentil curry that graces the menus of Indian restaurants worldwide. Learn the way to replicate the flavors of this traditionally slow-cooked curry quickly in an Quick Pot
Moong dal
When you are on the lookout for a comforting, healthy, and simple weeknight meal, you’ll love this flavorful recipe for moong dal (yellow lentil soup). Also often called mung dhal soup, it’s a vegan-friendly lentil dish that pairs perfectly with rice, rotis, and lots of other popular Indian dishes. Make it in your Quick Pot or over the stovetop.
Moong Dal (Quick Pot + Stovetop)
Moong dal (Yellow lentil soup) is a flavorful and delicious lentil dish that makes for a straightforward weeknight meal. Better of all? It’s healthy too!
Raitas
Raitas are an ideal solution to cool your palate. Listed below are a couple of raita recipes which might be a keeper!
Cucumber tomato raita
This cooling yogurt-based accompaniment is ideal for balancing the spice and warmth in Biryanis and Pulaos. Learn the way to make it in under 10 minutes.
Trying to escape the warmth? Here’s a recipe for Cucumber Tomato Raita to your rescue! This yogurt dip is an awesome solution to beat the summer heat and can also be an ideal cooling accompaniment to spicy biryanis and curries.
Boondi raita
Boondi raita might be the simplest raita recipe on the market. All you wish is 5 minutes to get this yogurt dish together!
Boondi raita is made by soaking crispy chickpea flour balls in spice-infused creamy yogurt. Serve it with biryanis or with rotis and a side dish – it’s the proper solution to wrap up your meal.
Cucumber raita
Cucumber raitas are an integral a part of an Indian meal. Cucumbers and yogurt each have a cooling effect and can help settle your stomach after spicy food. Do that easy recipe today.
This delicious, cooling Indian raita is fabricated from grated cucumber combined with creamy yogurt, cilantro, and tempered with curry leaves. This yogurt dip is an ideal solution to wrap up a spicy Indian meal.
Other collection of Indian recipes to envision out
- Rice side dishes – Try this round-up of 25+ best rice side dish recipes you may pair with curries or meat resembling chicken, pork, etc
- 30+ Authentic Indian curry recipes – Learn all you have to find out about Indian curries and get some easy and authentic recipes that’ll get you cooking very quickly.
- 10+ Indian chutney recipes – These authentic and tantalizing Indian chutney recipes are only what you have to elevate your meals. Try this collection of 10+ popular chutney recipes which might be perfect with Indian breakfast, snacks, and most important courses too.
- 45+ Indian sweets and dessert recipes – Try this extensive list of easy dessert recipes which might be perfect for dinner parties, festivals, or for days when you’re just craving something sweet.
- 35+ Best Indian breakfast recipes – Running out of ideas on what to make for breakfast? Here’s a listing of easy Indian breakfast recipes to your inspiration so that you simply are never bored eating the identical things time and again.
