Meals

Curries, dals and rice dishes for lunch and dinner

• Coconut Rice · Tamil Nadu. Thengai sadam, or kobbari annam in Telugu homes: cooked rice tossed with freshly grated coconut and a crackling tadka of mustard, dals, cashews and curry leaves. A temple-festival and lunchbox favourite.
• Jeera Rice · Punjab. Fluffy basmati cooked with cumin seeds crackled in ghee, with a bay leaf and a few whole spices. The everyday partner for dal and any North Indian curry.
• Ragi Sangati · Andhra Pradesh. Rayalaseema's daily staple: soft rice cooked with finger-millet flour and beaten into smooth, dusky balls, made for breaking into natukodi pulusu or a bowl of pappu.
• Navratan Korma · Mughlai. The Mughal court's nine-jewel korma: vegetables, paneer, pineapple and fried nuts in a mild, creamy white gravy perfumed with saffron, cardamom and kewra.
• Aloo Palak · Punjab. Homely Punjabi potatoes cooked into fresh spinach with garlic, ginger and cumin. Simple, green and gone with a stack of hot phulkas.
• Paneer Tikka Masala · Punjab. Smoky, charred paneer tikka with peppers and onion, folded into a buttery tomato and cashew masala scented with kasuri methi.
• Chettinad Veg Curry · Chettinad. Chettinadu mixed vegetable curry built on a freshly roasted masala of pepper, fennel, kalpasi and coconut. Dark, peppery and fiercely aromatic.
• Palak Dal · Andhra Pradesh. Andhra palakura pappu: soft toor dal cooked with a big bunch of spinach, tomato and green chillies, mashed smooth and finished with a garlicky tadka. Everyday comfort with rice, ghee and an avakaya pickle.
• Koya Kaju · Telangana. The rich restaurant favourite: ghee-fried whole cashews and crumbled khoya in a silky onion, tomato and cashew gravy finished with cream and kasuri methi.
• Veg Kurma · Tamil Nadu. The roadside-hotel kurma of Tamil Nadu: mixed vegetables in a fragrant coconut, fennel and roasted gram gravy, gentle enough to mop up with flaky parotta or soft chapati.
• Bendakaya Pulusu · Andhra Pradesh. Andhra home-style okra simmered in a sweet, sour and spicy tamarind gravy with a mustard and fenugreek tadka. Best poured over hot rice with a spoon of ghee.
• Dry Chana Masala · Punjab. Punjabi sookhe chole: dark, tangy chickpeas tossed in a thick roasted masala with amchur and anardana until every one is coated. Made for bhature, kulcha or a pile of sliced onions.
• Veg Hakka Noodles · Indo-Chinese. Proper restaurant-style hakka noodles: boiled noodles tossed on high heat with a heap of shredded vegetables, garlic, soy sauce and vinegar until smoky and slippery.
• Chicken Hakka Noodles · Indo-Chinese. Thin strips of soy-marinated chicken and crunchy vegetables tossed with hakka noodles in a roaring wok, just like your favourite Chinese corner.
• Egg Hakka Noodles · Indo-Chinese. Street-cart hakka noodles tossed in a smoking wok with scrambled egg, shredded cabbage, carrot and spring onion, seasoned with soy, vinegar and plenty of pepper.
• Hyderabadi Mutton Masala · Hyderabad. The everyday Hyderabadi home curry: mutton cooked with browned onions, yoghurt, tomato and a roasted paste of dry coconut, sesame and poppy seed, finished with fistfuls of mint and coriander.
• Karivepaku Mamsam Iguru · Andhra Pradesh. Andhra curry-leaf mutton: tender goat cooked down until thick and almost dry in a deep green paste of roasted curry leaves, pepper and red chillies. Made for hot rice and ghee.
• Hyderabadi Shahi Goat Korma · Hyderabad. The royal Hyderabadi wedding korma: goat braised in yoghurt with crushed birista, cashew, khoya and poppy seed, scented with saffron, kewra and rose water and finished with a slick of ghee.
• Badami Gosht · Hyderabad. A Hyderabadi nawabi curry of goat slow-cooked with yoghurt, fried onions and whole spices, then finished in a silky, pale gravy of ground almonds and a touch of saffron.
• Andhra Natukodi Pulusu · Andhra Pradesh. Slow-cooked country chicken in a thin, tangy tamarind gravy fired up with Guntur chillies and a roasted coriander masala. Unlike our Telangana Natu Kodi Kura, this is the sour, soupy pulusu version made for pouring over hot rice.
• Hyderabadi Murgh Masala · Hyderabad. A Deccani chicken curry thickened with a roasted paste of dry coconut, poppy seeds and sesame, finished with fried onions, mint and a squeeze of lime.
• Chicken Gongura · Andhra Pradesh. Andhra's beloved gongura kodi: chicken cooked with a mountain of sour gongura (red sorrel) leaves and fiery Guntur chillies into a tangy, deep green-brown curry.
• Palak Chicken · Punjab. Tender chicken simmered in a bright green, garlicky spinach gravy. A Punjabi home favourite that tastes rich but is easy going on the waistline.
• Chicken Tikka Masala · Punjab. Smoky, chargrilled chicken tikka folded into a bold onion, tomato and cream masala. Punchier and more onion-forward than butter chicken, with the tikka's char front and centre.
• Shahi Murgh Badami · Mughlai. A royal Mughlai chicken curry in a pale, silky gravy of almonds, cream and saffron, gently spiced with green cardamom and mace. Rich, fragrant and barely hot.
• Pressure Cooker Chicken Curry · Punjab. Home-style Punjabi chicken curry made start to finish in one pressure cooker: onion, tomato and ready-ground spices, done in three whistles.
• Moong Dal Khichdi · Gujarat. Gujarati one-pot comfort food: rice and yellow moong dal pressure-cooked soft with ginger and cumin and finished with ghee.
• Paneer Bhurji · Punjab. Crumbled paneer cooked Punjabi style with onion, tomato and a little garam masala. Twelve minutes to a high-protein dinner with roti.
• Egg Fried Rice · Indian fusion. Indo-Chinese street-cart fried rice: cold leftover rice tossed over high heat with egg, garlic, vegetables, soy sauce and plenty of pepper.
• Curd Rice · Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu's thayir sadam: soft rice mashed into cool curd with a crackling mustard and curry leaf tadka. The best use of leftover rice.
• One-Pot Tomato Rice · Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu's thakkali sadam: rice cooked in one pot with a tangy, spiced tomato masala. Lunchbox food that's good warm or cold.
• Bisi Bele Bath · Karnataka. Karnataka's hot lentil rice: rice, toor dal and vegetables cooked soft with tamarind, jaggery and a freshly roasted spice powder, finished with ghee and cashews.
• Chettinad Chicken · Chettinad. A fiery, aromatic chicken curry from Chettinad, built on a freshly dry-roasted masala of red chillies, black pepper, fennel, whole spices and coconut.
• Lemon Rice (Chitranna) · Karnataka. Karnataka's bright yellow everyday rice: cooled rice tossed with a crackling tadka of mustard, dals, peanuts, chillies and curry leaves, and plenty of lemon.
• Kerala Egg Roast · Kerala. Hard-boiled eggs tossed in a deep, jammy onion and tomato masala, slow-cooked in coconut oil with fennel, pepper and curry leaves.
• Laal Maas · Rajasthan. Rajasthan's fiery red mutton curry, cooked in ghee with a paste of Mathania chillies, yogurt and garlic, and finished with a puff of charcoal smoke.
• Dal Baati Churma · Rajasthan. Rajasthan's festive platter: crusty baked wheat baatis drenched in ghee, a five-lentil panchmel dal, and sweet crumbled churma with cardamom.
• Kosha Mangsho · Bengal. Bengal's Sunday mutton: bone-in pieces slow-fried in mustard oil with a mountain of onions until the masala turns dark, glossy and clings to the meat.
• Macher Jhol · Bengal. Bengal's everyday fish curry: fried rohu steaks and potatoes in a light, brothy gravy with mustard oil, panch phoron and ginger.
• Chicken Cafreal · Goa. Goan chicken marinated in a sharp green masala of coriander, chilli, whole spices and vinegar, then pan-fried until the masala clings and chars.
• Goan Fish Curry · Goa. A bright orange coconut curry soured with kokum and coloured with Kashmiri chillies, simmered just long enough to cook kingfish or pomfret.
• Lucknowi Mutton Korma · Uttar Pradesh. Awadhi slow-cooked mutton in a pale, fragrant gravy of yogurt, browned onion and nut paste, scented with saffron, cardamom and kewra.
• Malai Kofta · Uttar Pradesh. Golden paneer and potato dumplings with a raisin-cashew centre, served in a silky, mildly sweet cashew-cream gravy.
• Dal Tadka · Punjab. Yellow toor and moong dal cooked soft with onion and tomato, then finished with a sizzling ghee tadka of cumin, garlic and red chilli.
• Kadai Paneer · Punjab. Paneer, capsicum and onion tossed in a thick tomato masala with freshly roasted and pounded coriander, red chilli and cumin.
• Paneer Butter Masala · Delhi. Soft paneer cubes in a smooth, gently sweet tomato-cashew gravy enriched with butter and cream, the Delhi restaurant favourite.
• Rajma Chawal · Punjab. Punjab's Sunday lunch: red kidney beans simmered soft in an onion-tomato masala until the gravy turns thick and creamy, ladled over steamed basmati.
• Indian Chicken Pizza · Indian fusion. Homemade pizza with a buttery makhani sauce, smoky tandoori chicken tikka, onion, capsicum and mozzarella, finished with coriander and chaat masala.
• Chicken Haleem · Telangana. Hyderabad's Ramzan favourite made with chicken: broken wheat and lentils slow-cooked with shredded chicken into a thick, savoury porridge, topped with birista, ghee, mint and lime.
• Dal Makhani · Punjab. Punjab's slow-simmered whole black urad and rajma, cooked down until creamy and finished with butter and cream.
• Sambar · Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu's everyday toor dal and tamarind stew with drumstick, shallots and brinjal, made with a freshly roasted sambar powder.
• Kashmiri Rogan Josh · Kashmir. Slow-braised mutton in a deep red gravy of Kashmiri chilli, fennel and dry ginger, with no onion or tomato.
• Amritsari Chole · Punjab. Dark, tangy Punjabi chickpeas simmered with tea for colour and finished with amchur and ghee. Best with bhature.
• Palak Paneer · Punjab. Soft paneer in a bright green spinach gravy with garlic, green chilli and a little cream.
• Telangana Natu Kodi Kura · Telangana. Country chicken cooked slowly in a rustic masala of roasted coconut, poppy seeds and whole spices, the way it's made in village kitchens.
• Old Delhi Butter Chicken · Delhi. Tandoori-style chicken simmered in a silky tomato, butter and cream gravy, finished with kasuri methi.
• Hyderabadi Haleem · Telangana. Ramzan's most famous dish: mutton, broken wheat and lentils slow-cooked and beaten into a silky, spiced porridge, topped with birista and ghee.
• Kodi Guddu Pulusu · Andhra Pradesh. Boiled eggs, scored and pan-fried, then simmered in a sweet-sour tamarind and onion gravy.
• Royyala Iguru · Andhra Pradesh. Prawns roasted in a thick, dry masala of browned onion, ginger-garlic and fresh-ground spices, from the Godavari delta.
• Chepala Pulusu · Andhra Pradesh. Coastal Andhra's fish in tamarind: firm fish steaks simmered without stirring in a hot, sour, deep-red gravy.
• Gongura Mamsam · Andhra Pradesh. Mutton slow-cooked in onion and spice, then simmered with a mash of sour gongura leaves until dark, tangy and rich.
• Andhra Chicken Curry · Andhra Pradesh. Kodi kura the Andhra way: bone-in chicken in a fiery red masala of Guntur chillies, poppy seeds and fresh-ground garam masala.
• Mirchi ka Salan · Telangana. Long green chillies fried and simmered in a tangy peanut, sesame and coconut gravy, the classic partner to Hyderabadi biryani.
• Bagara Baingan · Telangana. The Hyderabadi wedding favourite: baby brinjals in a rich, nutty gravy of peanuts, sesame and coconut, soured with tamarind.
• Majjiga Pulusu · Andhra Pradesh. Cooling buttermilk curry simmered with bottle gourd and a ground coconut, chilli and ginger paste.
• Chintapandu Pulihora · Andhra Pradesh. Temple-style tamarind rice: tart, a little sweet, crunchy with peanuts and chana dal, and better a few hours after it's made.
• Mukkala Pulusu · Andhra Pradesh. A tangy-sweet tamarind stew of mixed vegetables, thickened with a little rice flour and fragrant with fenugreek.
• Tomato Pappu · Andhra Pradesh. Everyday Andhra dal: toor dal cooked soft with tomatoes and green chillies, mashed and finished with a garlic-mustard tadka.
• Gutti Vankaya Kura · Andhra Pradesh. Small purple brinjals stuffed with a roasted peanut, sesame and coconut masala and braised whole until meltingly soft.