7 Indian Cuisines to put on Your Food Bucket List

In such a diverse country, there are so many types of Indian cuisine you absolutely MUST try!

India is a vast country, spanning from the Himalayan peaks to the Indian Ocean coastline: 1.25 billion people populate 29 states and seven union territories. The nation is comprised of more than 2,000 ethnic groups with 22 official languages.

If food reflects the practices, attitudes, and beliefs of a group of people—a piece of cultural identity—then how do we define Indian food? When we say we’re “going out for Indian tonight,” what does that really mean? It is virtually impossible to describe dishes from each of India’s states and subset cultures.

Here are seven cuisines highlighted to pique your palate:

1. Gujrati

Gujarati cuisine refers to the state of Gujarat in western India, a primarily lactovegetarian state. A typical Gujarati thali consists of rice, kadhi, dal, and rotli. To start off, there’s a snack item, farsaan, like dhokla, pathra, or samosa. There’s also usually a shaak or sabzi made of various vegetables and spices, either spicy or sweet in nature, as well as a dish of lentils or whole beans. To top it off is a sweet like jalebi, doodh pak, or mohanthal. North Gujarat, Kathiawad, Kachchh, and Surti are the four major regions of Gujarat that contribute to its cuisine.

2. Punjabi

Punjabi food is primarily influenced by the agriculture and farming lifestyle prevalent during the Harappan Civilization, which flourished in the Punjab regions of India and Pakistan. Locally grown vegetables and buttery meat dishes make up the cuisine. Since Punjab is a major producer of wheat, Basmati rice (chol), and dairy products, these are staples in the diet.

A unique style of tandoor cooking, using wood-fired and masonry ovens, became popular after the 1947 Partition when Punjabis resettled in cities of north India like New Delhi. Common dishes inclue sarson da saag and makki di roti, spicy chole, aloo paratha for breakfast, and Amritsari lassi for the cooling effect.

3. Bengali

Bengali cuisine differs between the people of Bangladesh and West Bengal, due to regional divide during Partition. West Bengal, in eastern India, is situated along the Himalayan peaks in the north and the Bay of Bengal in the south. Though stereotypically known for its inclusion of sweet water fish, Bengalis also commonly eat goat, mutton, chicken, prawns, and shrimp. But at least one meal a day is certain to have fish! Bengalis also tend to cook regional vegetables, such as ridge gourd (jhinga), plantain, green jackfruit, and Malabar spinach (pui shak). A spread of desserts is sure to be included—sandesh, rasgulla, and mishit doi are popular options.

Bengali cuisine is the only traditionally developed, multi-course tradition from the Indian subcontinent similar to that of French tradition: serving dishes course-by-course.

4. Bihari

If you’ve read Chetan Bhagat’s “Half Girlfriend,” then you’re definitely (at least literarily) familiar with Bihari cuisine. Predominantly vegetarian, Biharis have been influenced by Buddhist and Hindu values of non-violence, so do not have a history of eating eggs, chicken, fish, and other animal products. However, those living near the Sone, Gandak, and Ganges rivers do eat meat and fish, with chicken and mutton being the most common. A uniquely Bihari technique is “smoked food,” or using smoked red chili to infuse strong aroma.

Recommendations: sattu paratha stuffed with fried chickpea flour, litti chokha (dough ball made of whole wheat flour, chickpea flour, and roasted mashed potato), and Bihari kebab.

5. Awadhi

Native to the city of Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh in northern India, is Awadhi cuisine. The chefs of Awadh invented the dum style of cooking over a slow fire, heavily with cardamom and saffron, producing elaborate dishes like biryani, kormas, sheermal, roomali rotis, and warqi parathas. Lucknow is famous for its kebabs, cooked on a chula, varying from kakori kebabs to shammi kebabs and seekh kebabs.

Lucknow is also known for its Nawabi foods—luxurious dishes for the princely rulers during the Mughal empire.

6.Tibetan

Tibetan food is not often the first answer when asked about Indian cuisines, but includes the culinary traditions of Tibet, its mountainous landscape, and its peoples, many of whom reside in India and Nepal. Noodles, goat, yak, mutton, yak/ goat cheese, butter and soups are all staples. Vegetables and fruits were rarely eaten in Central Tibet, as they have been difficult to grow at such high altitudes, but using greenhouses now make it possible to cultivate these crops.

The most important crop in Tibet is barley. Balep is Tibetan bread eaten for breakfast and lunch. Thukpa is a dinner staple with vegetables, meat, and noodles in broth and momos are Tibetan dumplings.

7. Kerala

In the southwest of India, Keralan cuisine spans seafood and fish mainly in coastal Kerala, vegetables on the plains, and poultry and red meat in tribal and northern Kerala. Chilies, curry leaves, mustard seeds, tamarind, and asafetida are frequently used ingredients. Kerala traded spices with Europe, having records dating back to 3000 BCE, from which it earned its title as the “Land of Spices.” Keralan food is usually served on a banana leaf, with a flavorful addition of coconut. Breakfast options include idli, dosa, appam, and/or idiyappam. Malabar biryani is a main special cuisine, and payasam is a sweet native dessert.

There are countless more Indian cuisines to explore. Which of these will go on your food bucket list?