By Kavitha Shankar

In the western world, Indian cuisine is famously known for its tandoori chicken and curries. While tandoori chicken most definitely will not fall under a vegan or vegetarian category, there are many other choices. However, before exploring the vegan scene in/from India, there are a few items one must understand about Indian food, in general.

Depending on which type of Indian cuisine you order, you need to know what ingredients that cuisine warrants in most dishes. For example, if you were to sit at a restaurant in Chennai, a south Indian coastal city, you should know that a lot of the items on the menu are made with fresh tamarind sauce. On the other hand, if you were to visit Delhi, a northern city and India’s capital, the food is bound to be heavy on cream, Indian cottage cheese, and yogurt marinades (like the tandoori chicken, for example). So, how does one unearth the vegan foods from the menu? As I alluded before, knowledge is key. General rule of thumb:

South = Coconut, Tamarind, peanuts (this depends on which part of South India you are in)
See Tamarind: www.vrg.org/blog/2019/07/18/what-is-tamarind-sauce-and-is-it-veg-friendly

North = Dairy (Cream-based gravy)
Note: For simplicity’s sake, we will omit West and East as these are less common in the USA.

In the USA, there are restaurants exclusively for southern and northern cuisines but some combine both under one roof. Clearly, a south Indian type may suit a vegan better. Get ready for a whirlwind tour of the vegan Indian cuisine! Take a deep breath, imagine you are sitting at a table and being served Indian food. First, appetizers.

Indians love appetizers but it is a misnomer, I would say, to call these appetizers. They are solid in content and calories. Here with my meal suggestions, I will safely assume that we are going just vegan and not on a weight-loss program. Either way, go easy on these appetizers if served with a three-course meal; they will quickly fill you up.

My all-time favorite appetizer is the samosa (pronounced sa-moh-saa). Samosas are potato filled, deep fried, and triangular in shape. The outer skin is generally made from refined wheat flour and the filling contains boiled and mashed potato, fresh green peas, and cilantro leaves. Simple, vegan and delicious! Tastes great in cold weather but if you live in Texas, no need to wait for the winter or, you may wait forever! The samosa is generally served with a tamarind sauce and a peppermint sauce. Use caution with the peppermint sauce, as it may contain yogurt when made fresh.

Editor’s Note: Since some recipes include yogurt in the dough, you should ask or carefully look at the label. 

Other lip-smacking, vegan appetizers to die for are pakora; onion fritters made from yellow gram flour, and vada (pronounced vah-daa; deep-fried lentil donut).

Now, onto the main course. Polished white rice in the South and whole grain, flat wheat bread (Roti; pronounced row-tee) in the North. Both of these, as you reckon, are usually safe for vegans. But beware, some recipes call for the addition of milk to the seemingly vegan rotis (also called chapathi; pronounced cha-paa-tee). In addition, avoid parathas (pronounced puh-raa-taas; a richer version of roti). Parathas are toasted in ghee (clarified butter). In fact, caution should be exercised even with roti, in this regard. Restaurants tend to smear the otherwise healthful, innocuously vegan Indian bread with ghee, for flavor. To avoid this, order “sukkah” (pronounced sook-ah; dry) roti and they should know not to add the clarified butter.

So, now you have your bread options laid out. What do you eat these with? To complement your bread or rice, there is no dearth for vegan entrées bursting with the flavor of freshly ground spices, tomatoes, and onions. Try the channa masala (curried chickpeas), bhendi masala (pronounced bend-ee; okra curry), or rajma masala (curried red kidney beans) and you will not be disappointed! As a general rule, stay clear of items that have the following (buzz) words woven into the name of the entrée (or appetizer, for that matter):

Shahi = Royalty and equates to the rich taste of butter etc.

Malai = Cream

Maakhan/Maakhani = Butter

Mughlai = Mughal Royalty which equates to richness of taste; butter, ghee

Tandoori = Marinated in yogurt

Paneer = Indian cottage cheese

Before we move into the third and final course of our meal, a few words about Tandoor. First of all, to be clear, Tandoor is a type of oven and has nothing to do with animal byproducts like yogurt. Second, by now we know that most tandoori entrées use a yogurt marinade. However, there are some tandoori items that are vegan, like tandoori roti; roti made on the tandoor oven.

In India, we have a gamut of desserts or mittai (pronounced mit-aa-yee), but unfortunately, not many that vegans can enjoy off the menu in a standard Indian restaurant. Most of our desserts are made from milk, yogurt, or cream. And, almost all the other desserts contain butter or ghee. Don’t lose heart yet! Many of the laddus (pronounced lad-oo) and some halwas (pronounced hull-va) can be made without butter and ghee. The million-dollar catch is, you just have to find a vegan Indian restaurant. Alternately, if you are able to find a restaurant that makes desserts fresh, you could try ordering the semolina pudding called kesari (pronounced kay-sa-ree) without ghee. This dessert has a short shelf-life and many restaurants make it fresh for the day. If you are lucky, you may be able to order the skinny version without the ghee. Caution! Sometimes they cook the semolina in milk and you will have to explain you don’t want any dairy products added.

There! You have a vegan meal from India!

Good luck in your journey with Indian vegan dining. There is a lot to savor and enjoy. Just remember the buzzwords and the great divide between the South and North in terms of the ingredients and, you are all set! Before I sign off, here is a link to authentic Indian vegan dishes (some modified with kale; we use spinach which is more readily available in India than kale) that vegans can enjoy worry-free:
https://www.vrg.org/journal/vj2009issue4/2009_issue4_calcium_indian.php

Bon appetite!