Dal, sabzi, curries and rice dishes for a meat-free Indian dinner. (779 recipes)
A rich, thick dal of pigeon pea, green gram, black and masoor lentils cooked until meltingly soft with potato, brinjal, spring onion, tomato and fenugreek, then simmered with a spiced coriander paste, tamarind and jaggery. It's sweet, sour and warming. Serve amiri dal with jeera fenugreek paratha.
Big squares of capsicum and quartered button mushrooms, seared quickly so they keep their bite, then folded into a smooth gravy thickened with a little bengal gram dal, tomato and milk. Butter and split coriander seeds give the base a nutty, gently spiced flavour, finished with lemon. Serve hot with naan.
A colourful mix of baby aubergine, cauliflower, broccoli, mushrooms, beans and carrots simmered in a ground onion, coconut and whole-spice paste loosened with coconut cream and yogurt. The vegetables go in stages so each one stays tender, not soft, and roasted cashews add crunch at the end. Serve hot with naan.
Whole aubergines charred over a flame until the skin blackens and the flesh turns soft and smoky, then chopped and tossed with onion, tomato, ginger, garlic and green chillies. A few black specks left in the flesh add to the smoky flavour. Serve hot with yogurt and millet rotla.
Chunks of fresh corn on the cob cooked in coconut milk, then simmered in a thick, nutty gravy of roasted peanuts, tomato, ginger and fresh coconut. It's mildly sweet, lightly spiced and best eaten with your hands, gnawing the kernels off the cob. Serve hot as a main curry with rotlis or rice.
Short lengths of okra slit and stuffed with a spicy masala of peanuts, coconut, onion, coriander and gram flour, then cooked covered until tender and finished with tomato. The lemon juice in the filling keeps the okra from turning sticky. Serve hot with chapaties.
Tindora (ivy gourd) slit and lightly fried, then stuffed with a sweet, sour and nutty masala of peanuts, coconut, tomato and spices and cooked gently until tender. A simple everyday Gujarati shaak. Serve hot with chapaties.
Small long brinjals slit and packed with a spiced filling of coconut, peanuts, gram flour, fenugreek and coriander, then cooked slowly in tomato with a topping of coarsely ground peas. For a stuffed potato and brinjal curry, fill small potatoes too and cook them the same way; for a stuffed banana curry, fill ripe bananas and cook them in a saucepan, without pressure or baking. Serve hot with chapaties or naan.
A quick Gujarati and Kathiawadi favourite: ripe tomatoes cooked down into a sweet, sour and gently spiced curry, with fine jini sev stirred in at the very last moment so it stays slightly crunchy. Serve sev tomato curry hot with chapaties.
Oval potato koftas with a hidden filling of paneer, cashews and raisins sharpened with lemon and chilli, fried crisp and served in a smooth tomato and onion gravy finished with cream. Add the koftas to the hot gravy only at the last minute so they stay whole. Serve immediately with naan or parathas.
The great Gujarati winter feast: papdi, fresh pigeon peas, baby potatoes, suran, sweet potato, small brinjals and ripe bananas, slit and stuffed with a green masala of fresh green garlic, coriander and coconut, slow-cooked with fried fenugreek muthia. It's cooked gently under a plate of water so the vegetables steam in their own juices. This makes a big pot for 20; serve hot with chapaties or puri.
A Gujarati favourite: tender valore (Indian flat beans) cooked in a sweet, sour and spicy tomato masala with ajwain, then mixed with crisp fried methi muthia, little dumplings of wheat and gram flour full of fresh fenugreek. The muthia soak up the gravy beautifully. Serve hot with chapaties.
Golden paneer cubes in a smooth, gently spiced makhani gravy of tomato puree, cashew paste, milk and cream, scented with kasoori methi. It's mild, creamy and a favourite with children. Serve hot with naan.
Small potatoes scooped out, deep fried and stuffed with spiced crumbled paneer, then simmered in a pale, luxurious gravy of yogurt, cashews, almonds and fresh cream. Finished with coriander, green chilli and a dusting of cinnamon, it's a true party dish. Serve hot with naan.
A quick pressure-cooker curry of chana dal and plenty of spinach with onion, tomato, ginger, garlic and green chilli. It's earthy, lightly spiced and full of goodness. Serve hot with chapaties or boiled rice. For a change, use green gram lentils with skin (soaked for 8 hours, then washed to remove the skins), or replace the lentils with four potatoes cut into 1 cm cubes and ½ tbsp lemon juice.
The classic Punjabi winter dish: mustard greens, spinach, fenugreek and a little cabbage pressure cooked until meltingly soft, then blended and thickened with maize flour. It's finished with onion, garlic and tomato fried in ghee and a sprinkle of Punjabi masala. Serve hot with chapati or makki ki roti.
A festive mixed vegetable curry from Kolhapur: fried potatoes, beans, carrots and paneer with peas, corn and three colours of capsicum, in a thick gravy of tomato, onion, mawa, cashew and yogurt spiced with coriander seed, cardamom and dried pomegranate. Topped with fresh cream, it's rich enough for a party. Serve hot with naan or choppadia.
Light, crisp koftas of gram flour and chopped spinach dropped into a pale green kadhi of yogurt and spinach puree, spiced with a fresh-ground masala of cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and coriander seed. Add the koftas just before serving so they stay soft but hold together. Serve hot with any paratha or puri.
Julienned carrots, baby corn, capsicum, beans and peas, blanched so they stay tender-crisp, tossed with fried potato fingers in a quick tomato gravy with curry leaves, mustard, ginger and amchur. It's colourful, a little tangy and spicy. Serve hot with naan or parathas.
A Punjabi home favourite: red kidney beans pressure cooked until creamy, then simmered in a deep red masala of ground onion, garlic and ginger, tomatoes and yogurt, and partly mashed so the gravy turns thick and velvety. Serve hot with chapaties or boiled rice.
Steamed carrots, beans, peas and potatoes in a vivid green gravy ground from fresh coriander, spinach, mint, coconut, green chillies and whole spices. It's fresh, fragrant and spicy, and big enough for a crowd. Serve hot with naan or chopadia.
Home-made paneer mashed with peas, carrot and potato, rolled into small koftas and fried, then dropped into a mildly spiced, creamy gravy of onion, tomato, cashew and mawa. Add the koftas only just before serving so they stay soft but whole. Serve hot with naan or paratha.
Soya granules soaked until soft and cooked like a kheema with lots of browned onion, ginger, garlic, tomato, fresh fenugreek and coriander, spiced with cinnamon and clove. It's hearty and high in protein, with a texture just like mince. Serve hot with naan or bread.
A handi-style mixed vegetable curry: potatoes, carrots, beans, peas and long pieces of brinjal cooked in a tangy yogurt gravy with ginger, garlic and chilli, finished with cream, fresh coriander and a touch of mild curry masala. Serve hot with naan or chapaties.
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