Indian Food Guide

Meat and Indian bread are the main features of north Indian food. It's hearty and commonly cooked in a tandoor (clay oven fired by charcoal). North Indian curries usually have thick, moderately spicy and creamy gravies.

Popular dishes: Roti, naan, sheekh kebab (minced meat on iron skewers), chicken tikka (small chunks of marinated and grilled chicken), butter chicken, tandoori chicken, aloo muttar (curry made with potatoes and peas), samosa, daal makhani (butter).

Many migrants from Kashmir have moved to Delhi and other north Indian cities. There you can sample their cuisine, usually consisting of hearty meat cooked in curd or milk.

• 8 Best Indian Restaurants in Delhi for All Budgets
• Top 5 Indian Fine Dining Restaurants in Delhi

South Indians can't do without rice. It's the staple in their diet. In Kerala, most dishes are coconut based and seafood is a specialty. In Tamil Nadu, watch out for Chettinad cuisine, perhaps the most fiery of all Indian food. This style is largely vegetarian.

Popular dishes: No South Indian meal is complete without rice in some form or other -- either boiled rice or idlis (steamed cakes made from rice batter), or dosas or uttapams (pancakes made from a batter of rice and lentil flour). Perhaps the south Indian food that's most enjoyed by travelers is the masala dosa. It's a thin crispy pancake filled with spicy potato and onion. Cheap and tasty!

• 9 Must-Try Iconic Indian Cuisine Restaurants in Bangalore
• Top 10 Cultural Attractions in South India

The food in Goa is dominated by seafood (of course, being a coastal state) and pork. The Portuguese influence shows up more obviously at dinner in the evenings, when roast beef may even be served (most Goans are Catholic, and as a result eat beef). Goan food also features elaborate puddings and cakes.

Popular dishes: Goan fish curry, pork vindaloo. All washed down with a chilled King's Beer. (Goans also love a drink!).

• 10 Best Goan Cuisine Restaurants in Goa for All Budgets

Gujarat's cuisine is known for its slight sweet touch (at least a pinch of sugar is added to most dishes!) and is traditionally entirely vegetarian. This makes it a delight for those who don't like to eat meat. Rest assured you don't have to go to Gujarat to get lip-smacking Gujarati food. It's widely available in Mumbai.

Popular dishes: Don't miss feasting on a Gujarati thali (platter with a wide range of different food items).

Bengalis LOVE fish! It's fried, curried, stewed lightly with vegetables, or made into jhaal (fish with ground mustard seeds and chillies). Equally adored when it comes to food are Bengali sweets, usually milk based.

Popular dishes: Macher jhol (fish curry), daab chingri (coconut prawn curry), mutton biryani, sandesh, rasgulla.

• 9 Authentic Bengali Restaurants in Kolkata

You'll find a significant Tibetan and Nepali influence in the cuisine of the mountainous areas of northern India, due to migration and proximity to the borders of these countries.

Popular dishes: Thukpa (hearty noodle soup), momos (steamed or fried stuffed dumplings), gyakho (stew). In Sikkim, try tongba (famous Himalayan millet beer).

• Easy Thukpa Recipe
• Steamed Momo Recipe
• 11 Top Attractions and Places to Visit in Sikkim

Also very different to typical Indian cuisine, food in North East India is largely devoid of oil and masalas. However, it is hot and spicy! Rice, vegetables and meat stew make up most meals. Pork is very popular and beef is not forbidden. You'll also come across some rather usual ingredients, such as ant eggs, dog meat and hornet larvae.

Popular dishes: Pork stew with bamboo shoots in Nagaland. Masor tenga (sour fish curry from Assam), dawlrep bai (spicy beef or pork curry from Mizoram), chamthong (vegetable stew from Manipur), pasa (spicy soup with raw fish from Arunachal Pradesh)

• Guide to North East India States and Places to Visit
• Exploring Nagaland: Villages, Homestays and Men in the Kitchen