Traveling comes with many changes, wherever you go. The good part is when these changes become benefits – like good food! I have read many blogs and travel-books about India stating the food is delicious and good. I agree, but it’s hard to experience when you don’t know where to start. Therefore I like to give you my list of the 9 best foods to try in India to experience the delicious food culture of the country.

Most foods highlighted here are also available in Nepal*

Vegetable Pakoda

My most favorite food from entire India & Nepal: a good vegetable Pakoda. This snack is made of fresh vegetables (cauliflower, potato, carrot, union) which are slightly minced or cut. Then these vegetables are touching some flower and fried under a high temperature. The result? A perfect vegetable fritter that tastes delicious! TIP: look for ‘mixed vegetable’ pakoda to get the best ones.

Paneer cheese

Paneer cheese is a product that is used in many vegetarian dishes and can be compared with halloumi. It’s comparable to cottage cheese, comes from the cow and is mostly baked before added into a dish. It has a very mild taste and therefore a good add-on in dishes. It satisfies you. My favorite Paneer dishes? Fried paneer as a snack and Palak Paneer or Paneer Tikka Masala for dinner. Yum!

Palak Paneer – delicious!

MO-MO VEG

Momo’s are little cute ‘packages’ of thin dough with a rich filling and are mostly compared with dumplings. My favorite mo-mo is vegetarian and not too spicy. The way they cook can differ: steamed, steamed and baked or baked. I tried the combination of steamed and baked once – it was the best. It’s called Kothey momo. Some traditional Nepali momo’s are eaten in a sauce or soup – not something I would recommend.

The Kothey MOMO’s
The traditional, steamed, MOMO’s

Samosa’s

This spicy yet crunchy triangle-shaped dough pastry is a must when traveling India! Samosa’s are the best snacks to try in between meals and can be found everywhere in India – soo soo good.

On the left, the iconic Samosa’s!

Cashew curry

this savvy and creamy curry can’t be found everywhere and is kind-of unique. The taste isn’t spicy but sooo delicious. If you find it somewhere on the menu, please try it. I got my best Cashew curry at Tadka in Delhi.

Photo by yummytummyaarthi.com as mine was too messy;-)

Gohbi

Gohbi is the Indian name for Cauliflower. The dishes Matar Gohbi (cauliflower and peas) and Gohbi Manchurian (masala spices) are so good! The best Gohbi dishes are roasted and therefore made in the oven. Gohbi is perfect as a base for your dinner, with some curry on the side. Aloo Gohbi is also very common, which is a mix of cauliflower with potato.

Gohbi dish with sweet potato and cilantro

Dal bhat

This traditional Nepali dish is actually a plate with different small dishes. You have different versions of Dal Bhat but in general it consists of rice, curry, vegetables and papadum. Most curries are made of spinach or lentils. There is in general a big variation available. My recommendation is to try Dal bhat with yellow lentils – so tasteful.

The perfect Dal Bhat

Sizzler

Sizzler is a hot ad tasteful assortment of various vegetables along with the spices. The sizzler should be always served on hot sizzling plate and has a smoky and aromatic taste. My best sizzler? A vegetarian fritter (burger-style) cookie served with fresh hot vegetables and rice. Some sizzlers come with noodles as well.

Not the prettiest picture, but an amazing sizzler

Tofu & Mixed vegetables

This may not be the most typical Indian dish (rather Asian in general) but it’s a vegetarian meal that is cooked very tasteful in India & Nepal – therefore a good tip to try whenever you find it on the menu.

Tofu & Mix Veg

Curious what you think: which food is your favorite? Please leave me a comment below!

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