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Guide · Indian food
How to order Indian food, without guessing.
A long menu, a dozen words that all seem to mean “curry,” and a waiter who asks how hot. Ordering Indian food gets easy once you know the families of dishes and how to balance a table. Here is the cheat sheet, a plan for two and for four, and the manners that make sharing feel natural — at a curry house in Manchester, a dosa spot in New Jersey or a tandoor in Melbourne.
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In short
To order Indian food for a table, plan about one main per person and mix them: one creamy curry, one tomato-based or spicier one, a lentil dal and something dry from the tandoor. Add rice, a bread like naan or roti, and raita to cool things down. Share everything, use serving spoons for the shared dishes, and tear bread with your fingertips to scoop.
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Cheat sheet
Indian dishes, from mild to hot.
Heat varies by kitchen, and many restaurants will make a dish milder or hotter if you ask. Korma is the safe harbour; vindaloo is the dare.
| What it is | Usual heat | |
|---|---|---|
| Korma | A creamy curry with yogurt or cream and ground nuts | Mild |
| Butter chicken (murgh makhani) | Tandoori chicken in a buttery tomato and cream sauce | Mild |
| Chicken tikka masala | Grilled chicken pieces in a spiced, creamy tomato sauce | Mild to medium |
| Palak paneer / saag | Spinach (or mixed greens) with cubes of fresh paneer cheese | Mild |
| Dal | Spiced lentils; dal makhani is black lentils slow-cooked with butter | Mild |
| Chana masala | Chickpeas in a tangy tomato-onion sauce | Medium |
| Rogan josh | A Kashmiri lamb curry, red from mild Kashmiri chili | Medium |
| Jalfrezi | A stir-fried curry with peppers, onions and green chili | Medium to hot |
| Madras | A UK curry-house name for a hot, red curry | Hot |
| Vindaloo | A Goan-style curry with vinegar and garlic, served very hot in curry houses | Very hot |
| Biryani | Spiced rice layered with meat or vegetables, cooked together | Medium |
| Tandoori | Meat marinated in yogurt and spices, roasted in a clay oven — no sauce | Medium |
| Masala dosa | A South Indian rice-and-lentil crepe filled with spiced potato, with sambar and chutney | Mild to medium |
The supporting cast
Breads, rice and the little bowls.
| What it is | Order it when | |
|---|---|---|
| Naan | A soft, leavened bread baked on the wall of a tandoor | You have saucy curries to mop up |
| Garlic naan | Naan brushed with garlic and butter | Always, honestly |
| Roti / chapati | An unleavened whole-wheat flatbread, thinner and lighter | You want bread without the weight |
| Paratha | A flaky, layered flatbread cooked with ghee | With dal or a dry dish |
| Pilau / jeera rice | Rice cooked with whole spices, or with cumin | With any curry |
| Raita | Yogurt with cucumber or mint | Anything is hot |
| Papadum and chutneys | Crisp lentil wafers with mango chutney, mint sauce and pickle | You sit down — the starter of a curry house |
| Samosa / onion bhaji | Fried pastry with spiced filling / onion fritters | Something to share first |
| Lassi | A yogurt drink, sweet, salted or mango | You need to cool down |
Copy this
An order for two, and for four.
- For two: papadums to start, one creamy curry (butter chicken or korma), one with more kick (jalfrezi or chana masala), one dal, one rice, one garlic naan, a raita.
- For four: two starters to share, four mains (one creamy, one tomato-based, one hot, one vegetarian), a dal, a tandoori dish for something without sauce, two rice, three breads, raita.
- The rule of thumb: about one main per person, then one rice per two people and a bread per person. Order a second round of bread rather than too much at once — naan is best hot.
- Taking it home? Our Indian takeaway guide covers the curry-house favourites dish by dish.
At the table
Indian table manners.
- Hands are welcome. Tear bread and scoop with it, or eat biryani with your fingers. Use your fingertips, keep it neat, and wash your hands first.
- Right hand to eat. In many places the left hand stays clean for passing dishes or pouring water. At restaurants with cutlery, using a fork and spoon is perfectly fine.
- Serving spoons for shared dishes. Don’t dip your own spoon or bread into the communal bowl.
- Rest used cutlery on your plate, never on the table.
- Let elders start first at a family meal.
- Don’t fight the host for the bill. If someone is treating you, insisting on splitting can feel like turning down their hospitality.
Two menus
North Indian or South Indian?
Most curry houses in the UK, US and Australia cook mainly North Indian and Punjabi-style dishes: tandoori grills, naan, creamy gravies. South Indian restaurants feel different — dosa, idli, vada, sambar and coconut chutney, and breakfast-style dishes all day. If you have only ever had one, the other is a whole new cuisine.
Keep it
Remember the dal that was different.
Indian menus repeat across restaurants, which makes it easy to forget which place did the smoky dal and which did the great garlic naan. Snap the table once when the dishes land and PlateDiary cuts each one into its own save, filed under that restaurant. Name them as you ordered them, and next time search “dal” to see every place you have had it — with “eaten 4×” beside your regular’s.
If the table splits the bill, our bill-splitting guide has the fair ways to do it, and the receipt scan reads the bill on your phone, then deletes the photo.
Questions
Questions people ask.
What is the mildest Indian dish?
Korma is usually the mildest, with butter chicken and palak paneer close behind. Dal is gentle too. You can also ask for any dish to be made milder.
What should I order at an Indian restaurant for the first time?
Butter chicken or chicken tikka masala, a dal, rice and a garlic naan, with papadums to start. Add something from the tandoor if you want a dish without sauce.
What is the difference between naan and roti?
Naan is a soft, leavened bread baked in a tandoor oven. Roti (or chapati) is an unleavened whole-wheat flatbread, thinner and lighter.
Is it OK to eat Indian food with your hands?
Yes. Tearing bread to scoop curry and eating with your fingertips is normal and welcome; use your right hand and keep it neat. Cutlery is fine too.
How many dishes should we order for four people?
About four mains plus a dal, two rice, three or four breads and raita. Start there and add bread as you go.
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Snap the table once and each dish and drink cuts itself out, right on your phone. Works offline, on iPhone and Android, and on food photos you already took.
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