Family Favourites: 6 Vegetarian Indian Dishes That Please Every Palate

Cooking for an entire family means balancing spice levels, nutrition quotients and taste preferences – all in one vegetable dish or one-pot meal. And acquiring that balance without losing out on the deliciousness of these veggie-forward recipes can be tricky for a parent cooking meals every day. Turn these vegetarian dishes into crowd-pleasing family favourites savoured by every palate.

For enthusiastic parents who love to cook inventive meals every day, the trick to crafting crowd-pleasing treats is balancing nutrition levels with spiciness quotients and delicious flavours. Preparing food for the whole family is a very delicate balancing act but this is where vegetarian Indian cuisine comes out on top. Filled with layered tasting notes and savoury complexities, some vegetarian dishes are absolutely tasty options for weekday dinners, weekend meals and even lunchbox needs. These vegetarian dishes can at once turn into family favourites when they are accentuated with just some subtle ingredient additions and visually striking presentations. Regional delights that please every palate, these dishes are must-adds on the menu of parents cooking daily meals for the family.

Paneer Butter Masala

A dish that ranks high among all vegetarian delicacies, paneer butter masala or a gravy cooked in tomato and cashewnut dressing, infused with fresh cream and butter, is a bonafide crowd-pleaser across generations. Mildly sweet and utterly rich and luxurious without being too overwhelming or dense, this is a gravy that tastes best when served with steamed rice or butter garlic naan. Chunks of paneer added to the dish lend it an adequate protein-rich element and the simmering gravy in a heavy-bottomed kadai releases pleasing creamy and tomatoey aromas that build into the curry’s flavourful complexity. An interesting parental hack to make a slightly less calorie-dense curry is to use more tomato and cashew paste and less cream and butter in the recipe.

Vegetable Khichadi With Ghee And Curd

A comforting serving of khichadi garnished with a dollop of ghee and a side of curd is one of the most pleasing dinners to serve after a particularly busy day. Add assorted veggies like carrots, beans, potatoes, onions and more to the khichadi to build its fibre content. Prepare the khichadi in a pressure cooker so the rice and lentil combination cooks in just a matter of a few whistles. Cooked in a tempering of mustard seeds and cumin, turmeric, red chilli powder and some homemade masala, the khichadi carries a subtly spiced, cosy profile. Add a roasted papad to the meal and pickle too, for their respective crunchy effect and tangy flavour.

Dry Aloo Gobi

This Punjabi-style take on the potato and cauliflower sabzi can be the go-to option for parents putting together a lunchbox on the fly. The dry sabzi pairs really well with roti or whole wheat flatbread. With simple flavours and comforting textures, it becomes the perfect alternative when parents are short on time but want to come up with something interesting for lunch. The aloo gobi sabzi can be prepared by adding mild spices such as garam masala and cumin powder to the cast-iron kadai as the vegetables cook. Sprinkle some kasuri methi on top to finish the vegetables off with an aromatic garnish. 

Dal Makhani And Jeera Rice

Made from black lentils or urad dal and kidney beans, a creamy and indulgent dal makhani promises to be an instant, comforting crowd-favourite prepared for family dinner. Whole black lentils are soaked overnight until they soften. They are steamed with the kidney beans in a pressure cooker before cooking both these protein-rich ingredients in a spiced tomato-onion base. What makes the dal makhani stand out is the slow-cooking technique wherein the dish is simmered in the kadai for a long time until the masala blooms adequately. Often enough, dal makhani is finished off with a swirl of fresh cream and a drizzle of kasuri methi which builds a smoky flavour into the recipe. Serve the dal makhani with jeera rice. Long-grained basmati can be stir fried in a tempering of cumin, ghee and coriander to prepare the quintessential rice dish favoured by all.

Vegetable Biryani

A one-pot dish, highly aromatic and touched with the flavours of assorted spices, vegetable biryani can become a true weekend favourite when it is cooked in a rich masala. Marinate vegetables like potatoes, cauliflower, beans, carrots and others in a paste enriched with curd, minced ginger-garlic, dried red chilli powder, turmeric, cumin and coriander powders and fresh mint leaves. Cook the vegetables before layering a handi with steamed rice and the masala sabzi. Pour a little bit of saffron-infused milk in a small portion of the rice to lend it a lightly golden, orange tinge. Now, layer the handi with the biryani sabzi and this colourful rice. Finish the dish off with a layer of plain, white rice. Once the biryani is steamed and ready, garnish it with freshly chopped coriander and fried onions.

Besan Chilla With Paneer Stuffing

What can serve as an afternoon snack or as a heavy breakfast on a busy morning, a nutritious, crisp and warm besan chilla can be prepared with a stuffing made using crumbled paneer. The chilla will be a certain crowd favourite as the paneer tossed in subtle spices lends the crisp pancake its sumptuous, creamy nuance. What’s more, parents can make the chilla as healthy as they desire by grating all sorts of vegetables such as carrots and bottle gourds into the chilla batter. Season the batter simply with ginger-garlic paste and just a bit of coriander and let the paneer stuffing bring more flavour layers into the dish. With crispy edges, soft centres and endless variations, stuffed besan chillas would be stunning crowd-pleasers when served warm with mint chutney or a burnt garlic curd dip.