20 Popular Indian Dinner Recipes & Ideas (Vegetarian)

Wondering what to cook for lunch or dinner? This collection will come in handy to plan your next vegetarian meal. This post covers 20 most popular and often made Indian main course vegetarian recipes from the blog.

Main course meals are had during lunch and dinners. Though we can have a light dinner, but one should always have a proper breakfast and a good lunch. I am sharing a collection of some vegetarian recipes that can be made for either lunch or dinner.

The idea is not just to share the recipe, but you will also get ideas based on the collection and can try or make some other recipe not posted here.

I have included both North Indian and South Indian dinner recipes. In North India usually different types of sabzi or gravy recipes are made for dinner and served with roti or phulka. However rajma chawal and kadhi chawal are two popular rice recipes that are made for dinner.

For some recipes like rajma masala or chana masala, you do need to do some prep work beforehand like soaking the kidney beans or chickpeas.

For making dishes like kadhi or curd rice, you need to set the curd overnight before preparing.

If you plan to make South Indian Recipes like Idli, Dosa or Uttapam then you need to prepare the batter previous night. So do plan accordingly.

In south India apart from chapathi, various rice dishes are also made for lunch and dinner. There are a variety of rice recipes popular in South India like:

• Lemon rice
• Ghee rice
• Coconut rice
• Curd rice
• Tomato rice
• Peanut rice

These rice recipes can be had alone as a dinner or lunch or they can also be served in small quantities along with other dishes.

Example: when I make steamed rice with Rasam then I also make some dry sabzi like Carrot Poriyal or Vendakkai Poriyal or Kovakkai Poriyal or a simple Potato Fry or Bhindi Sabzi to go along with it. 

Make sure your meal is healthy, wholesome and is prepared fresh and had hot. Do try to include a veggie salad, raita, one to two vegetable side dishes or chutney whenever possible.

20 Indian Dinner Recipes & Ideas

Veg Dum Biryani

There are many varieties of biryani made in India. A true Veg Biryani is always prepared with slow cooking on dum. This cooking on dum gives the biriyani its uniqueness and originality, and that is how the biryani has the beautiful medley of aromas, flavors and tastes caused by the blending of the ingredients used in making it.

Rajma Masala

Rajma Masala is one of the regulars at any Punjabi house for lunch or dinner. Mostly, it’s made on weekends and the combination of a kidney beans curry with steamed rice (chawal) is quite famous. This Rajma recipe is a mildly spiced, creamy, and flavorful Punjabi curry made with kidney beans, onions, tomatoes, and aromatic spices. It is my mother’s recipe of a truly restaurant style Punjabi Rajma Masala.

Bisi Bele Bath

Bisi Bele Bath, a wholesome dish from Karnataka, is a flavorful one-pot meal made with rice, lentils, and a medley of vegetables simmered in a unique spice blend. Its name translates to ‘hot lentil rice,’ and it is often served during dinner or lunch, with a dollop of ghee, crunchy boondi, or spicy potato chips for added texture and taste.

Chana Masala

There are many ways chickpeas curries are made in regional Indian cuisine. This Chana Masala is made with freshly powdered spices, onions, tomatoes and herbs, making the chana taste like the ones you get on the streets of Delhi. This dish can be relished with a variety of Indian breads like poori, bhatura, roti, paratha, naan, kulcha or even rice.

Paneer Butter Masala

Paneer Butter Masala is a traditional North Indian dish featuring a rich, creamy gravy made from tomatoes, butter, and flavorful spices. Soft paneer cubes are simmered in this luscious sauce, making it a favorite choice for pairing with naan or rice. This is an easy, quick and delicious recipe of one of the most popular cottage cheese curries served in most Indian restaurants and is also made for special occasions.

Kadhi Pakora

This is a very popular recipe of Punjabi Kadhi Pakora. Each state and region have their own ways of making kadhi. The Punjabi Kadhi is thicker and creamier than other variations that have a slight thinner consistency. The main ingredients used to make the kadhi are more or less the same. The kadhi is either served with rice or with roti or phulka and usually made for lunch or dinner.

Masala Dosa

There are many popular varieties of dosa made in South India that are usually served with coconut chutney and sambar. From breakfast to lunch to dinner, you can have dosa any time of the day.  They are healthy and taste very good. This Masala Dosa recipe will give you a restaurant-style version, where the dosa is crisp and served with a delicious potato masala.

Dal Makhani

Dal Makhani is one of the most popular lentil recipes made in North India with whole black gram (urad dal) and kidney beans (rajma). This recipe is a restaurant-style one and tastes awesome. If you love authentic Punjabi food, then you are going to love this preparation even more. Serve it with your favorite Indian bread or have it with steamed rice or jeera rice, it makes for a delicious dinner or lunch meal.

Vangi Bath

This is a delicious recipe of spiced brinjal rice from South Indian cuisine. Although, the Vangi Bath is popular both in the cuisine of Karnataka and Maharashtra. Both the regional recipes taste different as some of the ingredients and the spices that go into preparing the dish are different. Makes for lovely dinner meal when paired with raita, papad or chips.

Palak Paneer

This creamy Palak Paneer is made with fresh spinach leaves (palak), Indian cottage cheese (paneer), onions, tomatoes, herbs and spices. This delicious recipe is the way my mother has always made it for our family. She has been making this recipe for years, and has passed it onto me. It is a family favorite for sure!

Veg Pulao

Trying to get more vegetables in your diet? Try this vegetarian one-pot meal of pulao. Use the vegetables that you like most – for instance green peas, potatoes, green beans, etc. – and make this simple Veg Pulao that packs a punch of flavor. Have it with a salad, sliced onions or a raita, for an amazingly nourishing meal.

Kara Kuzhambu

Kuzhambu is a South Indian curry-based dish from the cuisine of Tamil Nadu. There are quite a number of varieties and variations in preparing this particular dish. The gravy may or may not have lentils. The recipe that I have shared here does not have lentils, but is made with vegetables in a curry base of coconut, spices and tamarind.

Puliyodharai (Tamarind Rice)

This Tamarind Rice is a popular South Indian recipe of a tangy, sour and spiced rice. The dish is also known as Puliyodharai in Tamil language. In most South Indian temples, this dish is also served as prasadam along with sweet pongal and curd rice. Makes for a lovely meal when served with papads or vadagams.

Chana Dal

There are many recipes made with chana dal all over India. In Bengal, the combination of cholar dal with luchi is very popular. In South India, chana dal is used in making many delicious recipes like dal vada or chana dal payasam. Here is a Punjabi-style Chana Dal recipe that is tempered and flavored with Indian spices.

Bhindi Masala

This is a semi-dry lightly spiced Punjabi-style Bhindi Masala made with okra (bhindi), onions and tomatoes. It goes very well with some soft phulkas or rotis. It is made in an onion-tomato base with the regular masalas (spice powders) – a combination that is often used in Punjabi recipes. Gluten-free and vegan too. 

Sambar

Sambar is a South Indian lentil and vegetable stew made with tamarind and a unique spice blend called sambar powder. This dish is served with steamed rice, idli, dosa, medu vada or uttapam. You can vary the consistency of this preparation and serve it with whatever dish you are making. Makes for a deliciously nutritious meal.

Veg Kurma

South Indian-style Veg Kurma is a fragrant and mildly spiced curry made with a medley of vegetables simmered in a coconut-based gravy. Infused with flavors from fennel, curry leaves, and ground spices, it pairs perfectly with parotta, dosa or steamed rice. You can also relish this dish with pooris or chapatis.

Matar Paneer

Matar Paneer is a popular North Indian curry featuring soft paneer cubes and tender green peas simmered in a spiced tomato-onion sauce. This delicious dish pairs well with roti, naan, or steamed rice, offering a hearty and satisfying meal.

Dal Fry

Dal Fry is the quintessential Indian curried lentils recipe made with pigeon pea or yellow lentils (arhar dal or toor dal). You can also use masoor dal or moong dal to make this recipe. Both this version and dal tadka are 2 of the most popular lentil dishes served in Indian restaurants.

Parippu Curry

This Kerala Parippu Curry is a delicious moong dal curry made with coconut and spices. Makes for a comforting meal when served with rice. You can also accompany a veggie thoran dish like beetroot thoran or beans thoran, a few pickle and papaddums by the side.