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What to eat in India

The 10 best dishes in India

Not one cuisine but dozens, each region its own country of food.

1

Biryani

Best: Hyderabad and Lucknow

Rice and meat layered with saffron and sealed to cook in their own steam.

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2

Butter chicken

Best: Delhi

Tandoori chicken in a silky tomato, butter and cream gravy.

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3

Masala dosa

Best: Bengaluru and Chennai

A crisp fermented rice and lentil crepe around spiced potatoes, with sambar.

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4A photo like it

Chole bhature

Best: Delhi

Spiced chickpeas with puffed fried bread.

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5

Rogan josh

Best: Kashmir

Lamb braised with Kashmiri chili and fennel.

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6

Vada pav

Best: Mumbai

A spiced potato fritter in a soft bun with chutneys.

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7

Dal makhani

Best: Punjab

Black lentils simmered overnight with butter and cream.

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8

Pani puri

Eaten all over India

Crisp hollow puris filled with spiced water and potato, eaten in one bite.

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9

Thali

Best: Gujarat and Rajasthan

A round plate of a dozen small dishes, refilled until you stop.

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10

Hyderabadi haleem

Best: Hyderabad

Wheat, lentils and meat slow-cooked to a paste, in Ramadan.

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Photos: each dish's lead photo on its Wikipedia article (license and author on Wikimedia Commons); "a photo like it" is a food photo of the same kind, not that dish. Cook it opens a recipe in Chef Amazing, or Chef writes one for you. Picked by Chef Amazing, November 2026.