10 Traditional Indian Diwali Food Recipes

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We all know, Diwali is a festival of light and is celebrated world wide in many countries. The festival is not just about beautiful lighting and fire-works but also about cooking some traditional Indian food. Indian dishes are already well known world wide for their exquisite taste and use of lots of herbs and spices. The superb taste of an Indian dish is the reflection of all the hard work that goes behind making these dishes. In this article we will cover some traditional Indian Diwali food recipes that you can easily make at home this season.

To make some great Diwali food, there are plenty of traditional Indian food recipes that you can choose from. Some of these dishes are quite simple and easy while few require some special skills to get them right.

During festivals, you want to make sure that you have lot of time for yourself to celebrate and not just keep busy in preparations. So, you would want to go for dishes that are easy to cook but still tastes awesome.

While, many of Indian dishes require some amount of effort there are lot of dishes that you can cook quite easily. Festivals such as Diwali, Navratri, Holi etc are excellent times to put on your master chef hat and flaunt your culinary skills.

To assist you in your journey on trying something new and tasty from Indian menu, why not try some of the following Indian food recipes.

Diwali Food Recipes

Palak Paneer

Palak Paneer aka Spinach Paneer is a popular Indian food that is specially cooked during festivals and celebrations. It is very easy dish to prepare at home and goes well with Indian Bread, Parathas and Rice.

To make this dish you just need some Spinach, double cream and few Indian spices.

Read more – What is Diwali and why is Diwali celebrate

Try it out with some Puri, Paratha or steamed rice. Check out the full Palak Paneer recipe and make this great dish at home this festive season.

Jeera Aloo

Jeera Aloo Recipe is a very popular dish recipe in Northern and Central parts of India. It is a very fulfilling dish and is served with Plain Paratha or Puri along with Yogurt or Cucumber Raita or Kaddu Raita

It is famously known as Aloo Ke Gutke in Uttarakhand (a state in North of India) where it forms a part of Pahari cuisines. Since, it is one of the most simple and minimalistic recipes to make at home, it is prepared with many other dishes during Diwali.

By the way, you can also use Jeera aloo to make tasty sandwiches next day for breakfast. Check out this amazingly simple Diwali food recipe and cook some tasty meal for your family.

Pav Bhaji

Pav Bhaji is one of those Indian Street Food recipes which we simply couldn’t resist to put into our list. It is the Indian Street food delicacy coming from the state of Maharashtra in India and is quite popular worldwide.

Read more – 10 Amazing Facts about Diwali

You can say, it is a Street food – with love from Maharashtra, India to rest of the world.

Simple and delicious, it is a tasty fast food that you can easily prepare at home. It is time to try this delicacy from India for your guests on Diwali.

Aloo Matar aka Potato Peas Curry

If you are fond of Peas then Aloo Matar is the best thing to make during Diwali. You can also add some cottage cheese while preparing this dish and may just spice up the dish.

In usual days you can consume it with Rice however during Diwali or other festivals it is served with Puri and some sweet dish such as Gulab Jamun etc

Dal Makhani

While Diwali is a festival which is celebrated during night, tasty yummy dishes and celebrations are for the entire day. On special day, you would certainly want to go for special dishes so how can you miss on this tasty Diwali food recipe – Dal Makhani.

Dal Makhani tastes best when cooked slowly over low and medium flame. While the recipe is quite simple to follow, you may need few spices to get things right.

Dal Makhani goes well with Paranthas and Steamed rice or Jeera Rice.

Rice Pudding / Rice Kheer

Talking about special traditional Indian food recipes and forgetting about Rice Pudding aka Rice Kheer or simply Kheer is simply unacceptable.

Rice pudding is a very common and popular Indian dessert which is popular not just in India but world wide. People in different parts of the world call this same simple dish with different names but it is the same old recipe that has ruled the hearts of billions for centuries.

In India this simple and tasty dish is commonly called as Rice Kheer or simply Kheer. Though it is a simple dish but don’t underestimate its importance and great taste that will keep you longing for more.

Whether it is a usual dinner on any other day or a special occasion, Rice Pudding aka Kheer is always the champion. Running low on supplies or time we recommend going for Rice Pudding.

Check out this tasty indian dessert recipe and give yourself a treat this Diwali.

Fritters

So you have some friends and relatives visiting you this Diwali and you are looking for some better options for food and snacks for them.

We recommend, the nice and simple – Pakoras aka Fritters would be your best friends during such time. And you know why? Because simply no one can, and we literally mean it when we say “No one can say No” to these little monsters.

Fritters are great Diwali food which are quick and easy to prepare at home.

There are many type of Pakoras or fritters that you can easily prepare at home. Here is a list of few that you can make as Diwali food or as snacks –

• Paneer Pakoras aka Cheese fritters,
• Gobi Pakoras aka Cauliflower fritters,
• Aloo Pakoras aka Potato fritters,
• Palak Pakoras aka Spinach fritters and
• Mirchi Pakoras aka Chilli fritters.

You can make them easily at home and enjoy the festival. Offer them with some hot Tea or coffee.

Gulab Jamun

Gulab Jamun might not exactly be the type of Indian dessert that you would want to miss out during Diwali. They are obviously sweet and tasty but also addictive.

Believe it or not, whether you make it at home or bring some ready made Gulab Jamun’s from market, you will find them disappear from your plate in no time.

While making Gulab Jamun might require some skill in past, but pray no more.

Your prayers have been answered by some great guys out there. So save yourself plenty of time by using ready to cook Gulab Jamun available in markets.

Believe us, these ready to make options are excellent to make this great Indian dessert especially during festivals.

Why not give Gulab Jamun a try just in case you would like to introduce something new to your Diwali meal.

Raita

Raita is a common term used for a type of Indian sides which are great combos for your Diwali or basically any festive meal. It is a side dish which is made using Yogurt, few Indian spices and an add on ingredient which could be anything such as Pumpkin, Pineapple or even Cucumber.

Few example of this side that you can easily make at home within 10 mins or less are –

• Kaddu Raita – A simple side dish prepared using Pumpkin and Yogurt.
• Cucumber Raita – Raita side dish made using grated Cucumber and Yogurt.
• Pineapple Raita – For those who love pineapple a lot, try this simple dish using Pumpkin and Yogurt
• Boondi Raita – A simple side dish prepared using Boondi and Yogurt.

Potato Curry

Potato curry is a simple Potato recipe and is known by many different names such as Aloo Tamatar Ki Sabji, Aloo Ka Jhol, Aloo Curry and Tari wale Aloo. 

During Diwali Aloo Curry is mainly offered with Puri and some sweet dishes such as Kheer, Suji Halwa etc.

On the day of Diwali, people will make traditional food dishes to celebrate and often visit family and friends.

People exchange food items and Diwali religious offering (Prasad or Prasadam) with their neighbours, friends and relatives.

Traditionally food items prepared in different parts of the India and those living abroad may vary but that is one of the most interesting things to experience in India.

Other Tasty traditional Indian food recipes to try this Diwali

While we have listed few tasty Diwali food dishes above, there are plenty more Indian dishes that you can try at home. Here are few more recipe ideas as a bonus for you –

Puri – is a very popular Indian bread that goes well with other Indian festival dishes such as Palak Paneer, Potato Curry, Raita etc.

Rajma curry – is considered a great dish for any special occasions. This great dish goes well as Diwali lunch or dinner. Serve it with some steamed rice.

Suji Halwa – Suji Halwa is a traditional Indian dessert that is often prepared in fasts and festivals. It is a simple sweet dish that takes around 10 mins and compliments spicy Indian food. Give it a try with Diwali meal.

Rabri – For all the sweet tooth out there, give this Indian Dessert a try and you may just fall in love with it. Rabri is a great Diwali food which requires less culinary skills so it is great for those occasional master chefs who are planning to cook something special this Diwali.

Sweet Rice – Sweet rice is one of the easiest recipe that can go as regular dish by itself or with something spicy. Check out this simple recipe and add something sweet to your menu.

Bottom Line

There are plenty of tasty Indian food recipes that you can try at home on Diwali. Based on how much time you plan to invest in cooking, you should definitely give them a try.

Diwali is a good time to show off some great culinary skills to friends and family so why not impress them with these tasty dishes.

If you are new to cooking then try with something simple and then progress gradually to recipes that require more skills.

Before we go, we would like to wish you and your family –

Happy Diwali and a Prosperous new year – Enjoy these delicious traditional diwali food recipes

and do let us know which recipe you chose to cook this Diwali by commenting on this article. We also request you to like and share our articles, follow us on social media and subscribe to our social media channels for more such articles. Your love and support help us continue making such great articles.