Healthiest indian food?

tanyao0o, Aug 19, 5:02am
So i thought the paneer palek (cottage cheese dish) would be heaps better then a meat/cream based dish. I read the contents on the pack in a indian shop and it was something stupid like 25g saturated fat per 100g. Now im after a healthy indian dish that i can buy as takeaways. I dont make it so dont really know the ingrediants, Would it be the pea and potato curry or a tomato and chickpea curry or something else?
motorbo, Aug 19, 5:08am
i would think a tomatoe based dish, but then again butter chicken has cream in it! ! so sorry im not sure they use so much ghee lol
davidt4, Aug 19, 5:34am
Unfortunately takeaway Indian food is not usually very healthy. The sauces are heavily processed and homogenised, with lots of added sugar, salt and cheap hydrogenated fats.

If you want to buy frozen meals you can read the packets and see what the ingredients are.

Why not learn to make simple Indian dishes yourself? There are no special techniques involved and once you have equipped yourself with some spices and a few recipes you'll be surprised how easy it is to make delicious food. It is also much cheaper.
moparpete, Aug 19, 8:31am
Tandoori Chicken. Not a lot but a bit more healthier than the other dishes I will say as it its roasted. The chicken is Marinated in yoghurt, spieces, ginger and garlic then traditionally roasted in a clay oven.
kiwibubbles, Aug 19, 8:40am
tandoori chicken
seb28, Aug 19, 9:54am
Yes make your own.

Make atomato based curry and add low fat yoghurt instead of cream? ? Then you can play around with spices to get the taste you're after. A nice kachumber salad goes nice with it too! ! !
nondescipt, Aug 19, 11:05am
I live in Mumbai and cook every day all the Marsalas are fried in oil before adding the other ingredients so non of it is what you would call low fat and healthy.
bedazzledjewels, Aug 19, 6:18pm
Depends on your idea of what's healthy.
tanyao0o, Aug 19, 8:28pm
I ended up having a vegetable kalah (think thats correct). Had quite alot of oil but was super tasty. I have tried making a few dishes and they have turned out pretty good (even brought the spices from a indian shop). It was my birthday dinner last night so no cooking on my birthday :)
fronta1, Aug 19, 8:46pm
I use the chickpea spinach curry off the diabeties website, its great.
Chickpea and spinach curry

For 4 large servings:
2 tsp canola oil
1 large onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed, peeled and chopped
1 Tbsp finely chopped ginger
2 to 3 medium potatoes, or 250g kumara
cut into 1cm cubes
2 to 3 tsp curry powder (mild or hot to taste)
1/2 to 1 tsp cumin seeds (optional)
2 to 3 bay leaves
250g package frozen spinach, thawed
400g can whole tomatoes in juice
310g can chickpeas, drained
1/4 to 1/2 cup water, if required
2 tsp garam masala
2 Tbsp chopped fresh coriander leaves
Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and stirfry until the onion has softened and is turning clear. Add the cubed potatoes or kumara, curry powder, cumin seeds (if using) and bay leaves. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, then add the spinach with its liquid and the tomatoes in juice. Crush and break up the tomatoes, then stir in the drained chickpeas.
Simmer the mixture gently for 15 minutes, or until the potato cubes are tender, adding a little water if the mixture begins to look too dry. When the potatoes are cooked, add the garam masala, season to taste, and add the chopped coriander leaves.
For a simple meal serve the curry in bowls as it is, alternatively, serve with plain rice.
Note: For best colour and flavour, use canned tomatoes from Italy.
Approx nutritional analysis per serve without rice
Energy 942 KJ, 224 kcals, Fat 7g, Carbohydrate 26g
tanyao0o, Aug 19, 8:50pm
yum thanks!
frances1266, Aug 19, 9:18pm
Dhal is fairly healthy, not sure how much fat is in it although dont think it would be much.
winnie15, Aug 19, 9:41pm
chicken tikka masala is the healthiest option if you want indian
buzzy110, Aug 19, 9:42pm
I have read most of the ingredients lists on the pre-prepared products at the Khyber Spice shop and most of them have hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated (even worse) fats in them so basically, as davidt4 says, no bought Indian foods are healthy.

In terms of healthy Indian food, why not put it all into perspective. Billions of Indians thrive on Indian food that they cook daily in their own homes. Indians have shown no extra propensity for obesity or shuffling off their mortal coil from modern day syndromes like diabetes, high blood pressure, CVD and CHD than any Western country's populations so why would you consider their style food to be any different from ours in terms of health outcomes?
dinky17, Aug 19, 11:30pm
jeez buzzy110, talking about common sense. . lolol... you are up there with the best... you are sooooooo right! !
dinky17, Aug 19, 11:32pm
like going on a diet, , , , STOP EATING, , , , , , the hole on the top is bigger than the hole at the bottom, , , , thats the problem... always has been and always will be!