Indian food help

acpgee

I'm going to lunch tomorrow in Southall tomorrow (the Little India of London). I am not that familiar with Indian food. What should I order?

ll0tus1107

Well honestly Indian food can get quite high in calories but it is possible to get away without ingesting a million calories. Tandoori chicken is going to be your leanest and least caloric choice of meat since it is prepared in a clay over and not fried. As far as breads and rice go you can't really escape unless you opt it out of your meal but I'd go with naan, some places carry whole wheat naan, so ask. Some dishes will also include lentil and split peas, try it as it's healthy and will keep you fuller. Stay away from the fried foods! They're delicious but ridiculously high in calories and oil. If you are in a curry MOOD-NO BUTTER CHICKEN! We Indian people cook with a lot of butter and oil. Try to go for a curry that is spicier, like masala based curries. The desserts are also a heart attack waiting to happen so if you must go with a mango lassi because everything else is buried in sugar, literally.

uconnwinsnc

Poori is the tastiest bread in the world. Deep fried. MMM! Eat whatever you want. It is one meal during your life journey. Enjoy it!

SquidVonBob

I like Saag Paneer. It's a spinach based curry with farmers cheese in it. If you forgo rice and naan, your biggest enemy might be the high sodium content. If you stay away from fried meat and starch curry is very low calorie.

Jen_Cole

If you want to try and choose lower calorie option; choose poppadoms with the cucumber dip (raiti) to start. If you want rice, choose the plain rice instead of Pilau, or ask for roti - which is a flat bread made with wheat or whole wheat flour (In a serving of roti it is 84 calories, 1.5g fat, 3g protein, 0mg sodium and 0g fiber) Naans can have a lot of calories in. Tandoori Chicken is one of the better options to choose for the main. Other choices (for the main) could be Sambar Dal - a chickpea and legume stew with spices...quite filling, you wouldn't need bread or a rice to go with it! Or a Vegetable Curry - ask what it is cooked in.

This chart has some of the calories for popular Indian food dishes:
http://www.weightlossresources.co.uk/calories/calorie_content/indian_food.htm

MeanderingMammal

I'm going to lunch tomorrow in Southall tomorrow (the Little India of London). I am not that familiar with Indian food. What should I order?

That's a bit of a broad question tbh, the diversity of Indian food is phenomenal. It really depends on what you enjoy, and how much you can account for the calorie consumption around it, but you'd have that challenge with any lunch out.

Daal tends to be lentil based and is quite filling, but it's really intended as a side dish. As mentioned upthread, tandoori dishes are generally baked rather than fried.

You'll probably want to avoid chapatti as they're more oily than naan, but in all honesty neither is a great choice.

In all honesty I'd just chill out, and enjoy it. No point in getting excessively worked up about one meal, you can account for the consumption in other ways

davert123

I would stick to a prawn or veg balti (very tasty) they are cooked in a water based source (A lot of Indian food is cream based). Also have rice instead of a naan bread (or other bread).. doing this will give you a meal of about 800 cals instead of well over a 1000 :-) Enjoy

davert123

PS Naans have far more calories than boiled rice (Check it out) keep off the naan and eat the plain rice

neanderthin

PS Naans have far more calories than boiled rice (Check it out) keep off the naan and eat the plain rice

What would be the point going to an ethnic restaurant and eat just plain white rice.......I can eat that at home anytime. Naan is a prerequisite in my books, specifically garlic naan covered in ghee, then thrown against the tandoori.

neandermagnon

for minimal calories, go for tandoori or tikka chicken without sauce, and with a salad, and maybe a vegetable curry on the side if you want a larger meal. However if it was me and it wasn't going to be a regular thing, I'd go for the works as in poppadoms with all the chutneys, aloo chat starter, main course of mutton balti or vindaloo or rogan josh or something plus pilau rice, and then lychees for dessert. and sod the calories (it's only one day, not a regular occurrence)

Given that I can't eat the quantity of food in one sitting that I used to (i.e. when I used to be obese, because I have a much better handle on portion control these days) I'll probably end up taking a lot of that home and it being another couple of meals.

Booksandbeaches

PS Naans have far more calories than boiled rice (Check it out) keep off the naan and eat the plain rice

What would be the point going to an ethnic restaurant and eat just plain white rice.......I can eat that at home anytime. Naan is a prerequisite in my books, specifically garlic naan covered in ghee, then thrown against the tandoori.

I agree...

I eat Indian food a lot. I just make sure I work out hard on the days I eat Indian food. I like to eat what I want at the restaurant or take out place. I grew up eating south asian food so I can't just stick to the low calorie stuff. Do a really hard hitting workout afterwards like I do.

My favorites are vegetable samosas (they're filled with potatoes and/or peas then fried but so good!), mango lassi ( a drink that's like a smoothie), and chicken curry.

acpgee

Thanks guys for all the suggestions. Did a 60 minute cardio workout and am off to try some new food in Southall.

_EndGame_

I LOVE Indian food.

It depends what your taste is.

My favourite kind of curry is a bhuna. Usually a chicken bhuna. It's not too spicy, cooked with onions in a thick sauce.

If you like spicy food, you could go for a madras.

Failing them two, and if you like milder curries, you could always go for a Korma (although it's made with cream, and usually the highest calorie curry you could come across)

Onion bahjis, poppadoms and naan breads are all good companions for a curry. Pilau rice and chips, too!

I could go on forever!

_EndGame_

PS Naans have far more calories than boiled rice (Check it out) keep off the naan and eat the plain rice

What would be the point going to an ethnic restaurant and eat just plain white rice.......I can eat that at home anytime. Naan is a prerequisite in my books, specifically garlic naan covered in ghee, then thrown against the tandoori.

I agree...

I eat Indian food a lot. I just make sure I work out hard on the days I eat Indian food. I like to eat what I want at the restaurant or take out place. I grew up eating south asian food so I can't just stick to the low calorie stuff. Do a really hard hitting workout afterwards like I do.

My favorites are vegetable samosas (they're filled with potatoes and/or peas then fried but so good!), mango lassi ( a drink that's like a smoothie), and chicken curry.

I have to agree with you, vegetable samosas are worth the calories they pack!

brighteyes124

mmmm, I love Indian! It can be really caloric if you're choosing dishes that have a lot of ghee or cream in them.

My two favorite dishes are baingan bharta and chana masala which are not too bad for you. Baingan bharta is a roasted eggplan dish with tomatoes, onions and tons for spices. Chana is chickpeas in a tomato based curry. I also like chicken saag which someone mentioned earlier.

However, if I haven't gotten Indian in awhile, I'm definitely splurging on vegetable samosas and peshwari naan (stuffed with raisins, cashews and coconut, yum!)

acpgee

Thanks again for all the suggestions. Lunch was an epic 1140 kcal. Had a little taste of everything that was ordered. Also tried lassi for the first time. Was a touch disappointed that the hosts picked a pakistani style restaurant, where i am more familiar with the food.

http://www.spicevillageltd.com/home.php#

We had papadams with chutneys and raita. Then mixed grill, grilled lamb chops, afghan lamb curry. chicken korma, chicken biryani, plain rice, roti, tarka daal, chick pea curry, okra curry.

_EndGame_

Thanks again for all the suggestions. Lunch was an epic 1140 kcal. Had a little taste of everything that was ordered. Also tried lassi for the first time. Was a touch disappointed that the hosts picked a pakistani style restaurant, where i am more familiar with the food.

http://www.spicevillageltd.com/home.php#

We had papadams with chutneys and raita. Then mixed grill, grilled lamb chops, afghan lamb curry. chicken korma, chicken biryani, plain rice, roti, tarka daal, chick pea curry, okra curry.

Between 1000 - 1200 calories is what I usually have for dinner everyday!

Your dinner sounded nice, I'm making a home made masala tonight myself!