A heavy wholesome meal always starts with some peculiar, lip-smacking starter dishes. They consist of varied assortments of hot or cold food served at the beginning to stimulate the appetite. Take a look around some popular lip-smacking starters to binge on.
30 Lip-Smacking Indian Starters You Must Try
1. Kakori Kebabs
This juicy and succulent kebab from Lucknow, the Land of Nawabs, never fails to impress foodies. It is best teamed with fresh mint green chutney, pickled onion, lemon juice, and chaat masala.
2. Malai Paneer Tikka
A delicacy that has been always a go-to starter to order. The soft, scrumptious Malai Paneer Tikka is a truly heavenly delight. The platter of it truly amazes your taste.
3. Chicken Seekh Kebab
Ground and marinated meat with egg and spices, grilled with oil to perfection. This dish with a lemon wedge on the side is a must-serve at every Indian function.
4. Samosa
A heartthrob among all Indian starters. Filled with potato, peas and spices, a deep-fried samosa is a delightful snack with chai on a rainy or sunny day.
5. Dahi Ke Kebab
A dish that won’t take risks and deliver a taste worth your wait. An absolutely strange yet scrumptious, Dahi ke Kebab with a soft, creamy texture makes your party the talk of the town.
6. Khandvi
Khandvi is a famous street snack from Gujarat. It has a soft texture and is made with besan, sour curd, and turmeric. It is finally tempered with sesame seeds, mustard seeds, and green chilies.
7. Aloo Bonda
This dish is made with mashed potatoes, salt, chilies, coriander leaves, and lemon juice. It is a popular teatime snack that is served with ketchup, green chutney, and a masala chai to go with.
8. Pakoda
Pakoda or Pakora is a dish usually made with potatoes and onions (or with other vegetables). The vegetables are coated with gram flour batter and spices, which are then deep-fried in oil.
9. Kachori
This is a deep-fried pastry stuffed with lentils, spices, and other fillings. It is usually eaten as a snack during evening tea.
10. Haryali Chicken Tikka
Hariyali in Hindi translates to green. This Tikka is meat marinated in a green paste made with coriander, mint, ground ginger, and garlic. It is marinated for at least 30 minutes and then grilled.
11. Aloo Tikka
Marinated mashed potato with spices grilled to perfection. It is eaten with chutney, or an Indian bread called Pav.
12. Medu Vada
Fluffy from the inside, and crispy from the outside, this dish originated in South India and is a deep-fried doughnut made of lentils and spices After cooked it is served with a spicy lentil stew called Sambhar and coconut chutney.
13. Dhokla
Dhokla is a famous dish from Gujarat. It is made using a fermented batter from chickpeas, pigeon peas, urad dal, and rice. After steaming the batter, hot oil with tempered mustard seeds are poured on top. It is always eaten with a sweet and spicy sauce.
14. Dahi Vada
Dahi Vada is a popular North Indian snack where lentil vadas/doughnuts are dunked in whipped yogurt, and served with sweet and spicy chutney.
15. Pani Puri
A popular street food eaten by all Indians, Pani Puri is a chaat dish. It is a crispy hollow dough ball (Puri) that is stuffed with potatoes and sprouts, then filled with watery sweet or spicy chutney as per your level of spice tolerance.
16. Bhel Puri
Bhel Puri is another famous chaat dish that is made with puffed rice, peanuts, onion, tomatoes, coriander, and sweet and spice chutneys.
17. Parippu Vada
A spicy, crunchy, and flat fritter that is made with lentils like chana dal, toor dal, onion, curry leaves, and spices. It originated from South India.
18. Bread Pakora
An all-time street snack in North India, Bread Pakora is a bread and potato filling sandwich coated with spiced gram flour batter which is then shallow or deep fried.
19. Gobi Manchurian
Gobi Manchurian is a popular Indian Chinese dish made of cut-up cauliflower florets which is marinated in a corn flour batter, deep fried, and tossed in sweet and spicy sauces. To finish off it is garnished with finely chopped spring onion.
20. Momos
Momos are steamed dumplings stuffed with vegetarian and non-vegetarian fillings. The vegetarian momo fillings contain a mildly spiced combination of cooked cabbage and carrots, while the non-vegetarian momo fillings contain the vegetarian mix along with minced meat. It goes best with spicy red chili chutney.
21. Vada Pav
Vada Pav is an iconic Mumbai Street snack that is eaten by localities throughout the day even as a meal. This easy on-the-go eat is made by creating a sandwich with Pav bun/bread and a spicy, mashed potato vada/patties in between. The vada is topped with sweet and spicy chutney and is usually eaten with deep-fried and salt-tossed green chilies.
22. Ragda Patties
A famous Mumbai chaat snack that is created by topping potato patties with dried peas curry, chutneys, sev, and powdered spices. This dish has a bunch of flavors bursting into your mouth just in the first bite.
23. Chicken Cutlet
Chicken Cutlets are made by mincing or pulling chicken mashed with potato and spices.
24. Crispy Corn Chaat
Lip-smacking starters are short, sweet, and simple meals that keep people waiting for more. An easy, quick, and super adorable dish would impress your guests. Corn is tossed with spices and vegetables to blow your mind at the very first bite.
25. Paneer Balls
A vegetarian starter that often gains eyeballs all over the world. The fried, crunchy flavourful paneer Balls are an easy, mouth-watering starter to present anytime.
26. Kothimbir Vadi
A savory crispy snack, Kothimbir Vadi is Maharashtrian’s specialty. A yummy fritter served with tea enhances the dish completely.
27. Gujiya
A sweet-savoury deep-fried dumpling that adds to the list of favourites. The mawa-gujiyas are a perfect festive treat to indulge in. They are stuffed with khoya and dry fruits to relish it a bit more every single time.
28. Idli Manchurian
The first bite always makes the first impression, and it surely needs to be the best. Idli Manchurian is a new-age classic fusion of South Indian and Chinese cuisines. A newly developed form of idli would set the table on fire! A bit spicy yet super delicious dish to consume.
29. Chicken 65
It is a spicy, deep-fried chicken dish originated from Chennai. It is eaten as an appetizer and is served with green chilies and deep-fried curry leaves.
30. Masala Papad
Masala Papad is an Indian snack made using roasted or fried spicy papad with an onion and tomato spice mix topped on the papad. It is usually served over drinks or a starter.
There is a variety of best Indian appetizers like vadas, tikkis, cutlets, etc. but if you’re new to Indian cuisine then you have got to go through our appetizers to know what to serve for your next party. Ensure to have a balanced menu of starters, so that you don’t leave your guests with a food coma!
