| Indian / Hindi Name | English Name |
| Achar | Pickle |
| Alu chole | Vegetarian dish using chickpeas, potatoes and tamarind |
| Alur dom | Dish made of whole potatoes |
| Amchur | Mango powder |
| Ata or Atta | Chupatti flour |
| Bargar | The process of frying whole spices in hot oil |
| Basmati | The best type of long grain rice |
| Tej Patia | Bay leaf used fresh or dried in certain Indian recipes |
| Besan | Chickpea flour |
| Bhajee or bhaji | Dryish mild vegetable curry |
| Bhajia | Deep fried fritter, usually onion See pakora |
| Bhare | Stuffed |
| Bharta or Bhurta | Mash or puree |
| Bhoona or Bhuna | The process of cooking the spice paste in hot oil A bhoona curry is usually dry and cooked in coconut |
| Bhunana | Roast |
| Biriyani | A traditional dish Rice baked with meat or vegetable filling |
| Kala Namak | Black Salt |
| Bombay Duck | A smallish fish native to the Bombay |
| Boti kabab | Marinated cubes of lamb cooked in a tandoor oven |
| Burfi or Barfi | An Indian fudge-like sweetmeat made from reduced condensed milk in various flavours eg plain or pistachio |
| Ceylon curry | Usually cooked with coconut, lemon and chili |
| Chaamp | Chop |
| Chakla belan | Special rolling pin and board |
| Chamcha | Ladle |
| Chhalni | Sieve |
| Chilgoze or Nioze | Small long creamy nuts with brown shells used in cooking or eaten raw |
| Chimta | Tongs |
| Chirongi or Charauli | Small rounded nuts resembling Egyptian lentils Used in puddings or pullaos |
| Chor maga | Melon seeds Used as a thickener |
| Chapati | A dry 6 inch disc of unleavened bread |
| Chutneys | Popular side dish used with idli, dosa etc |
| Curry | Indian spicy sauce |
| Dahi | Yoghurt |
| Dahi wala | A meat dish cooked in a savoury yoghurt sauce |
| Degchi | Brass or metal saucepan without handles also called Pateeli or Batloi |
| Dhansak | Traditional chicken or meat dish cooked in lentil and vegetable puree |
| Dhungar | Applying the smoke of charcoal to ingredients |
| Do piaza | Traditional meat dish |
| Dosa or Dosai | A south Indian pancake made from rice and lentil flour Usually served with a filling |
| Dum | Steam cooking |
| Ekuri | Spiced scrambled eggs |
| Foogat | Lightly cooked vegetable dish |
| Garam masala | Hot mixture referring to the blend of spices |
| Ghee | Clarified butter or margarine much used in Northern Indian cookery |
| Gulab jaman | An Indian dessert of flour and milk powder deep-fried to golden |
| Gurda | Kidney Gurda kebab is marinated kidney skewered and cooked in the tandoor |
| Halva | Sweet made from syrup and vegetables |
| Handi | Earthenware cooking pot |
| Hasina kebab | Pieces of chicken breast, lamb or beef marinated in spices and then skewered and barbecued with onion, capsicum and tomato |
| Idli | Rice and lentil flour cake served with light curry sauce |
| Imli | Tamarind |
| Jal frezi | Sautee or stir fry |
| Jalebi | An Indian dessert |
| Jhanna | Flat slotted spoon |
| Jinga | Prawns |
| Kaddu kas | Grater |
| Kadhi | Yoghurt soup |
| Kalongi | Nigella, similar to wild onion seeds |
| Karahi | Cast iron frying pan |
| Karchhi | Metal flat spoon used for turning frying ingredients |
| Karela | Small, dark green, knobbly vegetable of the gourd family |
| Kashmir chicken | Whole chicken stuffed with minced meat |
| Kashmir curry | A sweetish curry often using lychees |
| Katori | Small serving bowls which go on a thaali |
| Kebab | Skewered food cooked over charcoal |
| Keema | Minced meat curry |
| Kewra | An extract of the flower of the tropical screwpine tree |
| Khalla musaria | Grinding stone or pounder |
| Khir | Sweet dessert made of cream Milk |
| Khurzi | Lamb or chicken, whole with spicy stuffing |
| Kish mish | Sultanas |
| Kofta | Minced meat or vegetable balls in batter, deep-fried, and then cooked in curry sauce |
| Kokum or cocum | A variety of plum, pitted and dried Prune-like and very sour Also known in Malayan as mangosteen |
| Korma | it is very rich Meat, chicken or vegetables cooked in cream, yoghurt and nuts |
| Koya | Reducing milk to a thick sticky solid Used for sweet making |
| Kulcha | Small leavened bread |
| Kulcha, stuffed | Stuffed with mildly spiced mashed potato and baked in the tandoor |
| Kulfi | Indian ice cream Traditionally it comes in vanilla, pistachio or mango flavours |
| Lhassi or lassi | A refreshing drink made from yoghurt and crushed ice |
| Loochees | A type of bread made in Bengal using white flour |
| Macchi or macchli | Fish |
| Makhani | A traditional dish Tandoori chicken is cooked in a ghee and tomato sauce |
| Makke | Cornflour |
| Malai | Cream |
| Mamra | Puffed basmati rice |
| Masala | A mixture of spices which are cooked with a particular dish |
| Masoor | Red lentil with green skin |
| Mathanni | Wooden whisk |
| Matka | Round earthenware pot used to freeze ice cream It is filled with ice and salt |
| Meethi | Sweet |
| Moglai or moghlai | Cooking style of the Moghul reign |
| Mollee | Fish dishes cooked in coconut and chili |
| Mulligatawny | A Tamil sauce which has become well known as a British soup |
| Murgh | Chicken |
| Murgh masala | A speciality dish of whole chicken, marinated in yoghurt and spices for 24 hours then stuffed and roasted |
| Nan or naan | Leavened bread baked in the tandoor |
| Naan, keema | Naan bread stuffed with a thin layer of minced meat curry then baked in the tandoor |
| Naan peshwari | Naan bread stuffed with almonds and or cashew and or raisins and baked in the tandoor |
| Nargis kebab | Indian scotch egg spiced minced meat around a hard boiled egg |
| Naryal | Coconut |
| Pan or Paan | Betel leaf folded around a stuffing lime paste or various spices and eaten after a meal as a digestive |
| Pakoras | To all intents and purposes the same as the Bhajia |
| Palak or sag | Spinach |
| Panch phoran | A mixture of five spices used in Bengali vegetable cooking, comprising equal amounts of cumin, fennel, fenugreek, custard and wild onion seeds |
| Paneer | Cheese made from bottled milk |
| Papadam | Thin lentil flour wafers |
| Paprika | Mild red pepper made from capsicums |
| Paratha | A deep-fried bread |
| Pasanda | Meat, usually lamb, beaten and cooked in one piece |
| Patia | Restaurant seafood curry with thick, dark brown, sweet and sour sauce |
| Patna | A long grain rice |
| Phal or phall | A very hot curry (the hottest) invented by restaurateurs |
| Pickles | Pungent, hot pickled vegetables |
| Poha | Pounded rice |
| Prawn butterfly | Prawn marinated in spices and fried in batter |
| Prawn puri | Prawns in a hot sauce served on puri bread |
| Pullao | Rice and meat or vegetables cooked |
| Pullao rice | The restaurant name for rice fried with spices and coloured yellow |
| Puri | A deep fried unleavened bread about 4 inches in diameter It puffs up when cooked and should be served at once |
| Quas chawal or kesar chaval | Rice fried in ghee, flavoured and coloured with saffron |
| Raita | A cooling chutney of yoghurt and vegetable which accompanies the main meal |
| Rasgulla | Walnut-sized sweet balls of semolina and cream cheese cooked in syrup |
| Rashmi kebab | Kebab minced meat inside a net-like omelette casing |
| Rasmalai | Rasgullas cooked in cream and served cold |
| Rhogan josh gosht | a traditional Northern Indian dish |
| Rosewater | A clear essence extracted from rose petals to give fragrance to sweets |
| Roti | Bread |
| Sabzi | A generic term for vegetables |
| Sambals | The side dishes accompanying the meal |
| Sambar | A south Indian vegetable curry made largely from lentils |
| Samosa | The celebrated triangular deep fried meat or vegetable patties served as starters or snacks |
| Shami kebab | Round minced meat rissoles |
| Shashlik | Cubes of skewered meat |
| Sheek or seekh kebab | Spiced minced meat shaped on a skewer and grilled or barbecued |
| Sil batta | A pair of grinding stones |
| Sorportel | A Goan pork dish with heart, liver and meat |
| Supari | Mixture of seeds and sweeteners for chewing after a meal |
| Tandoori | A style of charcoal cooking |
| Taraazu | Weighing scales |
| Tarka | Garnish of spices/onions |
| Tarka dhal | Lentils fried and garnished with spices |
| Tava or tawa | Heavy steel shallow frying pan |
| Thaali | A tray which holds the complete meal served in individual bowls |
| Tikka | Skewered meat, chicken or seafood, marinated then barbecued or tandoori baked |
| Vanaspati | Starch |
| Vark or varak | Edible silver or gold foil |
| Vindaloo | A fiery hot dish from Goa |
| Xacutti | A Goan dish using chicken and coconut |
| Yakni | Mutton |
