7 Foods Similar to Indian Food: Discover Cuisines, Flavors, and Dishes You'll Love

Indian cuisine is famous for its aromatic spices, flavorful curries, freshly prepared breads, and comforting rice dishes. But did you know that several other cuisines around the world share similar ingredients, cooking techniques, and culinary traditions?

From the Himalayan kitchens of Nepal to the flavorful dishes of Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, many cuisines have fascinating connections to Indian food.

The cuisines most similar to Indian food include Pakistani, Nepali, Bangladeshi, and Sri Lankan cuisines. These food traditions share ingredients such as cumin, coriander, turmeric, lentils, rice, and chilies, although each has developed its own regional flavors and specialties.

In this guide, we'll explore seven cuisines that Indian food lovers may enjoy, their similarities and differences, and popular dishes worth trying.

1. Nepali Food: Himalayan Flavors with Familiar Spices

Nepali cuisine is closely connected to Indian food through geography, historical trade, and shared culinary traditions.

Both cuisines regularly use rice, lentils, vegetables, ginger, garlic, cumin, coriander, and turmeric.

However, Nepali food also reflects Himalayan, Tibetan, and Indigenous culinary influences.

Popular Nepali Dishes

Dal Bhat

Dal bhat is a traditional meal consisting of cooked rice and lentil soup, frequently accompanied by seasonal vegetables, pickles, and other side dishes.

It resembles the rice-and-dal combinations enjoyed in many parts of India.

Momo

Momos are filled dumplings that may contain vegetables, chicken, buffalo meat, or other ingredients.

They are typically steamed or fried and served with a flavorful dipping sauce known as achar.

Aloo Tama

Aloo tama is a distinctive Nepali dish traditionally made with potatoes, fermented bamboo shoots, and often black-eyed peas.

Its tangy flavor demonstrates how Nepali cooking has its own unique identity.

How Is Nepali Food Different from Indian Food?

Nepali cuisine frequently emphasizes hearty everyday meals, fermented ingredients, regional greens, and distinctive pickles.

Although many Nepali and Indian dishes share spices, Himalayan cooking traditions also feature ingredients and techniques less common in mainstream North Indian restaurant menus.

If you love Indian food, try: Dal bhat, momo, or Nepali-style chicken curry.

2. Pakistani Food: Rich Curries, Biryani, and Grilled Meats

Pakistani cuisine shares particularly strong culinary connections with North Indian food, especially traditions from Punjab and the wider northern subcontinent.

Both cuisines feature aromatic meat curries, lentils, biryani, kebabs, and wheat-based breads.

Popular Pakistani Dishes

Chicken Karahi

Chicken karahi is prepared with chicken, tomatoes, ginger, garlic, spices, and often green chilies.

It is traditionally cooked in a deep, wok-like pan called a karahi.

Nihari

Nihari is a slow-cooked meat stew, traditionally associated with beef or other meats, flavored with warming spices.

Its rich gravy is often enjoyed with naan.

Chapli Kebab

Chapli kebab is a spiced minced-meat patty particularly associated with Pashtun culinary traditions.

Pakistani vs. Indian Food

Pakistani and North Indian food can be remarkably similar because of shared regional and historical traditions.

However, Pakistani cooking is diverse, with specialties from Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and other regions.

Indian cuisine likewise spans numerous regional and religious traditions, with an especially extensive range of vegetarian dishes.

If you love Indian food, try: Chicken karahi, nihari, or Pakistani-style biryani.

3. Bangladeshi Food: Rice, Fish, Mustard, and Aromatic Curries

Bangladeshi cuisine shares important similarities with the culinary traditions of eastern India, particularly West Bengal.

Rice and fish are central to many regional food traditions, while mustard oil, turmeric, green chilies, and various spice mixtures create characteristic flavors.

Popular Bangladeshi Dishes

Shorshe Ilish

Shorshe ilish is a celebrated Bengali fish preparation featuring hilsa fish and mustard.

Its pungent, distinctive flavor makes it different from many cream-based Indian restaurant curries.

Bhuna Khichuri

Bhuna khichuri is an aromatic preparation of rice and lentils cooked with spices and sometimes accompanied by meat or other side dishes.

Beef Bhuna

Beef bhuna is prepared by cooking beef with spices and aromatics until the mixture develops a concentrated flavor.

What Makes Bangladeshi Food Different?

Many Bangladeshi dishes emphasize freshwater fish, mustard, rice, green chilies, and regionally distinctive preparations.

The cuisine also has significant overlap with Bengali cooking across the India–Bangladesh border.

If you love Indian food, try: Bhuna khichuri, Bengali-style fish curry, or beef bhuna.

4. Sri Lankan Food: Coconut, Curry Leaves, and Bold Flavors

Sri Lankan cuisine shares several ingredients and culinary techniques with South Indian food.

Rice, coconut, curry leaves, mustard seeds, tamarind, and chilies are important in many preparations.

However, Sri Lankan cooking has its own distinctive blends of spices, preparations, and regional traditions.

Popular Sri Lankan Dishes

Sri Lankan Chicken Curry

Often prepared with roasted curry spices, curry leaves, aromatics, and coconut milk, this dish can deliver a complex, deeply savory flavor.

Kottu Roti

Kottu roti is made by chopping and stir-frying pieces of flatbread with vegetables, spices, and sometimes eggs or meat.

Hoppers

Hoppers, also known as appam in related South Indian traditions, are bowl-shaped pancakes commonly made from fermented rice batter.

How Is Sri Lankan Food Similar to Indian Food?

Sri Lankan cuisine is particularly familiar to people who enjoy South Indian dishes with coconut, lentils, rice, and tangy flavors.

However, Sri Lankan roasted curry powders, sambols, and specific cooking techniques create flavors of their own.

If you love Indian food, try: Sri Lankan chicken curry, coconut sambol, or egg hoppers.

5. Afghan Food: Aromatic Rice, Kebabs, and Traditional Bread

Afghan cuisine has historical culinary connections with the wider region, including northern India, Central Asia, and Persia.

Rice dishes, flatbreads, kebabs, yogurt, and aromatic spices are important elements of Afghan cooking.

Compared with many Indian curries, Afghan dishes often rely less on chili heat and more on the natural flavors of meat, rice, herbs, and carefully selected seasonings.

Popular Afghan Dishes

Kabuli Pulao

Also known as qabuli palaw, this is a fragrant rice dish often prepared with meat, carrots, raisins, and spices.

Mantu

Mantu are steamed dumplings commonly filled with seasoned meat and served with sauces or toppings.

Afghan Kebabs

Afghan kebabs are prepared using marinated or seasoned meat cooked over heat.

Afghan vs. Indian Food

Afghan food lovers may recognize similarities to Indian pulao, kebabs, and naan.

However, Afghanistan's food traditions often feature gentler spice profiles and distinctive combinations of savory and sweet ingredients.

If you love Indian food, try: Kabuli pulao, mantu, or Afghan kebabs.

6. Persian Food: Fragrant Rice, Saffron, and Slow-Cooked Stews

Persian cuisine has influenced several culinary traditions across South Asia, including dishes that developed in Mughal-era kitchens.

Its historical influence can be seen in certain Indian rice dishes, kebabs, and aromatic preparations.

However, Persian cuisine has its own distinctive identity.

Popular Persian Dishes

Ghormeh Sabzi

A traditional herb-based stew often prepared with meat, beans, and dried lime.

Chelo Kebab

A combination of grilled kebabs and steamed rice, commonly accompanied by grilled tomatoes.

Fesenjan

A rich stew traditionally featuring walnuts and pomegranate, sometimes prepared with poultry.

How Is Persian Food Similar to Indian Food?

Both traditions appreciate fragrant rice, slow-cooked dishes, and aromatic seasonings.

Persian cooking frequently uses saffron, dried fruit, herbs, and sour ingredients in combinations that may taste different from familiar Indian curries.

If you love Indian food, try: Chelo kebab, Persian rice, or ghormeh sabzi.

7. Thai Food: Aromatic Curries with a Different Flavor Balance

Thai and Indian cuisines both use spices, herbs, rice, and richly flavored sauces.

Some Thai curries also share historical connections with Indian culinary influences.

However, the two cuisines differ considerably in ingredients and preparation.

Thai cooking frequently uses lemongrass, galangal, makrut lime leaves, fish sauce, Thai basil, and coconut milk.

Popular Thai Dishes

Thai Green Curry

Prepared with green curry paste, coconut milk, vegetables, and commonly meat or tofu.

Massaman Curry

Massaman curry reflects historical culinary influences that include South Asian and Persian connections. It often combines coconut milk with warming spices such as cardamom, cinnamon, and cumin.

Panang Curry

Panang curry is known for a concentrated, rich curry sauce, often featuring coconut milk and fragrant herbs.

Thai vs. Indian Curry

Indian curries vary widely but commonly use combinations of dried spices, fresh aromatics, and ingredients such as onions, tomatoes, yogurt, or coconut.

Many Thai curries instead begin with an aromatic paste made with fresh herbs and chilies, often combined with coconut milk.

If you love Indian food, try: Massaman curry, panang curry, or Thai green curry.

Comparison: Which Cuisines Are Most Similar to Indian Food?

These similarities are broad rather than exact. Every cuisine includes many regional variations, so individual dishes may have more in common than the cuisines as a whole.

Why Do So Many Cuisines Share Similar Foods?

There are several historical and geographical reasons that cuisines across South Asia and neighboring regions share ingredients and culinary techniques.

1. Historical Trade Routes

For centuries, trade routes connected South Asia with Central Asia, Persia, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.

Merchants and travelers exchanged ingredients, cooking techniques, and culinary ideas.

2. Shared Agricultural Ingredients

Regions with similar climates often cultivate similar ingredients, including rice, lentils, chilies, and vegetables.

3. Migration and Cultural Exchange

Communities traveling and settling across borders carried their culinary traditions with them.

Over time, dishes evolved according to local ingredients and preferences.

4. Historical Empires and Royal Kitchens

Political and cultural interactions, including those associated with the Mughal Empire, influenced certain culinary traditions across parts of South Asia.

This contributed to the development and spread of various rice dishes, kebabs, breads, and rich gravies.

Which Indian Dishes Should You Try If You Enjoy These Cuisines?

If you enjoy the flavors of South Asian and neighboring cuisines, Indian food offers many exciting dishes to explore.

At Turmeric Indian Restaurant in Marietta, Georgia, diners can discover North and South Indian specialties that share culinary connections with some of these traditions.

For example:

If you enjoy Nepali or Pakistani curries: Try chicken curry, chicken kadai, or mutton curry.

If you enjoy aromatic rice dishes: Explore Indian biryani.

If you enjoy Sri Lankan coconut-based curries: Try chicken coconut curry or vegetable Chettinad.

If you enjoy vegetarian lentil dishes: Consider dal tadka or dal makhani.

If you enjoy South Asian dumplings: Explore the restaurant's momo selection.

If you enjoy fermented rice-based dishes: Try South Indian dosa or uttapam.

These dishes offer ways to explore shared culinary traditions while appreciating the distinctive character of Indian cuisine.

Frequently Asked Questions

What food is closest to Indian food?

Pakistani, Nepali, Bangladeshi, and Sri Lankan cuisines have some of the closest culinary connections to Indian food because of shared geography, historical interactions, ingredients, and cooking methods.

Is Nepali food similar to Indian food?

Yes. Nepali and Indian cuisines share dishes featuring rice, lentils, vegetables, spices, and curries. However, Nepali cuisine also has distinctive Himalayan influences, fermented ingredients, dumplings, and regional specialties.

Is Pakistani food the same as Indian food?

No. Pakistani and Indian cuisines share many historical and regional culinary traditions, but each has its own distinctive dishes, regional influences, and preparation methods.

What cuisine is similar to Indian curry?

Pakistani and Nepali cuisines contain many curry-style preparations. Sri Lankan cuisine offers flavorful coconut-based and spice-rich curries, while Thai cuisine features curries with distinctly different herbal ingredients.

Is Thai food similar to Indian food?

Some Thai and Indian dishes share ingredients and historical influences, especially certain curries. However, Thai cuisine generally has a distinctive balance of fresh herbs, sourness, sweetness, saltiness, and chili heat.

What food should I try if I like biryani?

You may enjoy Pakistani biryani, Afghan Kabuli pulao, Persian rice dishes, or other South Asian rice preparations. They share an appreciation for fragrant rice but differ in ingredients and cooking techniques.

Where can I try Indian food in Marietta, Georgia?

Turmeric Indian Restaurant, located at 1043 Sandy Plains Road, Marietta, GA 30066, offers North and South Indian dishes, including curries, biryani, dosa, and momo.

Final Thoughts

Food traditions are connected through history, geography, migration, trade, and shared ingredients.

Indian cuisine has especially close culinary relationships with several neighboring South Asian cuisines, while also sharing fascinating historical connections with Afghan, Persian, and Thai cooking.

Exploring these similarities is a wonderful way to understand how ingredients and cooking techniques evolve across cultures.

If you enjoy flavorful curries, aromatic rice, fresh flatbreads, and regional specialties, exploring Indian cuisine is an excellent place to continue your culinary journey.

Discover Indian cuisine at Turmeric Indian Restaurant, located at 1043 Sandy Plains Road, Marietta, Georgia.

Explore our menu: https://www.turmericindianrestaurant.com/