Take a Bite of Indian Street Food Without Leaving Home

India is frequently rated highly for its cuisine. Just recently, at the end of 2024, Taste Atlas released its top countries for food, and out of 50 ranked finalists, India made the 12th spot. Another analysis from Ambassador Cruise Lines, published in 2022, named Indian food as the third most popular cuisine in the world. And in 2024, Bloomberg UK published an opinion piece titled “Why India’s Food is the Best in the World.”

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It’s not surprising that Indian food has the world’s attention. This South Asian country offers an incredibly diverse range of flavor-packed, spice, and herb-laden dishes, from biryani to tikka masala to naan bread. But, as with many countries, some of its best meals can be found on the streets.

If you can’t make it to the bustling food markets and stalls in India’s towns and cities, don’t worry. You can create some of its tastiest street foods without leaving the house—just check out the recipes below.

India’s street food scene

India has a thriving street food scene, but the type of snacks and treats you’ll find on stalls and in markets depends on where you go. North India, for example, is famous for crispy chaat, often made with fried potato or bread and served with spices and chutney. The central region, however, is responsible for giving the world samosas—a triangular-shaped crispy golden brown parcel of potatoes and vegetables that is popular across the globe.

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In the south of India, you’ll usually find dosa pancakes, while in the West, vada pav is a favorite (particularly in the populous streets of Mumbai). The dish usually consists of a deep-fried potato patty in a bread bun. Bhelpuri—a type of chaat with crispy puffed rice and various chutneys—is also a popular street food snack in the city of Mumbai.

Make Indian street food from home: 7 vegan recipes

Is your stomach rumbling? Transport yourself to South Asia’s biggest country via the tasty plant-based street food-inspired recipes below.

Cooking With Parita

1 Aloo Tofu Tikki

Aloo tikki is a particularly common staple in the street food stalls and markets of northern India. Usually, it consists of fried potato patties, which are often served with chutneys or yogurt, for example. But in this version, Cooking With Parita adds tofu into the mix, too. According to the recipe blog, the result is a dish that is not only easy and tasty but also protein-packed, too.
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Wade Hammond

2Aji Potato Samosas

This central Indian snack is a favorite in Indian restaurants all over the world, loved for its crispy, flaky pastry and spiced potato and vegetable filling. In this recipe from Fusion Food in the Vegan Kitchen, recipe developer Joni Marie Newman also adds a Peruvian element into the mix with the aji sauce. The result is a delicious mash-up of textures and flavors.
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Dan Jones

3Carrot and Onion Indian Bhajis

Another Indian restaurant favorite is onion bhajis, and the world has the southern Indian state of Karnataka to thank for the crispy, golden treat. Often, these bhajis are made with thinly sliced onions, but in this version from the 15 Minute Vegan: On a Budget cookbook, Katy Beskow pairs them with grated carrots, too. They’re just as crispy and delicious and perfect with a generous helping of the chutney of your choice.
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Lazy Cat Kitchen

4Masala Dosa

Karnataka is also the Indian region most commonly associated with masala dosa, a pancake made with fermented rice and lentils and served with potato curry. The recipe is a labor of love and will require a whole day for the fermentation process, but the resulting flavors are worth it.
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Bextravagant

5Paneer Kathi Rolls

Kathi rolls, which originated from Kolkata in West Bengal, is a type of wrap, usually filled with kebab-cooked meat, like chicken, or paneer cheese. If you want the taste and texture of paneer without the dairy, tofu is an excellent substitute. When cubed, it even looks like fresh Indian cheese. “In India, with a major vegetarian crowd, paneer kathi rolls are very popular,” says recipe developer Anjali Harikumar. “Being vegan, paneer kathi rolls are so easy to veganize. I just replaced the paneers with tofu and it tastes exactly like the real vegetarian deal. Trust me!”
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Holy Cow Vegan

6 Khasta Kachori

Hailing from Rajasthan, kachori is a deep-fried pastry, often stuffed with lentils, mung beans (known as moong dal), or peas. “This tasty, pot-bellied snack is the best kind of eats there is. Think samosa, but different, and differently delicious,” says Vaishali Honawar of Holy Cow Vegan. She adds: “They are quite light and not sit-in-your-tummy-for-hours heavy.”
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Brown Girl Vegan

7 Vada Pav

Vada pav, on the other hand, is probably not a dish you go for if you’re craving something light. This street food snack from Maharashtra is kind of like a deep-fried potato burger, and it’s incredibly filling and satisfying. Learn how to make a delicious version from scratch by following this recipe from Ramya Ramesh of Brown Girl Vegan. Serve with plenty of chutney or, if you’re craving some spice, maybe some fried chilies.
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