18 recipes
Gluten-free Indian recipes
Most Indian food is naturally gluten-free, since rice, all millets, all pulses, besan and dairy contain none. What has to go is wheat and barley, along with hidden sources such as commercial asafoetida, some masala mixes and soy sauce.
Indian cooking is one of the easiest cuisines in the world to eat gluten-free, and most households already cook a majority of their food that way without thinking about it.
Rice in every form, all the millets, every dal and pulse, besan and other pulse flours, all vegetables and dairy, and almost all whole spices contain no gluten. Most of South Indian cuisine is already gluten-free, as is a great deal of eastern and western Indian cooking, and Indian fasting food was developed precisely to avoid grains.
What has to go is wheat, barley and rye, and a short list of hidden sources that catch people out. The full detail, including cross-contamination in a shared kitchen, is in a gluten-free Indian diet.
Every gluten-free recipe
Each one carries its method, its nutrition note and the reason it belongs here.
Baingan Bharta
Baingan bharta is a North Indian dish of aubergine roasted whole over an open flame until the skin blackens, then peeled, mashed and cooked…
Vegetarian · VeganRecipeBajra Khichdi (Pearl Millet & Lentil Khichdi)
Bajra khichdi is a North Indian one-pot dish made by simmering pearl millet with split moong lentils, vegetables and mild spices into a soft…
Gluten-free · Diabetic-friendlyRecipeBesan Chilla (Gram Flour Savoury Pancake)
Besan chilla is a North Indian savoury pancake made from a spiced batter of gram flour, or besan, milled from chickpeas. NNWA includes this…
High-protein · Gluten-freeRecipeBhindi Masala
Bhindi masala is a dry North Indian dish of okra sauteed with onion, tomato and ground spices. The whole technique is about managing mucilag…
Vegetarian · VeganRecipeJeera Rice
Jeera rice is basmati cooked with cumin seeds bloomed in ghee, and nothing else beyond salt and perhaps a bay leaf. Its purpose is to carry…
Vegetarian · Gluten-freeRecipePaneer Tikka
Paneer tikka is paneer marinated in spiced hung curd with capsicum and onion, skewered and cooked at high heat until charred at the edges. T…
Vegetarian · High-proteinRecipeQuinoa Upma
Quinoa upma is quinoa cooked in a South Indian tempering of mustard seeds, dals, curry leaves and vegetables in place of semolina. Quinoa mu…
Vegetarian · High-proteinRecipeRoasted Makhana (Fox Nuts / Lotus Seeds)
Roasted makhana is a light, crunchy snack made by dry- or ghee-roasting fox nuts, the seeds of the prickly water lily, with a little salt an…
Gluten-free · Weight-managementRecipeVegetable Khichdi (Rice & Lentil Comfort Dish)
Vegetable khichdi is a one-pot dish of rice and split moong or toor dal cooked together with mixed vegetables and mild spices until soft and…
Gluten-free · Diabetic-friendlyRecipeAppam
Appam is a Kerala pancake made from a fermented batter of raw rice, cooked rice and coconut, cooked in a curved pan so it forms thin lacy ed…
Vegetarian · Gluten-freeRecipeCoconut Rice
Coconut rice, thengai sadam, is cooked rice folded into freshly grated coconut warmed in a tempering of mustard seeds, dals, cashews and cur…
Vegetarian · VeganRecipeIdli Sambar (Steamed Rice Cakes with Lentil Vegetable Stew)
Idli sambar is a South Indian breakfast from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka pairing steamed, fermented rice-and-lentil cakes (idli) with a tangy l…
Vegetarian · Gut-healthRecipeLemon Rice
Lemon rice, called chitranna in Karnataka, is cooked rice tossed in a tempering of mustard seeds, urad dal, chana dal, curry leaves and turm…
Vegetarian · VeganRecipeMasala Dosa (Fermented Rice & Lentil Crepe with Potato Filling)
Masala dosa is a South Indian dish from Karnataka and Tamil Nadu made from a fermented rice-and-lentil batter cooked into a thin, crisp crep…
Vegetarian · Gluten-freeRecipeRagi Dosa (Finger Millet Crepe)
Ragi dosa is a South Indian breakfast crepe made from finger millet (ragi) flour, rice flour and buttermilk, cooked thin and crisp on a grid…
Gluten-free · High-proteinRecipeDhokla (Steamed Fermented Gram Flour Cake)
Dhokla is a Gujarati snack made from besan (gram flour) batter that is lightly fermented, steamed into a soft spongy cake, and finished with…
Vegetarian · Gluten-freeRecipeSabudana Khichdi (Tapioca Pearl Khichdi)
Sabudana khichdi is a Maharashtrian breakfast made from soaked tapioca pearls (sago) stir-fried with roasted peanuts, cumin and green chilli…
Gluten-free · VegetarianRecipeSabudana Vada
Sabudana vada is a Maharashtrian fritter of soaked tapioca pearls, boiled potato and crushed peanuts, deep fried until crisp. It is eaten du…
Vegetarian · Gluten-freeRecipe01The hidden sources most lists miss
Asafoetida. Commercial hing is very commonly bulked with wheat flour, it is in almost every Indian kitchen, and it is the single most missed source in Indian gluten-free diets. Buy hing that states it is gluten-free, or pure resin.
Ready-made masala mixes, which frequently use wheat flour as a filler.
Soy sauce, conventionally brewed with wheat, which makes Indo-Chinese food a common problem.
Packaged namkeen, which often contains wheat flour even when the base is besan.
Shared frying oil, a genuine contamination route for coeliac disease when puris and pakoras have been fried in it.
02Replacing the chapati
This is the practical problem for a north Indian household eating roti twice a day.
Jowar roti is the closest in behaviour and the easiest starting point. Bajra works well in winter. Ragi carries a real calcium advantage. Rajgira and kuttu rotis are already familiar from fasting cooking. And besan chilla replaces the meal rather than the bread, with more protein than any of them.
Expect the first attempts to fail. Gluten is what makes wheat dough hold together, so millet doughs crack. They need hot water, patient kneading and a gentler hand: a learnable skill rather than an impossible one.
These recipes are general nutrition education, not personal medical advice. If you are managing a diagnosed condition, are pregnant, or take regular medication, confirm any dietary change with the doctor treating you.
What people ask about gluten-free Indian food
Expand any question to read the answer in full.
Is Indian food gluten-free?
Much of it is. Rice, all millets, all pulses, besan, dairy, vegetables, meat, fish and whole spices contain no gluten, which makes most South Indian cuisine and a great deal of eastern and western Indian cooking naturally suitable. What must be removed is wheat in all its forms, barley, and a handful of hidden sources including commercial asafoetida and some masala mixes.
Is besan gluten-free?
Yes. Besan is made from gram, which is a pulse rather than a cereal, and contains no gluten. It is one of the most useful flours available on a gluten-free Indian diet, and besan chilla is a higher-protein breakfast than most wheat-based alternatives. Check packaged besan for cross-contamination warnings if you have coeliac disease.
Do I need to buy special gluten-free products?
Usually not, and often you should not. Commercial gluten-free breads, biscuits and flour blends are typically made from refined starches, are lower in fibre and micronutrients than what they replace, and cost considerably more. Building the diet from food that is already naturally gluten-free (millets, rice, pulses, besan, vegetables and dairy) is cheaper and more nutritious.
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Knowing why a dish works is the professional skill
Anyone can follow a method. Building a plan around a household's budget, kitchen and condition (and knowing when it stops being your call) is what a qualification teaches.