Vegan
Vegan at a Indian restaurant: what to ask about
Most of what determines whether a Indian dish works for vegans is not printed on the menu. Here is what is usually in there, and how to ask about it without an interrogation.
What catches people out
- Ghee
- The main issue. It is the default cooking fat in a great many kitchens.
- Yoghurt in marinades and sauces
- Nearly all tandoori items, and many curries you would not expect.
- Milk or yoghurt in naan
- Naan is usually not vegan; roti and chapati usually are.
- Cashew and cream thickeners
- The reason a curry is pale and smooth is usually dairy, nuts, or both.
Usually a good starting point
Usually tomato and oil based rather than dairy based — though the cooking fat is worth asking about.
Potato and cauliflower, dry-cooked with spices.
Typically just flour, water and salt, unlike naan.
What to actually say
One specific question is easier for everyone than three vague ones — for you and for the person answering.
- “Is this made with ghee?”
- “Is there cream or yoghurt in the sauce?”
- “Is the naan made with milk?”
What Indian menus don’t print
Nobody is hiding anything. These are foundational ingredients that a Indian kitchen treats the way you treat salt — not an ingredient, a medium. That is exactly why they never appear in a description.
Clarified butter, used as the cooking fat in a great many dishes including ones that read as dairy-free.
Korma, butter chicken and most tandoori marinades. Richness is usually dairy.
Thickens many pale, creamy curries — a genuine surprise for anyone avoiding nuts.
A common seasoning, and commercial versions are usually cut with wheat flour.
Recipes vary between restaurants and change without notice, so treat all of this as what to raise with the kitchen rather than a guarantee about any particular dish. The staff always have the final word.
TableSage reads menus using an AI language model, which gets things wrong sometimes.
Know which dishes to ask about.
Photograph the menu and it flags what is worth raising — including the ingredients that are never printed.