Most Consumed Food in India: Everyday Staples & Popular Recipes

• 5 May 2025
• Posted by: Archer Thorncroft
• 0 Comments

Ever wondered what Indians actually eat most days? Forget the endless restaurant menus—at home, it’s all about rice and roti. These aren’t just side dishes. In most homes, one or both show up at almost every meal. If you’re after something easy and truly Indian, you can’t go wrong with these basics.

Rice rules in the south and east, while roti—soft flatbread made with wheat—steals the show in the north and west. When I asked my daughter Larissa what her favorite dinner was, she picked dal and roti without even thinking. Turns out, she’s not alone. The combo of a simple lentil curry and fresh bread probably lands on more plates than anything else in India.

If you want to cook Indian food at home, you don’t need dozens of spices or hours to spare. With just a handful of ingredients and a hot pan, anyone can make soft rotis or fluffy rice that’ll go with whatever you’ve got in the fridge.

• India's Favorite Staple: Rice or Roti?
• Why These Foods Dominate Indian Plates
• Simple Recipes to Try at Home
• Fun Facts & Tips for Everyday Cooking

India's Favorite Staple: Rice or Roti?

Ask ten Indians what’s on their table for dinner, and you’ll probably get two answers: rice or roti. Both are simple, but each has diehard fans. In the east and south, people lean toward rice. In the north and west, roti (or chapati) wins every time. Both show up at nearly every meal, sometimes on the same plate. According to a survey done by the National Sample Survey Office, over 60% of Indians call rice their top staple, but in the north, almost everyone eats roti daily.

Check out this comparison to get the bigger picture:

The real secret? Families usually stick with what they've grown up with. My own kid, Larissa, gets excited when there’s hot roti and a bowl of dal, but swap that for rice and sambar, and she’ll still wolf it down. That pretty much sums up most Indian households—everyone’s got their go-to, but you can’t go wrong with either.

Even the experts agree. Nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar once said,

"Roti and rice are equally important in our diet. Eat the one your gut feels happiest with, and keep it simple."

Trying to pick one for your kitchen? Use what you like, or better yet, learn both. With just wheat flour or some good rice, you’ll be set to whip up most easy Indian recipes at home.

Why These Foods Dominate Indian Plates

When you walk into any regular Indian home, the answer to what gets served again and again is clear—rice and roti. Why? It all comes down to local crops, tradition, and just how cheap and easy these Indian staples are to whip up.

Rice grows like crazy in India’s wet, humid regions—like the south and the east—while wheat does better in the drier north. So, people just roll with what’s around. You’ll find plates stacked with round rotis in Punjab or Gujarat, but in Kerala or West Bengal? Big heaps of steamed rice.

There’s another reason these most consumed foods in India always win: they’re filling and go with almost anything. Got leftover veggies? Toss them in a curry, eat with rice. Made a pot of dal (lentils)? Tear off a piece of roti and scoop it right up. It’s simple, makes cleanup easy, and you don’t need to think twice about what to cook for everyone at the table.

If you look at the stats, rice and wheat (used for rotis and other breads) are the top two grains in the country by a long shot. Up to 60% of Indians eat rice daily, especially in the south and east. Wheat isn’t far behind, especially in the north. Here’s how basic it really is:

On top of that, these foods aren’t just easy to cook—they’re gentle on the wallet. You can feed a family for days with a sack of rice or flour, and these ingredients are as easy to find in a local corner shop as they are in a big city supermarket.

The real magic? Easy Indian recipes with rice or roti let you mix things up with whatever is in season or leftover in the fridge. So it never gets boring. That’s why, when people talk about Indian cuisine or home-cooked comfort food, they almost always mean rice, roti, or both at the heart of the meal.

Simple Recipes to Try at Home

If you’re looking to make the most consumed food in India in your own kitchen, start with rice and roti. Both are easy once you get the hang of them and don’t demand fancy tools. Let’s break it down with super doable steps plus a classic dal that’s always a hit.

Fluffy Basmati Rice

1. Rinse 1 cup basmati rice in cold water until the water runs clear. This helps the grains stay separate.
2. Add rice and 2 cups water to a pot. Toss in a pinch of salt if you like.
3. Bring it to a boil, then cover and simmer on low for 10-12 minutes. Don’t peek!
4. Switch off the heat and let it sit (still covered) for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.

Soft Whole Wheat Roti

1. Mix 2 cups whole wheat flour with about ¾ cup water and a bit of salt. Knead until smooth. Let it rest 10 minutes—it’ll be easier to roll out.
2. Split dough into golf ball-sized pieces. Roll each into a thin circle with a rolling pin. Dust with flour if it gets sticky.
3. Heat a flat pan (tawa or nonstick). Cook each roti for about 1 minute per side. When you see bubbles, flip. Press lightly with a clean towel for puffier rotis.

Everyday Indian Dal

1. Rinse 1 cup split yellow lentils (moong or toor dal). Boil with 2-3 cups water until soft. (Pressure cookers make this fast—about 7 minutes after pressure builds up.)
2. Smash a bit with a spoon. Add ½ tsp turmeric and salt to taste. Simmer while you prep the tadka (spices).
3. In a small pan, heat 2-3 tsp oil. Sizzle ½ tsp cumin seeds, 1 chopped garlic clove, and a pinch of chili powder for 30 seconds. Pour this over your dal and mix.

Here’s a fun fact: People in India eat more rice and wheat per capita than most Asian countries. At home, these simple recipes pop up way more often than restaurant curries or street snacks.

Quick tip—these basics pair with pretty much any veg or leftover. Roti with peanut butter? My kid swears it’s awesome. Don’t be afraid to experiment!

So if you want to cook real Indian food at home, start simple, and you’ll eat just like millions do every single day.

Fun Facts & Tips for Everyday Cooking

So, here’s a thing most folks don’t realize: over 60% of Indian households cook rice or roti every single day. Restaurants might serve butter chicken and biryanis, but everyday kitchens? It’s usually rice with dal or roti with sabzi (veggie stir-fry).

Let’s break down some facts that might surprise you if you’re new to Indian food:

• The most consumed food in India is plain rice, followed closely by roti. But these aren’t eaten on their own. They’re always paired with dal (lentils), sabzi, or even just plain yogurt and pickles.
• You rarely find a meal in an Indian home without either rice or roti. Even when there are fancy dishes around, these easy staples are still on the table.
• Cooking rice on a stovetop is super forgiving—1 cup rice to 2 cups water, and in 15 minutes you’re good.
• The secret to soft rotis? Hot griddle, a fast hand, and don’t skip the quick knead right before rolling. Dust lightly with flour so they don’t stick.

Here’s a quick look at what shows up most in Indian kitchens all year round:

Looking for ways to keep these meals interesting? Here are some dead simple tweaks:

• Add a pinch of cumin or mustard seeds to your rice as it cooks. Your kitchen will smell amazing.
• Mix a spoon of ghee into hot rice or spread a dab on fresh rotis for extra taste. Even Larissa swears it makes everything better.
• Get creative with leftover rice—stir-fry it with veggies, or mix in some beaten yogurt, salt, and chopped cilantro for a quick, cooling snack.
• If your roti dough turns sticky, just sprinkle some more flour and knead until it’s soft but not tacky.

All you really need to nail easy Indian recipes is a simple routine, a few pantry basics, and a willingness to play around. The same rice and roti can taste totally new with just a small tweak or two. And honestly, that’s the best trick Indian home cooks use every day.