Here’s a master shopping list for Indian ingredients. The items highlighted in bold type are the must-haves. The others are meant mostly for diehard Indian food enthusiasts who plan to cook lots of Indian food a lot of the time.
If you don’t live near an Indian grocery store, you can find a lot of the items from online vendors, including Amazon. For United States residents, the website Thokalath has a handy Indian grocery store locator. I’ve linked to some of the ingredients on Amazon, and these are affiliate links, meaning if you click on them and buy something, I will get a very small percentage from the sale at no cost to you, which will help keep my blog going.
GRAINS:
Basmati Rice
Brown Basmati Rice
Cracked Wheat
Flattened Rice (Poha)
Puffed Rice (Kurmura)
Rava (Cream of Wheat, Sooji)
Whole-Wheat Durum Flour or Atta Flour (for chapatis, pooris and other Indian flatbreads)
Millet Flour
Besan or Chickpea Flour
LEGUMES:
Tuvar Dalor Toor Dal (pigeon peas)
Chana Dal
Urad Dal
Moong Dal
Masoor Dal
Rajma (red kidney beans)
Chickpeas or chole or garbanzo beans (chana)
Moth or matki beans (tiny little brown beans)
Whole Mung Beans
Black-eyed Peas or Chavli beans
Whole Masoor
Peanuts
Vaal Dal (field beans)
SPICES:
Red Chili Powder (not to be mistaken for the spice mixes that are added to a western-style chili — the Indian red chili powder is just red pepper powder)
Paprika (Kashmiri chili powder is a fine substitute)
Turmeric Powder
Black Mustard Seeds (rai)
Cumin Seeds (jeera)
Coriander Seeds
Fennel Seeds (saunf)
Carom Seeds (ajwain)
Onion Seeds (kalonji)
White Poppy Seeds (khus khus)
Fenugreek Seeds (methi)
White Sesame Seeds (til)
Saffron
Cardamom pods (green) (hari elaichi)
Cardamom pods (black) (kali elaichi)
Cloves (laung)
Cinnamon bark (dalchini)
Nutmeg (jaiphal)
Mace (javitri)
Whole Black Peppercorns
Bay Leaves (tej patta)
Whole Dry Red Chillies
Asafoetida (hing) Not strictly a spice, but it gets clubbed in here because it’s used like one.
READYMADE POWDERED SPICES:
Garam Masala
Biryani Masala
Pav Bhaji Masala
Sambar Powder
Rasam Powder
Curry Powder (although more British than Indian in origin, this adds great flavor to lots of Indian foods. I’m a convert).
OILS:
Unflavored vegetable oil, like canola or peanut oil
Sesame oil
Coconut oil
Mustard oil
MISC.:
Jaggery (an unrefined Indian sugar that’s perfect for Indian sweets)
Tamarind, pulp or pods
Poppadums or papads (rice or lentil crackers that can be zapped in a microwave in an instant to provide a crackly, delicious accompaniment for meals)
Golden raisins
Cashews
Pistachios
Coconut milk
Alphonso Mango Pulp
Kasoori Methi (dry methi leaves)
FRESH AND FROZEN ITEMS:
Curry Leaves
Coriander Leaves
Mint Leaves
Shredded Coconut
Green Chillies
Barb says
February 17, 2014 atThank you for this wonderful resource! can’t wait to try this recipe!
Vaishali says
February 17, 2014 atThank you, Barb.
Tamara says
June 16, 2014 atyet?T
Thank you for your wonderful recipes. please let me know if you ever publish them in a book as I would love to buy a copy.
Regards from Tamara
Vaishali says
June 16, 2014 atTamara, that’s so kind. You are awesome, and of course I will let you know if I ever decide to do a cookbook. Take care! 🙂
Gwen says
October 1, 2014 atSo happy to have found this blog! I am also in Silver Spring – is there anyplace to buy these ingredients locally? I can go online, but I like to shop for food items in person when I can.
Vaishali Honawar says
October 1, 2014 atHi Gwen, Nice to meet another Silver Spring-er! I go to the Patel Brothers store in Langley Park, on University Blvd. They’ve got everything you might need. I also like Daily Spices off Lee Highway in Fairfax County, although that’s a little further. You can go to thokalath.com to find other Indian grocery stores in the vicinity. Unfortunately, there aren’t many good ones in Silver Spring.
tom says
January 19, 2015 atI am looking for a wooden mathani(indian milk curdler).
I can not find one in the USA.
Can you suggest where I can order one?
Thanks,
Tom
Vaishali Honawar says
January 19, 2015 atHi Tom, I don’t think most people use one these days, but you could try just asking at the local Indian grocery store and sometimes they might be able to get one for you. Good luck!
Reena says
November 5, 2015 atI am so happy to find this blog , I live in India and a beginner to the vegan world and was wondering if I could get someone in India, who is a vegan can understand the issues much better and …Wala ! search got me to your blog. You have explained beautifully.
My request is to please suggest some thing for tea as well, as I am still struggling with leaving milk and sugar( specially in our Indian tea taste). Trying really hard to shed weight vegan style , so will keep looking forward to more recipes.
Eliza says
December 13, 2015 atHi Vaishali !
I am very much grateful to see some good Indian grocery store which you are listed up. But if you did with separately that is online order available or phone or direct from store , it will be good for us. I have a suggestion for listing with based on country or city for grocery store like as Sydney Indian grocery. Thanks
David Patel says
September 11, 2017 atnot bad – i have been using aapnabusiness to find my local Indian grocery stores.