Vegan and Vegetarian Indian Food in Barcelona: What to Order

If you are vegan or vegetarian, you are right to think that Indian cuisine has plenty to offer. India has one of the world’s richest traditions of vegetarian cooking, developed over centuries rather than adapted to suit a modern trend.

The challenge is knowing exactly what is in each dish. Indian menus rarely list every ingredient in a sauce, and the ingredient most likely to catch you out is not the meat, it is dairy.

This guide explains which dishes on an Indian menu are genuinely plant-based, which may contain less obvious animal products, and exactly what to ask before you order. By the end, you will be able to walk into any Indian restaurant in Barcelona and order with confidence.

Is Indian food actually vegan-friendly?

Yes, more so than almost any other cuisine, offering an extraordinary range of vegan possibilities.

Large parts of Indian cooking are vegetarian for religious and cultural reasons stretching back thousands of years. Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism have all shaped what people eat and how food is prepared. Vegetarian food in India is not a niche menu category or a modern dietary trend. For much of the country, it is simply everyday food.

This gives vegan and vegetarian diners an excellent starting point. Legumes, lentils, rice, vegetables and breads form the backbone of the cuisine, rather than being an afterthought. VegNews offers a useful regional overview for anyone interested in how differently people eat in the north, south, east and west of the country.

The catch is that vegetarian-friendly does not always mean vegan-friendly.

Why vegetarian and vegan are not the same on an Indian menu

Indian vegetarian cooking is predominantly lacto-vegetarian. Dairy is not merely a garnish, it is a fundamental ingredient.

Ghee, or clarified butter, is used as a cooking fat rather than a topping. Yoghurt is used in marinades and as a base for sauces. Cream finishes many North Indian curries. Paneer is a fresh cheese that serves as the main protein in dozens of dishes. A meal can be entirely vegetarian, with no meat at all, and still be far from vegan.

Once you know where to look for dairy, ordering becomes much easier.

Which Indian dishes are naturally vegan?

The good news is that the list is long. Rather than memorising individual dishes, it is easier to recognise a few broad groups that appear on most menus:

Legume and vegetable curries with a tomato and onion base

Chana masala (chickpeas), rajma (kidney beans), aloo gobi (potato and cauliflower), aloo matar (potato and peas), baingan bharta (smoked aubergine) and bhindi (okra). These are traditionally cooked in oil rather than butter and served without cream.

South Indian rice-and-lentil dishes

Dosa, idli, vada, uttapam and sambar are based on rice and lentils, with dosa, idli and uttapam traditionally made from fermented batter. These dishes are generally plant-based and are often made without wheat as well.

Starters and side dishes

Vegetable samosas, pakoras, papadums and the chutneys served with them, such as tamarind, mint and coriander, or coconut chutney.

Rice dishes

Vegetable pulao and vegetable biryani.

Notice the qualifications in that list: “traditionally”, “generally” and “often”. They are deliberate. Preparation varies from one kitchen to another, so reliable advice always comes with a condition. Vegan.com’s guide to eating Indian food in restaurants makes the same point. Piping Pot Curry, written from the perspective of an Indian home kitchen, is also useful because it explains how cooks use ingredients such as coconut milk, cashew cream and oil in place of dairy.

Which Indian dishes look vegan but are not?

It is easy to find lists of vegan Indian dishes. Knowing where dairy can turn up unexpectedly is often more useful.

What it looks like	What it usually contains
Naan	The classic trap. The dough is made with milk, and the bread may be brushed with butter or ghee when it comes out of the oven. At Mayura ask for a tandoori roti instead.
Dal	It may be vegan throughout most of the cooking process, then finished with a ghee or oil tadka, spices bloomed in clarified butter and poured over the dish at the end. Thirty seconds can change everything.
Dal makhani	“Makhani” means buttery. The dish contains butter and cream by definition, not by accident.
Korma, tikka masala and makhani curries	Cream and/or yoghurt, sometimes with a base of ground nuts as well.
Paneer dishes, such as palak paneer and matar paneer	Paneer is cheese. It is not tofu or a plant-based substitute.
Raita, lassi, kadhi and chaat	Yoghurt.
Desserts, including kheer, kulfi, halwa and gulab jamun	Milk or ghee, almost without exception.

The most useful advice we have found comes from Seitan Beats Your Meat: the only way to know for certain before ordering is to ask. That is not a vague or evasive answer; it is the reality in Indian restaurants everywhere.

What should you ask before ordering?

These five questions cover most of the hidden sources of dairy. Feel free to read them directly from your phone and our team will be happy to answer them.

1. “Is this cooked with ghee or oil?”
2. “Does the sauce contain yoghurt or cream?”
3. “Is the naan brushed with butter? Could I have roti instead?”
4. “Is the dal finished with a ghee tadka?”
5. “Can the kitchen prepare this dish without dairy?”

The fifth question may transform your options. In many kitchens, several dishes can be prepared without dairy because it is added at a particular stage rather than cooked in from the beginning. However, this depends entirely on the dish and the kitchen, so you should never assume.

Ask us all five questions. At Mayura we know what goes into our food; something which is worth more than any symbol printed on a menu.

What about gluten?

Two things are true at the same time, and confusing them can have serious consequences.

By their nature, many Indian dishes contain no gluten. Most curries are thickened with onion, tomato, lentils or ground nuts rather than flour. Rice dishes and dals do not normally contain wheat, while South Indian dosa and idli are based on rice and lentils. Papadums are usually made from lentil flour.

However, many other Indian foods do contain gluten. Naan, roti, paratha and puri are wheat-based breads. Rava dosa contains semolina, and maida—refined wheat flour—appears in desserts. There is also one ingredient that very few people check: asafoetida, or hing, is often blended with wheat flour. This detail is documented by the Gluten Intolerance Group, a health organisation rather than a food blog, which is why we cite it here.

There is also the issue of cross-contact, which has nothing to do with the ingredients themselves. The same source identifies two of the most common points of cross-contact in an Indian kitchen: a tandoor shared by bread and other foods, and a shared fryer. Neither is visible from the dining room.

So we would like to be clear rather than simply reassuring:

We have dishes made without gluten-containing ingredients. However, our kitchen is not a gluten-free environment, and we cannot guarantee the absence of cross-contact.

If you are coeliac, that distinction is not a technicality, it is the central issue. Tell us before you order and we will explain exactly how a dish is prepared, including whether it shares an oven or fryer with other foods, so that you can make an informed decision. We would rather you decide to eat elsewhere with the full facts than eat here on the basis of vague assurances.

Where to eat vegan and vegetarian Indian food in Barcelona

You will find Mayura at Carrer de Girona 57 in the Eixample, a short walk from Passeig de Gràcia and Girona metro station on Line 4. We have been a provider of authentic Indian food in Barcelona since 2006, and more than 7,000 people have reviewed us on Google, making us the most reviewed Indian restaurant in the city by a considerable margin.

Our menu includes a wide range of vegan and vegetarian dishes. Rather than publishing a fixed list in a blog post, we prefer to discuss your dietary requirements with you directly. Our recipes and kitchen practices can change over time, and your individual needs may be more specific than any symbol on a menu can show.

Instead, tell us your food preferences and restrictions, and we will explain the ingredients in each dish. Ask us each of the five questions listed above.

View the full menu, tell us about your requirements before ordering, or book a table with Mayura in the Eixample.

What if you are eating with people who are not vegan?

This is a common situation that receives surprisingly little attention: you are vegan, but the other five people at the table are not.

Barcelona has several excellent fully vegetarian Indian restaurants, and they are genuinely good options. For mixed groups, however, a restaurant with both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes may offer more choice for everyone at the table.

Mayura can accommodate a mixed group differently: one vegan diner, one person avoiding gluten, three people who eat everything, and a selection of breads, rice, vegetable dishes and other curries in the centre of the table. Everyone can choose suitable dishes without having to compromise, and the food is designed for sharing in any case.

That flexibility can make Mayura a particularly convenient choice for group bookings, as the contents of the menus are often the deciding factor. Our group menus are designed for exactly this kind of situation.

Frequently asked questions

Is Indian food vegan friendly?

Very. Large parts of Indian cooking are plant-based by tradition, particularly legume and vegetable curries, South Indian rice-and-lentil dishes and rice preparations. The main ingredient to watch for is dairy, which plays a fundamental role in the cuisine rather than being an optional addition.

Is naan vegan?

Usually not. Naan dough is often made with milk, and the bread may be brushed with butter or ghee after baking. Ask us for our Tandoori Roti or papadum as safer alternatives, but first, always confirm with our waiters.

Is dal always vegan?

No. The lentils themselves are vegan, but many dals are finished with a tadka, spices bloomed in hot ghee and poured over the dish at the end. Always ask our staff whether the tadka is made with ghee or oil.

What is ghee, and why does it matter if I am vegan?

Ghee is clarified butter. In Indian cooking, it is a primary cooking fat rather than simply a finishing touch. A dish containing no other dairy may still have been cooked entirely in ghee.

What is the difference between vegetarian and vegan Indian food?

Indian vegetarian cooking is predominantly lacto-vegetarian, meaning that milk, yoghurt, cream, butter and fresh cheese are widely used. A dish can be completely vegetarian and still contain a considerable amount of dairy.

Which Indian bread should I order if I am vegan?

Tandoori roti is the usual choice: simple wheat flatbreads traditionally prepared without dairy. As an alternative to bread, Papadums are normally made from lentil flour.

Can I eat vegan at an Indian restaurant with a group of non-vegans?

Yes, and Indian food is particularly well suited to mixed groups. The cuisine is designed for sharing, so everyone can enjoy a complete meal without having to compromise.

In closing

In Indian cooking, plant-based food is not a separate category or a modern adaptation. It has been part of everyday cooking across much of India for centuries.

The only real variable is communication between you and the kitchen at Mayura. Ask us the five questions. We will answer your questions clearly so that you can make an informed choice and order with confidence.