Mild, Medium, Hot: The Ultimate Indian Curries List

Whether you love a curry but can’t handle the heat, or you’re a renegade looking for any way to up the spice – you’ll find mild, medium and hot curries across the spectrum ranging in heat and flavour with our ultimate curries list. Check out our run down below…

Mild Indian Curries List

Mild curries are regularly made with a blend of yoghurt, coconut and fragrant herbs for a smooth taste with little heat but lots of flavour.

Korma

Originating in Northern India and Pakistan, the Korma is traditionally made up of yoghurt, coconut milk and almonds, making it one of the mildest curries you’ll find. The thick, creamy sauce has a sweet tang to it from the coconut and almonds, and is most commonly made with chicken and served with rice.

Pasanda

Similar to a Korma but with a small touch of added spice, the Pasanda was originally made from lamb leg, but today often uses chicken or prawns. The mild curry flavour is attributed to the yoghurt marinade and coconut milk, often with the addition of peppercorns, garlic, cumin and onions.

Perfect Starter: Papadum. Though easily mistaken as a large crisp, Papadums are actually made from dough, making them a very thin, crispy flatbread. They are great with sauces and dips as a starter.

Medium Indian Curries List

Medium curries are often made with a fair amount of chilli, which is then neutralised by milder ingredients including yoghurt, cream, fruit or lemon juice.

Tikka Masala

Boneless chicken traditionally baked in a tandoor oven then coated in a creamy tomato sauce, the tikka masala combines the creaminess of milder curries with a hint of spice from hotter variants to form the perfect medium dish. Origin debates continue to rage, with Punjab, Birmingham and Glasgow all contending for the crown.

Dhansak

The Dhansak achieves its medium status with a combination of lentils, chilli, sugar and lemon to form a hot, sweet, sour dish that plays on all the senses. Originally a Parsee dish, it is commonly made with lamb and daal, while some curry houses may also substitute the sugar for pineapple.

Perfect Side: Aloo Gobi. A fragrant and tasty side with your curry, Aloo Gobi is made up of cauliflower and potatoes in a curry sauce. Tasty and filling, it’s a very popular side for vegetarians.

Hot Indian Curries List

Hot curries often drop the milder ingredients and increase the chilli content for much hotter flavour – usually resulting in a thicker, richer, sauce.

Jalfrezi

The Jalfrezi is a straight-up, no-nonsense hot curry. Translating as hot-fry, it originally entailed frying up leftovers in fragrant herbs and spices in the time of the British Raj. Now, it is made by stir-frying green peppers, green chillies, coriander and onions to make a dense, hot sauce that lightly coats the meat.

Madras

One of the most common hot curries on the menu, the Madras is made up of a rich tomato base, resulting in a tangy yet spicy sauce usually cooked with beef. Though the dish is said to have been influenced by flavours from the city formerly known as Madras (now Chennai) in Southern India, the name itself is firmly a restaurant invention.

Perfect Vegetarian Alternative: Daal. Equally filling and easily adapted for required spice, this lentil stew is a great alternative as a vegetarian main when coupled up with naan, rice or both!

Hottest Indian Curries List

The hottest curries out there don’t happen by accident. They combine a mix of chillies and spices to really pack in the heat, and are not for the faint hearted.

Vindaloo

Originating from the Portuguese vinha and alho (wine and garlic), the original recipe for Vindaloo combined these two ingredients with pork and chilli when introduced to Goa by Europeans in the 16^th century. But how hot is a Vindaloo? Since origin, it has been adapted and heated up significantly by Goan influence after the Portuguese introduced the chilli to India – often also replacing the pork with beef or lamb.

Phall

When it comes to the top of the list of hot curries, nothing sits above the Phall. Made with a mix of ginger, fennel seed and a combination of dried chillies, the British Asian dish actually originated in Indian restaurants in Birmingham – the city being well known for its versatile curry offering.

Perfect Accompanying Drink: Fruit Lassi. Blended yoghurt, water and fruit make for a thankfully refreshing beverage for hotter curries, in part due to the high fat content that forms a protective layer against spice. Mango or Passionfruit are among popular flavours.

Next time your browsing a menu of curry dishes, you’ll be armed with all the knowledge you need to choose the perfect heat for you… not to mention having a little impressive historical trivia, too.

Why not try your own by grabbing ingredients from your local convenience store today?