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Splash of Taste – Vegetarian Recipes

Splash of Taste - Vegetarian Recipes

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Home / Vegetarian

Easy Indian onion salad recipe

Published February 24, 2022 | Updated November 4, 2022 | By Mandy & Jane

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Thinly sliced red onion rings tossed in Indian spices and fresh herbs, make the perfect accompaniment to your Indian meal. Whenever we go to North Indian restaurants, they always serve a side dish of onion salad, our recipe is inspired by these restaurant dishes, and we think you’ll love it!

A bowl of red onion salad, with chopped mint and cilantro, and a lemon wedge.

Why you’ll love this easy salad recipe

  • It’s SO easy to make, there’s no cooking involved, and it’ll be ready in 5 minutes.
  • A tasty condiment that goes with so many other Indian dishes.
  • As it’s so quick to make, it’s perfect to rustle up for unexpected guests.
  • This onion salad recipe is 100% vegetarian, vegan, oil-free, gluten-free, and keto-friendly.

What are the best onions for salads?

Red onions are the best onion to use for this salad recipe, they are sweet, and they look great too.

Our Indian onion salad is perfect for adding a little zing to your dishes, it’s great on an Indian burger, with naan bread or poppadom’s.

Ingredients needed red chili powder, black pepper, curry powder, salt, lemon juice, red onion, rice vinegar, mint, and cilantro.

How to cut red onions for a red onion salad

For this red onion salad recipe, you’ll want thinly sliced onion rings, if you cut them too thick then they become too overpowering and drown out the flavors of the fresh cilantro and fresh mint.

A mandolin or a food processor are perfect ways to cut thin rings of onion, but if you don’t have one, then just use a sharp knife.

Firstly, peel the onion and cut the top off.

Then slice the onion width-wise, cutting as thin onion rings as possible.

Do I have to use fresh herbs?

Fresh cilantro and fresh mint leaves make all the difference to this Indian onion salad.

You can use dried herbs but you’ll lose that powerful fresh flavor so we don’t recommend it.

Recipe variations

Our Indian onion salad is a great base for other variations.

Tomato and onion salad is a popular variation, so too is Cucumber, tomato, and onion salad.

Try our version and then play around with textures and flavors to suit your palate.

Increase the spice

Do you like your dishes hot and spicy?

Our Indian onion salad already has a kick to it with the red chili powder but if you are a spice fiend, then you can add even more spice!

Simply cut thin rings of chili pepper, either with or without the seeds and add them to the salad.

This would blow my head off, but many people love the intense kick!

Two bowls of homemade Indian onion salad, with an orange cloth, cucumber raita and lime chutney.

What do I serve it with?

The great thing about Indian salad is that it compliments so many different Indian recipes!

Our crunchy Indian onion salad is not meant to be eaten on its own, it’s a salad that adds flavors to other dishes.

In British restaurants, you’ll eat it with poppadom’s, but in India, it’ll be eaten with flatbreads, like naan, roti, and chapati.

We love adding it to our delicious aloo tikki burger!

Make it part of an Indian thali, with a curry, put it in a naanwich, or eat it with naan bread, it adds an extra tasty punch to your meal.

How do I store this?

Our Indian onion salad stores very well when kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.

This makes it a perfect side dish for making ahead of an occasion.

Recipe notes and expert tips

  • Out of rice vinegar?
    Use apple cider vinegar instead.
  • No lemon juice?
    Use lime juice instead.
  • Reduce the spice
    If you don’t like spicy dishes, then simply reduce the red chili powder, adding a little at a time until you get the heat you like.
  • Add sugar
    If you want to sweeten your salad a little, then add a sprinkling of sugar.
  • Storage
    Store your Indian salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Dipping a poppadom into red onion salad, and a lemon wedge.

More Indian side dishes for you to try

If you love our Indian onion salad, or pyaaz ka lachcha as it’s called in Hindi, then why not try these delicious Indian side dishes; aloo gobi, bhindi raita, aloo tikki, boondi raita, and aloo palak.

How to make Indian onion salad with step-by-step instructions

Making our Indian onion salad recipe is super easy if you follow our simple instructions

Process shots, photo one, add red onion rings, curry powder, red chili powder, rice vinegar, lemon juice, chopped cilantro, chopped mint, salt, and black pepper to a large bowl; photo two, stir to combine.

In a medium bowl add thinly sliced red onion, curry powder, add red chili powder, rice vinegar, lemon juice, chopped cilantro, chopped mint leaves, salt, and black pepper.

Mix thoroughly, serve and enjoy!

Thinly sliced red onions in an Indian dressing, and poppadoms to the side.

We hope you enjoy making and eating our Indian onion salad and would love to hear how you got on with making it.

Please leave a comment below and feel free to ask any questions you may have.

Freshly made Indian onion salad in a bowl.
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Easy Indian onion salad recipe

Add a zing to your meals with our easy Indian onion salad better than the restaurants & made in 5 minutes! Bursting with spice & flavor, thinly sliced red onions are perfect with curry, burgers, naan, & poppadoms. Make ahead & store for up to a week. Ideal for an Indian thali. Vegan, dairy-free, gluten-free, & keto-friendly!
Prep Time5 mins
Total Time5 mins
Servings6
Calories11
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Indian
Author: Mandy Applegate | Splash of Taste
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Utensils

1 Sharp knife

Ingredients

  • 1 Large Red onion
  • ½ tsp Curry powder
  • ¼ tsp Red chili powder
  • 2 tsp Rice vinegar
  • 2 tsp Lemon juice
  • 3 tbsp Cilantro (coriander) chopped
  • 3 tbsp Mint leaves chopped
  • ¼ tsp Salt
  • ¼ tsp Black pepper
US Customary – Metric

Instructions

  • In a medium bowl add thinly sliced red onion, curry powder, add red chili powder, rice vinegar, lemon juice, chopped cilantro, chopped mint leaves, salt, and black pepper
    1 Large Red onion, ½ tsp Curry powder, ¼ tsp Red chili powder, 2 tsp Rice vinegar, 2 tsp Lemon juice, 3 tbsp Cilantro (coriander), 3 tbsp Mint leaves, ¼ tsp Salt, ¼ tsp Black pepper
    Process shots, photo one, add red onion rings, curry powder, red chili powder, rice vinegar, lemon juice, chopped cilantro, chopped mint, salt, and black pepper to a large bowl; photo two, stir to combine.
  • Mix thoroughly, serve and enjoy!

Notes

  • Out of rice vinegar?
    Use apple cider vinegar instead
  • No lemon juice?
    Use lime juice instead
  • Reduce the spice
    If you don’t like spicy dishes, then simply reduce the red chili powder, adding a little at a time until you get the heat you like
  • Add sugar
    If you want to sweeten your salad a little, then add a sprinkling of sugar
  • Storage
    Store your Indian salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week

Nutrition

Calories: 11kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 101mg | Potassium: 49mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 149IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 12mg | Iron: 1mg

Disclaimer

Please note that nutrient values are estimates only. Variations can occur due to product availability and manner of food preparation. Nutrition may vary based on methods of origin, preparation, freshness of ingredients, and other factors.

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About Mandy

A vegetarian for over 35 years, Mandy has taught herself to be creative in the kitchen. Traveling extensively, Mandy loves learning and adapting vegetarian recipes from across the world. Read more...

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Recipe Rating




Comments

  1. lynn polito says

    February 24, 2022 at 4:44 pm

    5 stars
    I love the flavors in this salad! So good!

    Reply
  2. Sherry Ronning says

    February 26, 2022 at 6:10 am

    5 stars
    This recipe reminds me of my dad. I make this for him and he will sit and eat his onion salad but he also likes to top his cheese burger with the fancy onions. This is such an awesome recipe.

    Reply
  3. Linda says

    February 26, 2022 at 6:29 am

    5 stars
    Love the flavors of this onion salad. So fresh and goes well with burger

    Reply
  4. Donna says

    February 28, 2022 at 5:52 am

    5 stars
    This is my first time tasting anything like this, but they are amazing! We paired with a curry and some spiced yogurt, and they added so much flavor!

    Reply
  5. Rachel says

    March 24, 2022 at 3:55 pm

    I’m not a big raw onion fan but my husband is. He could eat an onion like an apple. I’ll be trying this recipe soon.

    Reply
  6. Emily says

    March 24, 2022 at 6:32 pm

    5 stars
    So delicious, this salad went perfectly with my homemade naan!

    Reply
  7. Glenda says

    March 24, 2022 at 7:29 pm

    5 stars
    I love pickled onions and now I have a new way to enjoy them! This was absolutely scrumptious! The curry and the little kick of chili are perfect.

    Reply

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