What is a good Indian Food dish to order for a novice of that Cuisine?

We are going out to dinner in a couple of nights with friends to an Indian Restaurant but need some advice on what to order. We are not too picky and don't have many dislikes and don't mind being adventurorus.

Indian food is known for its entensive use of spices. so, order spicy and hot stuff.

Lay off the fried chicken or fish. These you can find in any restaurant.

Butter chicken can be a bit spicy so dont get that if you dont want some spice. Try chicken tikka which is still delicious but less spicy. Also I enjoy vegtable samosas for an appitiser. Personally, butter chicken is my fav

Roti telur with minced banana. The banana has an element that can makes people feel happy. Dipped a little herbs or curry sauce, and it'll be like sweet and spicy.

Chicken and rice

rogan josh

chicken tika sala, chicken curry, chicken tika sog, lamb sog. all indian food is great. and get a mango juice.

Tandori Chicken is always safe. It is skinless chicken cooked in a bright red and somewhat spicy "BBQ" type sauce.
Chana Masala-Chickpeas in a spicy tomato-based sauce served with rice.
Saag or Palak Paneer-Spicy Spinach with chucnks of cheese in it.
Be sure to try the Naan (Flatbread) and Kheer (Rice Pudding) and a Mango Lassi (Yogurt drink with pureed mango)
Indian food can be spicy, as in lots of spices, but it is not always HOT spicy. It is one of my favorite ethnic foods and I am as white-bread as they come. Enjoy!

for bread, try prata or daal, or naan...u can choose the stuffing, then for rice, try chicken briyani rice...or if u like spicy food, try curry, the options are lamb, chicken or fish...

i think saag paneer (spinach dish w/ indian cheese) is a good choice. chicken tikka masala and butter chicken are also very good and relatively mild. you should definitely get naan or roti, which are different typrs of bread. to drink go for a mango lassi, which is a sort of milkshake.

any thing but curry. its hard to get accoustumedt to

you should tast the egg rolls cuz sometimes it has meat and other kind

of course you are not too picky! well, i'm in malaysia and i frend with all people around me.my frend is indian boy. he always said that he like to eat TOSEI and CURRY. actually, i hate that foods.. :-)

chicken biryani - lots of ingredients but preparation is not difficult

"This is a delicious Pakistani/Indian rice dish which is often reserved for very special occasions such as weddings, parties, or holidays such as Ramadan. It has a lengthy preparation, but the work is definitely worth it. For biryani, always use long grain rice. Basmati rice with its thin, fine grains is the ideal variety to use. Ghee is butter that has been slowly melted so that the milk solids and golden liquid have been separated and can be used in place of vegetable oil to yield a more authentic taste."
Original recipe yield: 6 to 8 servings.

Servings:
7 (change)

INGREDIENTS:

* 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 4 small potatoes, peeled and halved
* 2 large onions, finely chopped
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger root
* 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
* 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
* 1 teaspoon ground cumin
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 2 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped
* 2 tablespoons plain yogurt
* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint leaves
* 1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
* 1 (2 inch) piece cinnamon stick
* 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken pieces cut into chunks
*
* 2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil
* 1 large onion, diced
* 1 pinch powdered saffron
* 5 pods cardamom
* 3 whole cloves
* 1 (1 inch) piece cinnamon stick
* 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1 pound basmati rice
* 4 cups chicken stock
* 1 1/2 teaspoons salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large skillet, in 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or ghee) fry potatoes until brown, drain and reserve the potatoes. Add remaining 2 tablespoons oil to the skillet and fry onion, garlic and ginger until onion is soft and golden. Add chili, pepper, turmeric, cumin, salt and the tomatoes. Fry, stirring constantly for 5 minutes. Add yogurt, mint, cardamom and cinnamon stick. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally until the tomatoes are cooked to a pulp. It may be necessary to add a little hot water if the mixture becomes too dry and starts to stick to the pan.
2. When the mixture is thick and smooth, add the chicken pieces and stir well to coat them with the spice mixture. Cover and cook over very low heat until the chicken is tender, approximately 35 to 45 minutes. There should only be a little very thick gravy left when chicken is finished cooking. If necessary cook uncovered for a few minutes to reduce the gravy.
3. Wash rice well and drain in colander for at least 30 minutes.
4. In a large skillet, heat vegetable oil (or ghee) and fry the onions until they are golden. Add saffron, cardamom, cloves, cinnamon stick, ginger and rice. Stir continuously until the rice is coated with the spices.
5. In a medium-size pot, heat the chicken stock and salt. When the mixture is hot pour it over the rice and stir well. Add the chicken mixture and the potatoes; gently mix them into the rice. Bring to boil. Cover the saucepan tightly, turn heat to very low and steam for 20 minutes. Do not lift lid or stir while cooking. Spoon biryani onto a warm serving dish.

First of all don't, DON'T stick with just one dish, variety is the spice of life.

Try a Pillau of rice.
Tarka Dhal (lentils)
Chicken Korma 9Very mild
Prawn curry
Beef Madras
and a vegetable dish.

have poppadoms and chutney as a side dish to eat with the curry.

You will have a combination of mild through to hot curries without going to a vindaloo.

Enjoy your meal

we are regular curry eaters with at least 18 dishes on the table.

Lamb biryani. If you don't like lamb, then <anything> biryani, yummo!

ok
if your not an indian i would suggest you become picky
cuz indian fod will be extremely spicy to the unexperienced(unless you are eating it outside india......cuz non indian spices suck!!!)

any ways
veg:
Dal- curry dish
Potato Bhaji (potato vegatable)-dry dish

non veg:
dhansakh(eat this only in india)-curry dish
mutton curry
duck moil -curry dish
chicken tikka(kinda like a tandoori)
biryani(eat only in india)-rice n chicken dry dish

theres a whole lota other excellent stuff,even indians havnt tasted all the food s in the counrty becuz of its diverse cultures
so much of the 'indian' stuff you get abroad is no match for the authentic indian cooking
but things to remember :
'tikka' means pungent
currys r to be had with breads or roties(flattened breads)
most curry dishes r to be had with roties or breads

if you get a chance try some of the indian delicacies like
jelabie's (pronounced gel-lay-bee)
ladoo's (pronounced lud-oo)
dahi -kind of curd

enjoy

If u can take spicy food,go for their curry chicken and dahl curry with garlic naan,yellow rice.If not,tandoori chicken and chunky fish kebab marinated with herbs are highly recommended as well.

Always go for milder,less spicy food in case your friends suffer from irritable bowel syndrome.Hope that helps.

Any mildly-curried dish will probably taste good to you. If you ask for seafood, it will be lightly-curried anyway, because even Indians and Pakis, like Westerners, don't like masking delicate seafood flavours. Try Goan dishes; they're a fusion of Portuguese food and Indian.Enjoy.

butter chicken!

If your friends are Indian or have experienced it, let them select. I like tandoori chicken with naan (bread). If they ask you how spicy hot, say 1 or 2. If it is a curried dish then take a small amount. It may not agree with you.

Maryam B's suggestions are good and safe.