Pakistani Side Dish & Accompaniment Recipes
A Pakistani table is never complete without the supporting cast — raita cooling the heat, achaar adding sharp tang, and daal as the honest workhorse that holds every meal together. These are the recipes that make the main course make sense.
7 recipes
Sarson Ka Saag
Sarson Ka Saag is Punjab's winter soul food — slow-cooked mustard greens with spinach and spices, finished with ghee-fried garlic and served with makki ki roti (cornbread). A dish so tied to Punjabi identity that it's practically a passport.
Sindhi Sai Bhaji
Sindh's beloved green mash — spinach, split chickpeas, and whatever vegetables are to hand, slow-cooked together until completely unified into a thick, deeply flavourful green mass. Finished with a sizzling garlic tarka.
Bhee Aloo (Lotus Stem and Potato Curry)
Crunchy, hollow lotus stems (bhee) cooked with soft cubes of potato in a tangy, spiced tomato-tamarind masala — this Sindhi speciality is one of those dishes that makes you reconsider everything you thought you knew about vegetables. The lotus stem has a satisfying crunch and a mild, almost nutty flavour that soaks up the sour masala beautifully. It looks dramatic on the plate, it tastes even better.
Matar Pulao
Matar Pulao is a simple, fragrant pea rice that transforms a handful of ingredients into something that outshines many more complicated dishes. Green peas cooked with basmati in cumin-scented water creates a go-to side dish that works with almost anything.
Sindhi Peas and Carrot Pulao
This Sindhi Peas and Carrot Pulao is a colourful, warming rice dish that combines sweet gajar (carrots) and matar (peas) in a lightly spiced, fragrant basmati. A vegetarian side dish that holds its own against any main course.
Biryani Rice (Plain Sela Chawal)
Plain Sela Chawal is the perfectly cooked parboiled basmati that forms the foundation of every great biryani. Master this simple technique and you'll never have sticky, mushy, or undercooked biryani rice again — this is the most important building block in Pakistani rice cooking.
Aloo Tuk Crispy
Aloo Tuk is Sindh's legendary twice-fried potato side dish — crispy, golden, and seasoned with the perfect blend of earthy spices. The ideal accompaniment to sindhi kadhi or as a standalone snack.