Desi Food Calorie Chart: Roti, Salan, Biryani, Daal
Calories, protein and fibre in Pakistani and Indian food: roti, paratha, chicken salan, aloo gosht, biryani, daal, sabzi, kebabs, chaat and sweets, per portion.
By Browser Tools Team · · 6 min read
A plain roti has about 120 calories, a paratha about 260, a bowl of chicken salan about 280, a bowl of daal about 220 and a plate of chicken biryani about 600. The tables below list calories, protein and fibre for common Pakistani and Indian foods in normal home portions. To add up your whole day, type or pick your meals in the free Food Calorie & Fiber Checker.
How to use this chart
Each row shows one normal home portion: a medium roti, a katori (bowl) of salan or daal, or a dinner plate of rice. The numbers are for home cooking with a typical amount of oil. Restaurant food, dhaba food and wedding food usually have much more oil and ghee, so add 20 to 50% for those.
If you ate a bigger portion, multiply. Two bowls of daal is about 440 calories, half a plate of biryani about 300.
The easiest way to count a full day is the Food Calorie & Fiber Checker. Type "2 roti aur aloo ka salan, chai" in English or Roman Urdu, or choose Desi, a section such as Salan or Sabzi, then the food, the amount and the unit, and press Add. It shows calories, protein, fibre, sugar, salt and how much water to drink.
Nashta (breakfast)
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paratha | 1 piece (80 g) | 261 kcal | 5 g | 3.2 g |
| Aloo paratha | 1 piece (120 g) | 312 kcal | 7 g | 4.2 g |
| Anda paratha | 1 piece (130 g) | 364 kcal | 12 g | 3.9 g |
| Halwa puri with chanay | 1 plate (350 g) | 1155 kcal | 21 g | 8.8 g |
| Boiled egg (anda) | 1 egg (50 g) | 78 kcal | 7 g | 0 g |
| Omelette | 1 (120 g) | 185 kcal | 13 g | 0 g |
| Chai with sugar | 1 cup (200 ml) | 120 kcal | 3 g | 0 g |
| Doodh patti | 1 cup (200 ml) | 150 kcal | 6 g | 0 g |
| Sweet lassi | 1 glass (300 ml) | 300 kcal | 9 g | 0 g |
A paratha with an omelette and a cup of sugary chai is already about 570 calories. Two boiled eggs with one roti and chai without sugar is about 330 calories with more protein.
Roti and chawal
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Roti / chapati | 1 piece (40 g) | 119 kcal | 4 g | 2 g |
| Naan | 1 piece (90 g) | 262 kcal | 9 g | 2 g |
| Tandoori roti | 1 piece (100 g) | 270 kcal | 9 g | 3.5 g |
| White rice (chawal) | 1 cup (158 g) | 205 kcal | 4 g | 0.6 g |
| Chicken biryani | 1 plate (350 g) | 595 kcal | 28 g | 3.5 g |
| Pulao | 1 plate (300 g) | 450 kcal | 9 g | 3 g |
| Daal chawal | 1 plate (350 g) | 424 kcal | 14 g | 7.7 g |
| Kadhi chawal | 1 plate (350 g) | 427 kcal | 12 g | 2.1 g |
One naan or tandoori roti counts as more than two home rotis. Whole wheat roti has more fibre than rice or naan.
Salan: chicken, mutton, egg and fish
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken salan | 1 bowl (200 g) | 280 kcal | 24 g | 2 g |
| Chicken karahi | 1 plate (250 g) | 425 kcal | 38 g | 2.5 g |
| Mutton salan | 1 bowl (200 g) | 400 kcal | 28 g | 2 g |
| Aloo gosht | 1 bowl (200 g) | 300 kcal | 20 g | 2 g |
| Nihari | 1 bowl (250 g) | 400 kcal | 33 g | 1.3 g |
| Haleem | 1 bowl (250 g) | 375 kcal | 25 g | 7.5 g |
| Keema | 1 bowl (180 g) | 378 kcal | 27 g | 2.7 g |
| Kofta curry | 1 bowl (200 g) | 380 kcal | 24 g | 2 g |
| Anda curry | 1 bowl (200 g) | 260 kcal | 14 g | 2 g |
| Fish curry (machli) | 1 bowl (200 g) | 260 kcal | 26 g | 1.6 g |
| Paye | 1 bowl (250 g) | 300 kcal | 30 g | 0.8 g |
Most of the calories in a salan come from the oil or ghee, not the meat. Taking the meat and less of the shorba, or skimming the oil off the top, can save 100 calories or more per bowl.
Daal and chanay
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daal (masoor, moong, mash, chana) | 1 bowl (200 g) | 220 kcal | 12 g | 9 g |
| Chanay (chana masala) | 1 bowl (200 g) | 300 kcal | 13 g | 11 g |
| Rajma | 1 bowl (200 g) | 240 kcal | 12 g | 11 g |
| Lobia | 1 bowl (200 g) | 240 kcal | 14 g | 10 g |
| Kadhi pakora | 1 bowl (200 g) | 220 kcal | 8 g | 2 g |
Daal, chanay, rajma and lobia are the best value in desi food: lots of protein and fibre for the calories. One bowl gives about a third of the 25 to 30 g of fibre most adults need in a day.
Sabzi
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aloo ka salan | 1 bowl (200 g) | 220 kcal | 4 g | 3.6 g |
| Aloo matar | 1 bowl (200 g) | 210 kcal | 6 g | 6 g |
| Aloo gobi | 1 bowl (180 g) | 171 kcal | 5 g | 5.4 g |
| Bhindi | 1 bowl (160 g) | 176 kcal | 4 g | 6.4 g |
| Saag / palak | 1 bowl (180 g) | 162 kcal | 5 g | 5.4 g |
| Lauki (ghiya) | 1 bowl (200 g) | 120 kcal | 2 g | 3 g |
| Tinda | 1 bowl (200 g) | 120 kcal | 2 g | 3.2 g |
| Karela | 1 bowl (180 g) | 162 kcal | 4 g | 5 g |
Light sabzi like lauki, tinda and turai are among the lowest-calorie dishes you can eat. Potato-heavy sabzi and anything fried in a lot of oil (bhindi, karela) has more.
BBQ and kebab
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken tikka / boti | 1 piece (30 g) | 45 kcal | 8 g | 0.2 g |
| Seekh kebab | 1 piece (50 g) | 115 kcal | 9 g | 0.3 g |
| Shami kebab | 1 piece (60 g) | 138 kcal | 8 g | 1.5 g |
| Chapli kebab | 1 piece (100 g) | 280 kcal | 15 g | 1 g |
Grilled tikka is one of the leanest high-protein desi foods. Chapli kebab is fried in fat, so one piece has about as many calories as six pieces of tikka.
Snacks and chaat
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samosa | 1 piece (70 g) | 216 kcal | 4 g | 1.8 g |
| Pakora | 1 piece (20 g) | 50 kcal | 1 g | 0.8 g |
| Chaat | 1 plate (200 g) | 400 kcal | 10 g | 8 g |
| Dahi bhallay | 1 plate (200 g) | 300 kcal | 10 g | 4 g |
| Gol gappay | 1 piece (15 g) | 30 kcal | 1 g | 0.5 g |
Iftar tables add up fast: two samosas, six pakoray and a glass of sharbat come to about 830 calories before the main meal.
Meetha (sweets)
| Food | Portion | Calories | Protein | Fibre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kheer | 1 bowl (150 g) | 210 kcal | 5 g | 0.5 g |
| Zarda | 1 plate (200 g) | 480 kcal | 6 g | 2 g |
| Sheer khurma | 1 bowl (200 g) | 400 kcal | 10 g | 2 g |
| Gulab jamun | 1 piece (40 g) | 129 kcal | 2 g | 0.2 g |
| Jalebi | 1 piece (30 g) | 114 kcal | 1 g | 0.2 g |
| Gajar halwa | 1 serving (120 g) | 312 kcal | 5 g | 2.4 g |
Tips for a lighter desi diet
- Fill half the plate with sabzi or salad, a quarter with daal, chanay or meat, and a quarter with roti or rice.
- Use less oil. One tablespoon of oil is about 120 calories. Two fewer tablespoons in a family pot of salan saves a lot per person.
- Choose roti over paratha, naan or puri on most days.
- Cut sugar in chai slowly. Two teaspoons of sugar in three cups a day is about 100 calories.
- Eat daal, chanay or lobia daily for protein and fibre, and keep fried snacks and sweets for special days.
- Drink water instead of cold drinks and sharbat.
Count your own day
These are averages, and every kitchen is different. For your own numbers, open the Food Calorie & Fiber Checker, write your day ("nashta: 2 anday, 1 paratha, chai; lunch: daal chawal; dinner: 2 roti, chicken salan") or pick each food from the Desi list, and add your age, weight and activity for a personal calorie target. If you're managing a health condition, the diet plans for health conditions build a weekly desi menu for diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol and more.
Frequently asked questions
How many calories are in one roti?
A medium whole wheat roti (about 40 g) has around 120 calories, 4 g protein and 2 g fibre. A roti with ghee or oil on top adds about 40 to 45 calories per teaspoon of fat. A paratha has more than twice the calories of a plain roti because of the oil inside.
How many calories are in a plate of chicken biryani?
A typical home plate of chicken biryani (about 350 g) has roughly 600 calories. Restaurant plates are often bigger and oilier, so 800 to 1,000 calories is common. Raita and salad on the side add very few calories.
Which desi foods are best for weight loss?
Daal, chanay, lobia and rajma (high in protein and fibre), sabzi such as lauki, tinda, bhindi and karela, grilled tikka, plain roti instead of paratha or naan, and raita or salad on the side. Cut down on fried snacks, sweets, sugary chai and extra oil in the salan.
Can I type my food in Roman Urdu?
Yes. The Food Calorie & Fiber Checker understands lines such as "do anday aur aik paratha", "2 roti aur aloo ka salan" or "daal chawal 1 plate". You can also pick foods from the Desi list and choose the portion, like bowl, plate or piece.
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