Spiced Onions (Indian Takeaway Style)

Name: Spiced Onions (Indian Takeaway Style)
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 2 brown onions ⁣; 7 tbsp tomato ketchup⁣; 3 tbsp mango chutney ⁣; 2 tbsp mint sauce ⁣; 1/2 tsp kashmiri chilli powder ⁣; 1/4 tsp salt ⁣

These spiced onions are ready in 5 minutes and are the perfect combination of spicy and sweet. Served atop a crunchy poppadom, they are the perfect accompaniment to curry night.

A bowl of diced tomato salsa with a spoon, next to a plate with a large piece of flatbread. Theres a side salad with lettuce, sliced red onions, jalapeños, and a lemon wedge on a white dish. Everything is set on a dark wooden table.

Spiced onions (or Spicy Onions) are a pillar of Glaswegian Indian restaurants and takeaways.

Jump to:

Why Not Try This Hack For Onions:
Why You Should Make Spiced Onions
Serving
Ingredients
How To Make Spiced Onions
Vibrant Red Colour
FAQs
Storage
And finally...
Spiced Onions (Indian Takeaway Style)

Onions are one of my favourite vegetables. So serving them in a spicy sauce on top of some crunchy poppadoms and I'm in a chokehold. The spicy sauce is made from tomato ketchup, mango chutney, mint sauce, chilli powder and salt. I could eat the whole bowl!

Why Not Try This Hack For Onions:

For reducing the harshness of the onions when eating them raw

Chopped red onion and a knife on a wooden cutting board. Some onion skin and half an uncut red onion are also visible.

To reduce the harshness of the onions, you can soak them in boiling water for 5 minutes, drain them and dry them off before using.

This hack can be utilised for onions used in raw form for any dish e.g. I like to do this when adding onions to salads.

Why You Should Make Spiced Onions

A jar of kimchi sits on top of large sheets of thin, crumpled bread. The scene is set on a weathered, pale blue wooden surface, giving a rustic appearance.

The days where you used to get free spiced onions with your Indian takeaway are long gone. Which is a shame, because I always enjoyed them, even more so knowing they were a freebie. Does that make me a cheapskate?! Spend over £20 and you get free spicy onions or vegetable pakoras. Those were the days!

Now you need to spend an extra few quid to buy this delightful snack as a precursor to your curry and naan. So this quick and easy Indian takeaway recipe to make your own spiced onions at home are the perfect solution! It will save you some pennies too, as once you've got some of these store cupboard staples, you can make them again and again.

Especially because this recipe is wholly vegetarian and vegan, so is the perfect appetiser for all!

Serving

This portion will serve 4 people as a snack or appetiser. Even better, that includes some potential leftovers to make a cheese and spiced onion toastie for lunch the next day (try it and thank me)!

Why not serve them as a pre-dinner snack before tucking into my Chicken Chasni curry recipe or South Indian Garlic Chilli curry? What's your favourite curry?

Ingredients

Poppadoms: you can buy pre-made poppadoms, I like these ones from Asda. Or alternatively, you can buy poppadoms that you can pop freshly at home like these ones.

Onions: I use brown onion, but you can use red onion if it’s all you have OR if you prefer a milder flavour.

Tomato Ketchup

Mango Chutney

Mint Sauce

Chilli Powder: I use kashmiri chilli powder as it’s most authentic. I picked it up in a local Asian supermarket. But chilli powder from a supermarket is totally fine too. Reduce to ¼ teaspoon if you don’t have a particularly high heat tolerance.

Salt

Vegetable Oil (only required if frying your own poppadoms)

How To Make Spiced Onions

Mix together tomato ketchup, mango chutney, mint sauce, chilli powder & salt

A glass bowl containing a mixture of green and red sauces with a sprinkle of orange-red spice on top. The bowl is placed on a wooden surface, and sunlight casts shadows across the scene.

Add finely chopped onions and stir through sauce to thoroughly coat them

A pile of finely chopped onions and a knife are on a wooden cutting board. Sunlight casts shadows, and part of a whole onion is visible. The background is a metallic surface.

Serve with poppadoms as part of your homemade Indian fakeaway feast!

A top view of a jar filled with a chunky red salsa placed on a large piece of flatbread on a wooden surface. The salsa contains visible pieces of onions and herbs. The flatbread is folded and crumpled underneath the jar.

Vibrant Red Colour

You'll sometimes find the Indian takeaway spiced onions bright red. If you want to achieve this aesthetic at home, simply add a touch of red food dye.

FAQs

Where can I buy poppadoms?

I bought them ready-to-eat from Asda

Can I add more spices?

Absolutely - you could jazz this recipe up further with the addition of garam masala, ground cumin, ground coriander etc.

How much of the extra spices should I add?

I would start with a ¼ teaspoon of each and increase whilst taste testing the batch until the flavour is to your liking.

I don't have Kashmiri chilli powder, can I use 'normal' chilli powder?

Kashmiri chilli powder is simply the authentic chilli powder I like to use. But it is not essential! Normal mild chilli powder will do.

Storage

The spiced onions can be made in advance, and stored in the fridge until they are required.

They will store well in the fridge, in an airtight container, for up to 7 days.

Making the spiced onions in advance (a few hours) will help soften the onions slightly.

And finally...

If you have any questions, or want to tell me what you think of my recipe, then leave a comment below!

If you like this recipe and are looking for more Indian Takeaway recipes, then why not try my Chicken Chasni or my South Indian Garlic Chilli Chicken curry?