Calories and Protein in Indian Foods: Roti, Rice, Dal, Idli, Poha and More

"I almost never tell a client to eat less. I tell them to change what fills the plate: more dal, paneer, curd or eggs, the same rotis, smaller rice. The calories usually come down on their own." - Dt. Trishala Goswami, MSc Clinical Nutritionist

Reviewed by Dt. Trishala Goswami, MSc Clinical Nutritionist · Diabetes Educator · Certified Nutrigenomics Specialist · Last Updated: October 2026

Quick answers: one medium roti or chapati (made from about 25 g atta, no ghee) has about 80 calories and 2.5 g of protein. One bowl of cooked white rice (150 g) has about 195 calories and 4 g of protein. One katori of plain dal has about 100 calories and 6.5-7.5 g of protein, or about 145 calories with a 1-teaspoon ghee tadka. One idli has about 55-60 calories and 2 g of protein, and a plate of poha about 250-300 calories and 5-6 g of protein.

The tables below cover more than 50 everyday Indian foods. Every value is worked out from a stated portion, so you can adjust for your own roti, bowl or ladle.

Table of Contents

How These Numbers Were Worked Out

Calorie numbers for Indian food are unreliable mostly because nobody states the portion. "1 roti" can be 20 g of atta or 45 g. "1 bowl of dal" can be thin home dal or restaurant dal makhani.

So each value here starts from a stated raw weight and uses standard food composition data: the Indian Food Composition Tables (ICMR-NIN, IFCT 2017) for Indian staples, and USDA FoodData Central where an Indian value isn't available. Cooking fat is listed separately, because it is the single biggest swing factor: 1 teaspoon of oil or ghee (5 g) adds about 45 calories and no protein.

Flours and dals are weighed raw, because cooked weight depends on how much water goes in. Here is how one row is built: the medium roti assumes about 320 calories and 10.5 g of protein per 100 g of raw atta, so 25 g of atta gives about 80 calories and 2.6 g of protein. Cooked rice is the exception, weighed cooked: USDA lists cooked white rice at about 130 calories and 2.7 g of protein per 100 g, so a 150 g bowl gives about 195 calories and 4 g of protein.

Treat every number as a close estimate, not a lab measurement. Home recipes vary, and a 10-15% difference either way is normal.

Rotis, Parathas and Indian Breads

A medium roti is about 80 calories. The ghee on top can add more than half again, which is why "I only eat two rotis" can be 160 calories or 250.

Rice, Poha, Upma and Other Grains

Brown rice has slightly fewer calories per bowl than white, but the real difference is fibre and how fast it raises blood sugar, not calories. The glycemic index of Indian foods guide compares the two side by side.

Dal, Rajma, Chole and Other Legumes

A katori (the small steel bowl most Indian homes serve dal in) of home dal is usually made from about 30 g of raw dal. The table shows the dal itself; add about 45 calories for each teaspoon of oil or ghee in the tadka.

Dal is a good protein source, but one katori gives 6.5-7.5 g: useful, not enough on its own for a meal. More on that below, and in how much protein dal really gives vegetarians.

South Indian Breakfasts

Paneer, Eggs, Dairy and Other Protein Foods

Snacks and Sweets

What the Tables Show About the Indian Plate

Read across the tables and one pattern stands out: the typical Indian vegetarian plate is carbohydrate-heavy and protein-light.

A common lunch of 3 rotis, a katori of dal with tadka, a sabzi and a bowl of rice comes to roughly 650-700 calories, but only about 20 g of protein, spread thinly across the meal (7.5 g from the rotis, about 7 g from the dal, 4 g from the rice and a little from the sabzi). Most adults trying to lose weight, manage blood sugar or keep muscle do better with 20-30 g of protein per meal, and research on preserving muscle points to about 25-30 g per meal as a useful target (Paddon-Jones and Rasmussen, 2009).

That is why we rarely start with "eat less". The fix is usually to change what fills the plate:

• Add a concentrated protein to each meal: 50-100 g of paneer or tofu, 2 eggs, a bowl of Greek yogurt, a besan or moong chilla, or chicken or fish.
• Swap one of the rotis or half the rice for that protein, rather than adding it on top.
• Keep the dal, but count it as a supporting protein, not the whole answer.

Why calorie counting fails for Indian diets goes deeper into why plate structure beats counting, and the best high-protein vegetarian foods in India lists the protein sources ranked.

Three Ways to Use These Numbers Without Counting Every Day

You don't need to log every meal for life. These numbers are most useful three ways:

1. A one-week reality check. Write down a normal week using these portions. Most people are surprised by one thing: often the ghee, the evening snack, or how little protein they actually eat.
2. Spotting the big levers. Ghee on rotis, a second helping of rice, fried snacks and sweet chai move the total far more than the choice between moong and masoor dal.
3. Building protein-first meals. Use the protein column to plan each meal to about 20-30 g. Once you can picture what that looks like, you can stop measuring.

To see how these portions compare with what your body actually uses in a day, the free TDEE calculator gives a starting estimate from your age, weight, height and activity.

If weight is moving the wrong way despite "eating clean", the issue is often insulin resistance or the timing of meals rather than calories alone. The insulin resistance diet: a 7-day Indian meal plan covers that.

Key Takeaways

• 1 medium roti ≈ 80 calories, 2.5 g protein; add about 45 calories for each teaspoon of ghee
• 1 bowl of cooked rice (150 g) ≈ 195 calories, 4 g protein
• 1 katori of dal ≈ 100 calories and 6.5-7.5 g protein before tadka; the tadka adds about 45 per teaspoon of fat
• 1 idli ≈ 55-60 calories; 1 plate of poha ≈ 250-300 calories
• The typical Indian vegetarian plate is carb-heavy and protein-light: aim for 20-30 g of protein per meal from paneer, tofu, eggs, curd, chilla or chicken
• Use these numbers for a one-week reality check and to plan protein, not as a lifelong counting exercise

References

• Longvah T, Ananthan R, Bhaskarachary K, Venkaiah K. Indian Food Composition Tables (IFCT) 2017. National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR-NIN), Hyderabad.
• U.S. Department of Agriculture. FoodData Central. fdc.nal.usda.gov
• ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition. Nutrient Requirements for Indians: Recommended Dietary Allowances and Estimated Average Requirements, 2020.
• ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition. Dietary Guidelines for Indians, 2024.
• Paddon-Jones D, Rasmussen BB. Dietary protein recommendations and the prevention of sarcopenia. Current Opinion in Clinical Nutrition and Metabolic Care. 2009;12(1):86-90.

This is general nutrition information. Calorie and protein values are estimates based on the stated portions and vary with recipe and serving size. For personalised advice, consult your doctor or book a 1:1 consultation with Dt. Trishala Goswami.

Want a plan built around your own rotis, rice and dal? Book a 1:1 consultation with Dt. Trishala Goswami through the online weight loss program, at yogyaahar.com, or call +91 98199 48128.

Related guides: Why Calorie Counting Fails for Indian Diets · Best High-Protein Vegetarian Foods in India · Insulin Resistance Diet: 7-Day Indian Meal Plan · Is Chapati Good for Diabetes?