I love cooking from scratch, but some nights I want a big, comforting spread and to sit down with friends and family and enjoy it, hassle-free. The options are limited: cook it all myself (no time, no energy) or get takeaway (expensive for a group and a bit lame for entertaining). We hear that Haldiram’s is the crafty middle ground.
With two friends coming over midweek, I’d normally be in a mild panic, shopping fresh and cooking for four. Instead I opt for a ‘pick & mix’ approach. I order a couple of Indian mains from our local restaurant, butter chicken (of course), lamb madras and palak paneer, then round out the table with Haldiram’s naan, entrées and dessert. It’s an impressive spread, yet has cost a fraction of a full blown Indian delivery meal. With cost of living issues affecting us all, we are keen to give the range a spin. Here are our picks and what we thought.
Who is Haldiram’s?
A household name in India, Haldiram’s has been perfecting this kind of food since 1937, when Ganga Bhishen Agarwal, known as Haldiram Ji, opened a small sweets and namkeen shop in Bikaner, Rajasthan. That single shop grew into a global name spanning sweets, snacks, frozen foods and ready-to-eat meals, all built around food designed for sharing, which is exactly how I use it.
The Centerpiece: Tandoori Naan
The hero of my Haldiram’s spread is the Tandoori Naan, available nationally in the freezer aisles at Coles and Woolworths. Naan is the essential bread for a meal like this: something to tear, share, scoop and swipe through every last spoonful of curry.
It’s baked in a clay oven, which gives it a soft, slightly chewy bite and a gentle smokiness. I’ve tried both the plain and garlic versions, and garlic is my favourite by a long way. I keep the pack in the freezer and take out individual portions as needed, which means I can scale a spread to two people, four or a small crowd without committing to one giant meal or the guesswork of ordering takeaway naan for a group.
I tested the frying pan, air fryer and toaster to find the best method. The toaster did a remarkably good job if you like both sides crispy. My top tip is to add a few drops of water to the bubbly side of the naan and let it rest before cooking, then keep them warm in a tea towel-lined basket. This is where these naans beat a restaurant version: ready in minutes, fresh, soft and crispy, as opposed to delivery, which tends to arrive soggy and lacklustre.
The plain naan doubles as a handy lunch option too, as a pizza base, in sarnies and wraps, or, if I’m feeling lazy, they are delicious as a mid-afternoon snack with a smidge of butter or a smear of soft cheese.
I also like the paneer onion parathas. They are Indian stuffed flatbreads filled with paneer, onion, herbs and spices. Haldiram’s version is frozen and easy to heat, though I’d have liked a touch more stuffing for the flavour to really pop.
Price-wise, a restaurant naan alone typically costs $4 to $7 apiece, while Haldiram’s Tandoori Naan works out to under $1 a portion, so for the price of one restaurant naan I can cover the whole table. That’s the kind of budgeting arithmetic that makes entertaining much more fun.
A Tale of Two Samosas
No Indian-style spread feels complete without something crisp and golden, and Haldiram’s covers both ends of the samosa spectrum.
The Punjabi samosa is the larger, triangular one that stands up on its “bum”: a thicker, flakier crust around a robust filling of chunky potato and green peas, seasoned with cumin, coriander, ginger, green chilli and tangy dried mango powder rather than relying on heat alone. Ours had good texture in the filling, a lovely caramel-coloured, crunchy pastry, and just enough spice without much heat. They reheat well in the oven or air fryer, though the oven had the edge for us, and hold their own with or without chutney. At a restaurant, a samosa like this costs roughly $5 to $7 each; Haldiram’s works out to around 80c a piece ($6.50 for 8 pieces).
Then there are the smaller, flatter cocktail samosas, the more familiar party-food shape, which Haldiram’s also stocks nationally in the freezer aisles at Coles and Woolworths alongside the Tandoori Naan. They’re the easy grab-and-dip option for a crowd, worth keeping on hand for whenever the Punjabi version feels like too much samosa for one sitting.
Dinner Party Entertaining – The Complete Range
Whilst we didn’t try their other curries for this review, you could skip ordering from a restaurant altogether, as Haldiram’s has you covered for an entire meal. Options include a ready-to-eat Shahi Paneer, a mild, creamy North Indian gravy with paneer cubes which heats in minutes.
Another staple you could choose is the Dal Makhani, a dhal made from whole black lentils and kidney beans. “Dal” means pulses or lentils, while “makhani” refers to buttery. It’s traditionally slow-cooked with tomato, butter, cream and warming spices until thick and silky. Between the Shahi Paneer and the Dal Makhani, you could make an entire dinner party from your pantry and freezer.
Bhaji and Crunch
I round out the table with something crisp. The onion bhaji is one of my absolute favourites in the range: spiced onion fritters with crisp, rough edges and a soft, light centre that’s dangerously addictive. We fought over the last ones, and at about half the size of the samosas, they don’t last long. The air fryer wins here too, taking just ten minutes.
I also put out a bowl of Haldiram’s Nutcracker mix: crunchy, salty, spiced, and exactly the kind of snack I absent-mindedly keep returning to with a cold beer or a sparkling water with lime. It gives the spread that “grazing table” feeling before everyone sits down properly.
The Sweet Finish
Dessert is the easiest course of all: Gulab Jamun. Oh my, these are seriously sweet. The soft, milk-based dumplings are soaked in a fragrant sugar syrup and are wonderfully indulgent after a spicy, savoury meal. I warmed them gently before serving and spooned a little of the syrup over the top. I dressed mine up with vanilla ice cream, though thick Greek yoghurt or chopped pistachios would make a lighter alternative.
The Verdict
What are we ADDICTED to? The ease of turning the freezer and pantry into a ready-made dinner party: a table full of hot naan, crisp samosas, creamy curries, crunchy snacks and something syrupy-sweet for dessert, without the marathon of preparation. It makes entertaining easy for a midweek dinner or friends dropping by.
What would make us more ADDICTED? There’s more of the range worth exploring, including further curries. An air fryer-specific cooking guide would be a welcome addition to the instructions..
Where to Buy Haldiram’s Frozen Indian Food in Australia? Haldiram’s Tandoori Naan is available nationally in the freezer sections of Coles and Woolworths. The broader Haldiram’s range, including frozen snacks, ready-to-eat meals, sweets and namkeen, is available through selected Indian grocers and retailers