If it weren’t for online Indian grocery stores, I don’t know how I would have survived moving out of the city. I was excited about the lifestyle change — but I had to admit, I was going to miss the variety of cuisines available sorely.
Indian food, in particular, is much rarer in most of the United States than you might think. In one Washington Post article, they pointed out that compared to the 40,000 Chinese food restaurants nationwide, there are a mere 5,000 Indian restaurants.
That’s when I discovered my new favorite corner of the internet: the many online Indian grocery stores. I love to cook, and I realized that armed with a recipe and the correct ingredients and spices, I could satisfy my craving for Indian food at home.
Online Indian grocery stores have hundreds of products that deliver across the country. Some of them focus on fresh, Indian produce you wouldn’t find in your neighborhood store, while others stick to cooking materials, snacks, frozen meals, or even products like Indian clothing or incense.
If you live somewhere with a dearth of Indian restaurants, you want to try cooking for yourself, or you’re just dying to sample Masala-flavored Lay’s, keep reading.
Below, we’ve collected some of the best online Indian grocery stores that deliver across the United States.
The Best Online Indian Grocery Store
1. iShopIndian
iShopIndian calls itself the largest and oldest online Indian grocery store. Open since 2000 — they’ve built up a massive selection. Everything from lentils to spices, rice, and cooking oils, this place has everything you need to get the flavors perfect for an at-home curry or biryani. While local Indian grocery stores are packed with great items, IShopIndian’s massive number of products can’t be beaten.
And for an easier feast, the iShopIndian frozen food selection is among the best. They have frozen bread (naan and paratha of every flavor), chutneys (coconut, mango, etc.), and frozen wraps.
Additionally, IShopIndian offers more than just food products. In addition to ordering everything you need to cook a delicious meal at home, you can also get cooking utensils. It doesn’t stop there. IShopIndian also sells Indian cookbooks, and health and beauty products you can’t find at a local store. This emporium is worthy of the title “oldest online Indian grocery store.” It’s not only the first Indian grocery store to launch online but also America’s biggest.
Shipping is free (up to 30 pounds) when you spend over $109.
Grocery Store With The Lowest Price To Get Free Shipping
2) Desi Basket Online Indian Grocery
If you can’t decide exactly what you’re in the mood for, Desi Basket is great — there’s a huge range of fresh produce and Indian groceries of all varieties. Still, special offers and deals change with some regularity on the excellent, easy-to-browse discounts page. And the incredible thing is that this site doesn’t just sell regular groceries; they offer wholesale. In other words, you can get thirty pounds of basmati rice for $50, and similar deals in ten different categories. The snacks and sweets selection is another highlight (as is the full section dedicated to pickled vegetables).
And that’s before we get into the clothing category, which features traditional garments, like multiple elegant sarees. The gift basket options are another must-visit if a friend needs a surprise assortment of Bengali sweets.
Free shipping over $25 and free returns if unsatisfied offer excellent peace of mind.
3. Kesar Grocery
The Kesar Grocery is another one that, even if you’re not an expert in Indian cuisine or cooking, has a super convenient “best sellers” section that provides phenomenal inspiration. I’m a big fan of easy, prepackaged goods. They have simple, crowd-pleasing offers like a package of 2-minute masala noodles. And the Masala-flavored chips by Lay’s were a huge find for me. Besides great candy, they also have plenty of staples — it’s less about fresh produce and more about the cooking materials like dal, rice, atta flour, and chutney.
The sale section is often robust, and if you’re not in the immediate area of the grocery store (in New Jersey), they’ll FedEx you shipments in as little as two or three days.
4) Swagat Indian Grocer
Most online Indian grocery stores offer cooking materials, but fewer provide fresh Indian produce. Here’s a great go-to for just that. For example, it’s here that you’ll find Indian fruits like Banganapalli and Alphonso (two types of mango), banana flowers, and poi leaf. The prices are also excellent here, because Swagat Indian Grocery buys in bulk, so keep an eye on their discounts and know that they’re constantly adding more and more products to their selection. Recent features include some nutty snacks, like prepackaged masala nuts.
Of course, they also carry the essentials, like atta & flour, frozen food, canned foods, sauces & chutney, dairy & bread. It’s somewhat amazing what’s at your fingertips here, and conscientious delivery includes a zero-contact option.
5) Fast Indian Grocery
Fast Indian Grocery has all the many, many categories of the other Indian Grocery Stores on this list, but they make a special effort in a few different areas. That includes meat — cuts you probably wouldn’t find as easily in the average grocery store — like baby goat legs and shoulders. They also have a section called “Pooja needs,” products specifically for Hindu religious ceremonies and an easy way to search just for purely organic goods.
The Fast Indian Grocery also makes a great effort on-site infrastructure, offering live support, the ability to create an account for more convenient ordering, and free delivery across the United States on orders above $50. And honestly, I challenge you to spend less than $50 here.
6) Desi Gabbar
If you have any dieting restrictions, Desi Gabbar is for you. What unites all the online Indian grocery stores is the number of offerings at each, but Desi Gabbar puts a number on it. They offer over 5,000 products from more than 350 brands, including some fresh produce. And they try to serve different types of consumers, helpfully labeling everything on their website with organic, vegan, and gluten-free tags. Not only do they have just about everything, but they also offer dozens of recipes on the website, which makes it easy to check the ingredients list and buy what you’ll need for a night of cooking.
Shipping is free over $49; they don’t just stop at the continental USA. They’ll even send your groceries to Canada, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico.
7) Indian Online Grocery
Indian Online Grocery doesn’t focus on fresh fruits and vegetables but makes up for it with a massive selection of snacks, spices, & chutneys. But where this Indian Online Grocery store makes its mark is with the non-food items you might want to tack onto your order.
There’s an impressive collection of Indian apparel, incense, Bollywood DVDs, Ayurvedic products, and even popular tobacco products if that’s your thing. And they don’t just ship nationally, but internationally as well.
Of All The Indian Grocery Stores Online, Here’s Our #1
As it turns out, there’s no shortage of online Indian grocery stores available — and no excuse for missing out on incredible Indian meals no matter where you live. If you need somewhere to start, go with iShopIndian and you’ll have delicious homemade curry in days.