Break Your Fast Right: Pakistani Iftar Recipes
Iftar is the most anticipated meal of the day during Ramadan, and Pakistani tables do not disappoint. This collection brings together the crispy, the tangy, the sweet, and the soothing — from gol gappay and pakoras to sheer khurma and doodh chawal — everything that belongs on a proper Pakistani iftar dastarkhan.
30 recipes in this collection
Pyaz Pakora (Onion Fritters)
Pyaz Pakora — crispy, lacy, golden onion fritters dipped in a spiced chickpea batter and deep-fried — is the first thing every Pakistani makes when it rains. The scent alone is enough to start a conversation.
Aloo Samosa (Crispy Potato-Filled Pastry)
Aloo Samosa is Pakistan's most iconic street snack — a perfectly crispy, triangular pastry filled with spiced mashed potatoes and peas, deep-fried to a golden crunch. Sold on every corner from Karachi to Peshawar.
Dahi Baray Chaat
Soft, pillowy urad dal fritters dunked in cold, creamy yoghurt and showered with tangy chutneys and crunchy toppings — this is Pakistan's most-loved street snack. Every layer adds something: cool against spicy, soft against crunchy, sweet against tart. Once you make these at home, the street vendor version will never quite be enough.
Gol Gappay
Crispy hollow puris filled with spiced chickpeas and tangy tamarind water — Pakistan's most addictive street snack. Once you start, you physically cannot stop at one.
Karachi Chana Chaat
Karachi Chana Chaat is the city's most beloved street snack — spiced boiled chickpeas tossed with crunchy onions, tangy tomatoes, tart imli (tamarind) chutney, cool dahi (yoghurt), and a snowfall of masalas. Every bite is simultaneously sweet, sour, spicy, and salty — a flavour explosion that Karachi has made its own.
Sheer Khurma
The Eid morning vermicelli pudding — toasted sevaiyan simmered in sweetened milk with dates, pistachios, almonds, and cardamom. No Eid is complete without it.
Doodh Chawal Kheer — Pakistani Rice Pudding
Kheer is the quintessential Pakistani celebration dessert — rice slow-cooked in full-fat milk until creamy and thick, perfumed with cardamom and saffron, and crowned with pistachios and silver leaf. It appears at every eid, wedding, and birth celebration across the country.
Lahori Dahi Bhalla
Dahi Bhalla is the crown jewel of Pakistani street snacks — soft, spongy lentil dumplings soaked in tangy dahi (yoghurt), crowned with imli (tamarind) chutney, fresh mint chutney, and a generous sprinkle of chaat masala. Sweet, sour, spicy, creamy, and pillowy all at once.
Karachi Halwa (Cornflour Halwa / Bombay Halwa)
A jewel-bright, translucent, gloriously chewy halwa made from cornflour, sugar, and an extravagant amount of ghee — cooked in one pot with relentless stirring until it transforms into a bouncy, glistening confection the colour of liquid amber or emerald. Set in a greased tray, cut into diamonds, and decorated with pistachios, it looks like something from a confectionery museum. It is also utterly, devastatingly delicious.
Bun Kebab Karachi Style
Karachi's original street burger — a spiced lentil patty tucked in a bun with sweet-tangy chutney, egg wash, and raw onions. The 50-rupee meal that punches above its weight.
Palak Pakora — Spinach Fritters
Lacy, crispy palak pakoras made with whole fresh spinach leaves dipped in a spiced besan (gram flour) batter and fried until golden and crunchy. The lightest and most elegant of all Pakistani pakoras — ready in 20 minutes and absolutely impossible to eat just one.
Daal Pakora — Crispy Split Pea Fritters
Crunchy daal pakoras made from soaked and coarsely ground chana dal (split chickpeas) mixed with onion, green chilli and spices, then deep-fried until shatteringly crispy. Punjab's rain-day snack of choice — denser and crunchier than besan pakoras with a satisfying lentil depth.
Aloo Samosa — Sindhi Style
Sindhi-style aloo samosa with a spiced potato and onion filling flavoured with amchur (dried mango powder), cumin and coriander seeds, wrapped in a thin crispy pastry. Slightly tangier and more cumin-forward than Punjabi versions — the Sindhi approach to a pan-Pakistani classic.
Keema Samosa — Lahori Street Style
Crispy Lahori keema samosa filled with spiced beef mince cooked with peas, green chilli and fresh coriander, wrapped in a flaky homemade pastry and deep-fried to golden perfection. The ultimate Ramadan iftaar snack and Pakistani party food that disappears in minutes.
Karachi Chana Chaat with Masala
Karachi's beloved chana chaat — boiled chickpeas tossed with chopped tomatoes, onions, fresh coriander, green chilli, tamarind chutney and a generous dose of chaat masala. Quick, tangy, spicy and completely addictive — the street food that built Karachi's snack culture.
Lahori Shami Kebab
Lahori Shami Kebab are silky-smooth pan-fried patties made from slow-cooked beef and split chickpeas — spiced, herb-flecked, and crispy at the edges. The quintessential Pakistani tea-time snack.
Lahori Gola Kebab
Lahore's most beloved kebab — silky ground beef and lamb balls skewered on wide seekhs, kissed by charcoal, and finished with dhungar smoke. A wedding staple and dhaba legend.
Lahori Seekh Kebab
Juicy, spiced minced meat kebabs grilled on skewers over live charcoal — the smell alone will bring your entire neighbourhood to the gate. Lahori seekh kebab is richer and spicier than its Peshawari cousin, packed with herbs and fried onion for moisture and depth.
Chicken Seekh Kebab
Chicken Seekh Kebab is the lighter, equally delicious cousin of the beef original — minced chicken thigh meat seasoned with fresh herbs and subtle spices, grilled to juicy perfection. Perfect for those who prefer white meat without compromising on flavour.
Bannu Chapli Kebab — The Original
Bannu is widely considered the birthplace of chapli kebab, and this recipe captures the original Bannu version — flatter, crispier, and more aggressively spiced than the Peshawar versions that became famous. A foundational Pakistani recipe.
Punjabi Kadhi Pakora
Punjabi Kadhi Pakora is a tangy, yoghurt-based gram flour curry with crispy fried onion fritters floating within — a beloved weekend dish that fills Punjabi homes with the most incredible aroma.
Mango Lassi — Summer Special
Thick, creamy mango lassi blended from ripe Pakistani mangoes, full-fat yoghurt and a touch of cardamom — the drink that defines a Pakistani summer. Sweet, cool, and thirst-destroying, this is peak seasonal simplicity in a glass.
Namkeen Lassi — Lahori Salted Buttermilk
Frothy Lahori namkeen lassi made with thick dahi, chilled water, salt, roasted cumin and a pinch of kala namak — blended until light and airy. The savoury alternative to sweet lassi that serious Lahori breakfast spots swear by, and the world's best digestive drink.
Sewaiyan Kheer (Vermicelli Pudding) for Eid
Silky sewaiyan kheer made with roasted vermicelli slow-cooked in full-fat milk, sweetened with sugar and fragrant with cardamom and rose water. A beloved Eid staple that fills every Pakistani home with warmth and celebration. Ready in under an hour and guaranteed to impress.
Phirni
A silky, chilled rice pudding that is the definition of elegant simplicity — creamy full-fat milk slowly thickened with coarsely ground soaked rice, perfumed with cardamom and saffron, and set in traditional clay shikoras (bowls) that give it an earthy, cool quality no modern container can replicate. Phirni is the dessert you serve when you want guests to feel truly looked after.
Pakistani Spring Rolls
Crispy golden rolls with a halal chicken and vegetable filling — a Pakistani Chinese staple that shows up at every family dawat, school canteen, and street-side Chinese stall from Karachi to Lahore.
Balochi Biryani
Balochi Biryani is Pakistan's most underrated rice dish — a rugged, smoky, meat-forward biryani from the vast plateau of Balochistan that relies on the quality of its gosht and the simplicity of its spicing to create something deeply satisfying.
Lahori Chicken Biryani
Lahori Chicken Biryani is a bold, spice-forward rice dish from the heart of Punjab, layered with tender murgh and fragrant basmati. Unlike its Karachi cousins, the Lahori version leans heavy on whole garam masala and a generous hand with the lal mirch. This is weekend cooking at its finest.
Lahori Channay
Lahore's famous spiced chickpea curry — dark, tangy, and loaded with whole spices. The inseparable partner of halwa puri Sunday breakfast.
Chicken Qeema
A lighter, quicker take on the classic qeema using minced chicken — cooks in half the time of beef, absorbs spices beautifully, and makes an excellent weekday dinner or paratha filling.