Cholesterol and Heart Health, the Indian Diet Way: Rethinking Ghee, Oil and Rice

If you have been told your cholesterol is high, the advice that follows is often a list of what to cut: ghee, fried food, sweets, rice. For a household that cooks Indian food every day, that list can feel like an instruction to stop eating your own cuisine.

It does not have to. Traditional Indian cooking has plenty that helps your heart, including dal, chana, rajma, vegetables, spices, yoghurt and whole grains. The changes that matter most are usually about which fats you cook with, how much you use, and what fills the plate.

A quick word on cholesterol

Cholesterol is a fat-like substance your body needs. The concern is usually with higher levels of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol in the blood, and with triglycerides. Your GP will look at these alongside blood pressure, blood glucose, family history, smoking and other factors to work out your overall heart risk.

Food is one important part of managing this. Some people also need medication, and that is a decision for you and your doctor. Please do not stop or change any prescribed medicine because of something you read online.

Ghee, oil and the fat in your cooking

Ghee is mostly saturated fat, and a high intake of saturated fat tends to raise LDL cholesterol. The same applies to butter, cream, coconut oil and palm oil, which also turn up in many packaged snacks and sweets.

That does not mean one spoon of ghee on a festival day is a problem. It is the everyday pattern that counts. Some practical ideas:

• Measure rather than pour. A teaspoon or two for a tadka often gives the same flavour as a generous glug. Many people find they use far more oil than they realise when they never measure it.
• Choose an unsaturated oil for everyday cooking. Canola, olive, sunflower, rice bran or peanut oil are all common choices. Mustard oil is traditional in many homes, and it is worth asking your dietitian or doctor how it fits your overall pattern.
• Keep ghee for flavour. A small amount stirred through a finished dal, rather than a thick layer on every roti or paratha, goes a long way.
• Be wary of “ghee-free” claims. Vanaspati, or hydrogenated vegetable fat, has historically been a source of trans fats. Check the label on any packaged namkeen, biscuits or frozen parathas.
• Use cooking methods that need less fat. Pressure cooking, steaming, grilling, roasting, air-frying and dry-roasting spices before grinding all work well for Indian dishes.

Fried foods and snacks

Samosa, pakora, kachori, bhujia, mathri and chips are usually the biggest hidden sources of saturated fat and refined carbohydrate. They are also tied to social occasions, so banning them is rarely realistic.

Try treating them as an occasional food rather than an everyday one. For the daily tea-time snack, roasted chana, a handful of unsalted nuts, fruit, a small bowl of sprouts chaat, or dhokla and idli (steamed rather than fried) are easier on the heart.

Rice, roti and refined carbohydrates

Rice is not the villain, but large serves of white rice and refined flour (maida) products can push up triglycerides in some people, and they can crowd out the fibre-rich foods that help lower cholesterol.

• Shrink the rice, grow the sabzi. Aim for vegetables to take up about half your plate, with rice or roti in a smaller portion.
• Make more of your grains whole. Atta rotis, brown or parboiled rice, barley (jau), oats, bajra and jowar all add fibre. Mixing besan or oat flour into your atta is an easy start.
• Go easy on maida. Naan, bhatura, white bread and many bakery items are made with refined flour.
• Watch the biryani and pulao. They are often cooked with a lot of ghee or oil alongside the rice. Smaller serves with raita and salad suit most people better.

Foods that help

Soluble fibre binds with cholesterol in the gut and is one of the more reliable dietary tools for lowering LDL. You already have many sources in your kitchen:

• Dal and legumes: Moong, masoor, toor, chana, rajma, chole and lobia. Aim to include them most days.
• Oats, barley and psyllium husk (isabgol): Oat porridge, vegetable oats upma or barley added to khichdi are simple options. Psyllium is a common supplement, but check with your GP or dietitian before starting it, especially if you take other medicines.
• Vegetables and fruit: Okra (bhindi), eggplant, methi, spinach, carrots, apples, guava and citrus all add fibre.
• Nuts and seeds: A small handful of almonds, walnuts or pistachios, or a spoon of flaxseed or chia, can replace more processed snacks. They are energy-dense, so keep the serve small.
• Fish: If you eat fish, oily types such as salmon, sardines and mackerel provide omega-3 fats. Baked or grilled is better than deep-fried.
• Yoghurt and milk: Reduced-fat dairy usually suits people with high cholesterol better than full-cream, though your dietitian can advise what is right for you.

Spices such as turmeric, cumin, coriander, garlic and ginger add flavour with no cholesterol, and they let you use less salt and fat to make food taste good.

Salt, sugar and sweets

Heart health is not only about cholesterol. Pickles, papad, namkeen and many packaged sauces are high in salt, which matters if you also have high blood pressure. Mithai and sweetened chai add sugar and, in the case of sweets made with ghee or condensed milk, saturated fat as well. Small portions, shared among the table, are usually a more sustainable approach than avoiding them altogether.

Small changes beat a total overhaul

Radical, all-at-once diet changes tend not to last. A more useful approach is to pick two or three changes you can keep up, such as measuring your oil, swapping a fried snack for roasted chana, and adding a serve of dal to your day, and build from there. Our post on why restrictive diets fail explains why that matters.

When to see a dietitian

It can help to see an Accredited Practising Dietitian if your cholesterol or triglycerides are high, if you have been told you are at higher risk of heart disease, if you also have diabetes or high blood pressure, or if you are not sure how your family’s usual recipes can be adapted.

Karma Nutrition offers cardiovascular health consultations at Gold Coast clinics and online across Australia, with a focus on the foods you actually cook. Some eligible patients may be able to access Medicare-supported care, which our Medicare guide explains.

This is general information only and does not replace advice from your GP or treating team. Please speak to your doctor about your own cholesterol results and about any medication.

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