The Indian food at Mughal-e-Azam in Naples, Italy, is characteristic of the cuisine in the Punjab region, an area shared with Pakistan. Pictured are dal tarka made with split lentils, left; baingan bharta, a meal of minced roasted eggplant with onions and tomatoes; and garlic naan. (Alison Bath/Stars and Stripes)
Living in Naples, you quickly come to love traditional Neapolitan cuisine with its hearty pasta dishes, buffalo mozzarella and pizza that just can’t be beat.
But sometimes you need to scratch a different culinary itch. Mughal-e-Azam Indian restaurant and banquet hall in the city’s Quartieri Spagnoli neighborhood does just that, offering the flavor punch characteristic of Punjab.
Open since 2018, the family-owned restaurant features a diverse menu of appetizers — such as potato-filled samosas and pakora, or fritters — and main dish favorites including tandoori chicken, chana masala and biryani, a rice dish.
Fish and mutton entrees also are offered, and there’s even a fast-food menu of burgers, fries and other on-the-go food. Non-carnivores will find plenty of options, including a vegetarian burger.
Appetizers offered at Mughal-e-Azam Indian restaurant in Naples, Italy, include vegetarian and chicken samosas, which are served with tamarind, mint and spicy sauces on the side. (Alison Bath/Stars and Stripes)
On a recent visit, I started my meal with vegetable samosas. The fried dumplings featured mashed potatoes seasoned with coriander and other spices, and they had a crispy pastry crust. A trio of sauces — mint, tamarind and spicy, which was my favorite — came on the side for dipping.
Unfortunately, the samosas were bland and lacked the visible pieces of potato and peas typical of the dish. They left me wishing I had ordered another appetizer. But the sauces were full of flavor, with the perfect range of herby, sweet and fiery.
Interested in the range of their vegetarian/vegan options, I ordered three main dishes: dal, or lentils, of the day, butter paneer and baingan bharta, minced roasted eggplant with onions and tomatoes.
To accompany them, I opted for garlic naan instead of rice, ordering two of the small flatbread rounds on the advice of my waiter.
The butter paneer at Mughal-e-Azam Indian restaurant in Naples, Italy, has a rich, velvety tomato sauce and cheese made daily at the restaurant. (Alison Bath/Stars and Stripes)
The butter paneer arrived first, with cubes of the cow or buffalo milk cheese covered in a rich, velvety tomato sauce. The cheese, made daily at the restaurant, was firm enough to hold its shape but yielded easily to the bite.
The thick sauce offered a nice balance to the heat of the dish, which I readily would order again.
But the eggplant, although nicely roasted, had just a hint of spice and was underwhelming. It reminded me of baba ghanoush but lacked the creaminess and flavor of its Middle Eastern counterpart flavored with tahini, garlic and lemon.
There was plenty left over to take home, so I’m hoping it may be one of those dishes that improves after refrigerating for a day or so.
That left the lentil dish, known as dal tarka, and it stole the show. The saucy, split yellow lentils seasoned with onions, garlic, ginger, green chilies and fenugreek leaves, among other spices, were the savory, flavorful main entree I had hoped for.
When ordering, I asked the waiter to make them as spicy as possible. The chef didn’t disappoint, adding a liberal mound of chilies for heat.
There are a few Indian restaurants in Naples, Italy, but Mughal-e-Azam in the Quartieri Spagnoli is among the best, serving Punjab cuisine from India's north. Patrons can choose from a spiciness range of mild to very hot. (Alison Bath/Stars and Stripes)
Mughal-e-Azam, an Indian restaurant specializing in the cuisine of the Punjab region, is in the Quartieri Spagnoli neighborhood of Naples, Italy. (Alison Bath/Stars and Stripes)
The nicely charred naan with garlic and parsley provided the ideal “spoon” to sop up every bit of sauce.
I tempered the burn with a mango lassi, a sweet creamy drink made with yogurt.
While some of the dishes I tried missed the mark, the expertise of the restaurant’s chef came through in deft seasoning of sauces and trademark dishes such as dal.
That skill, along with a large menu and house-made paneer, are more than enough to keep me coming back.
Mughal-e-Azam
Address: Via Miguel Cervantes de Saavedra 70-72, Naples, Italy
Hours: Daily, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. (lunch); 6-11:30 p.m. (dinner)
Prices: 4 to 8 euros, appetizers; 5 to 8 euros, soups and salads; 6 to 19 euros, tandoori; 7 to 10 euros, main dishes; and 2 to 3 euros for hot and cold drinks. No alcohol is served.
Information: +39 327 703 2415; www.facebook.com/mughaleazamnapoli
