Indoor air pollution (IAP) predominantly contributed from biomass burning in rural households is a major health hazard. Cooking activities are significant sources of indoor particulate matter (PM). The present study focuses on characterising PM emissions from different cooking methods that are primarily prepared in rural areas of South India, in a simulated kitchen relying on biomass as fuel and estimation of respiratory dosage. Controlled experiments were carried out to study PM concentrations generated while performing different cooking methods including boiling (rice, urad dal and preparation of tea) and pan-frying (wheat roti and omlette). Multiple Particle Path Dosimetry (MPPD) was used to estimate deposition fractions in head, tracheobronchial and pulmonary regions of the human respiratory tract (HRT) for women. Further, PM dosage was assessed by entering the captured PM measurements and evaluated amongst different cooking methods. PM concentrations from pan-frying were 1.6 times greater than boiling, primarily due to usage of oil for frying. Furthermore, pan-frying displayed higher dosage (412–2240 µg) compared to the boiling (258–1119 µg). However, urad dal displayed extreme amplification of 8.7 times than preparation of tea due to longer cooking duration. It is evident from above results that cooking methods are major attributes impacting IAP in rural areas with severe health impacts. © Springer Nature Singapore Pte Ltd. 2020.