The history of Indian cuisine consists of
cuisine from the Indian subcontinent
Cuisine of the Indian subcontinent includes the cuisines from the Indian subcontinent comprising the traditional cuisines from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Staples and common ingredients
Chapati, ...
, which is rich and diverse. The diverse climate in the region, ranging from deep tropical to alpine, has also helped considerably broaden the set of ingredients readily available to the many schools of cookery in India. In many cases, food has become a marker of religious and social identity, with varying taboos and preferences (for instance, a segment of the
Jain
Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current time cycle being ...
population consume no roots or subterranean vegetable; see
Jain vegetarianism
Jain vegetarianism is practised by the followers of Jain culture and philosophy. It is one of the most rigorous forms of spiritually motivated diet on the Indian subcontinent and beyond. The Jain cuisine is completely lacto-vegetarian and also ...
) which has also driven these groups to innovate extensively with the food sources that are deemed acceptable.
One strong influence over Indian foods is the longstanding
vegetarianism within sections of
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
's
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
and Jain communities. At 31%, slightly less than a third of Indians are vegetarians.
Historic developments
Prehistory and Indus Valley Civilization exchanges with Sumeria and Mesopotamia
After 9000 BCE, a first period of indirect contacts between
Fertile Crescent
The Fertile Crescent ( ar, الهلال الخصيب) is a crescent-shaped region in the Middle East, spanning modern-day Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Jordan, together with the northern region of Kuwait, southeastern region of ...
and
Indus Valley (IV) seems to have occurred as a consequence of the
Neolithic Revolution and the diffusion of agriculture. Around 7000 BCE, agriculture spread from the Fertile Crescent to the Indus Valley, and wheat and barley began to be grown.
Sesame and
humped cattle were domesticated in the local farming communities. Mehrgarh is one of the earliest sites with evidence of farming and herding in
South Asia
South Asia is the southern subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geographical
Geography (from Greek: , ''geographia''. Combination of Greek words ‘Geo’ (The Earth) and ‘Graphien’ (to describe), literally "earth descr ...
.
Jean-François Jarrige
Jean-François Jarrige (5 August 1940, Lourdes – 18 November 2014, Paris) was a French archaeologist specializing in South Asian archaeology and Sindhology. He held a doctorate from the University of Paris in oriental archaeology. He carried o ...
argues for an independent origin of Mehrgarh who notes "the assumption that farming economy was introduced full-fledged from Near-East to South Asia,"
[Jean-Francois Jarrig]
''Mehrgarh Neolithic''
, Paper presented in the International Seminar on the "First Farmers in Global Perspective," Lucknow, India, 18–20 January 2006 and the similarities between Neolithic sites from eastern Mesopotamia and the western Indus valley, which are evidence of a "cultural continuum" between those sites. But given the originality of Mehrgarh, Jarrige concludes that Mehrgarh has an earlier local background and is not a "'backwater' of the Neolithic culture of the Near East".
From circa 4500 to 1900 BC the rulers of
Lower Mesopotamia were
Sumerians
Sumer () is the earliest known civilization in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. It is one of the cradles of c ...
who spoke a non-
Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the overwhelming majority of Europe, the Iranian plateau, and the northern Indian subcontinent. Some European languages of this family, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, Dutc ...
and non-
Semitic language, may have initially come from India and may have been related to the original
Dravidian population of India.
This appeared to historian
Henry Hall as the most probable conclusion, particularly based on the portrayal of Sumerians in their own art and "how very Indian the Sumerians were in type".
Recent genetic analysis of ancient Mesopotamian skeletal DNA tends to confirm a significant association that some of Sumerians might have come from IVC, and it cannot be excluded that among them were people involved in the founding of the
Mesopotamian civilizations.
Material was adapted from this source, which is available under
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
By 3000 BCE,
turmeric
Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast ...
,
cardamom
Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They are r ...
,
black pepper
Black pepper (''Piper nigrum'') is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, known as a peppercorn, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit is a drupe (stonefruit) which is about in dia ...
and
mustard
Mustard may refer to:
Food and plants
* Mustard (condiment), a paste or sauce made from mustard seeds used as a condiment
* Mustard plant, one of several plants, having seeds that are used for the condiment
** Mustard seed, seeds of the mustard p ...
were harvested in India.
From Around 2350 BCE the evidence for imports from the Indus to
Ur in
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...
have been found, as well as
Clove heads which are thought to originate from the
Moluccas
The Maluku Islands (; Indonesian: ''Kepulauan Maluku'') or the Moluccas () are an archipelago in the east of Indonesia. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone. Geographically they are located ...
in
Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. Maritime Southeast Asia is sometimes also referred to as Island Southeast Asia, Insular Southeast Asia or Oceanic Sout ...
were found in a 2nd millennium BC site in
Terqa
Terqa is the name of an ancient city discovered at the site of Tell Ashara on the banks of the middle Euphrates in Deir ez-Zor Governorate, Syria, approximately from the modern border with Iraq and north of the ancient site of Mari, Syria. ...
.
Akkadian Empire
The Akkadian Empire () was the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia after the long-lived civilization of Sumer. It was centered in the city of Akkad (city), Akkad () and its surrounding region. The empire united Akkadian language, Akkadian and ...
records mention timber, carnelian and ivory as being imported from
Meluhha
or ( sux, ) is the Sumerian name of a prominent trading partner of Sumer during the Middle Bronze Age. Its identification remains an open question, but most scholars associate it with the Indus Valley civilisation.
Etymology
Asko Parpola ...
by Meluhhan ships, Meluhha being generally considered as the Mesopotamian name for the Indus Valley Civilization.
Vedic and vegetarian Buddhist exchanges with Roman empire and influence on Southeast Asia
The ancient
Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
text ''
Mahabharata
The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
'' mentions rice and vegetable cooked together, and the word "pulao" or "pallao" is used to refer to the dish in ancient
Sanskrit
Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
works, such as
Yājñavalkya Smṛti
The ''Yajnavalkya Smriti'' ( sa, याज्ञवल्क्य स्मृति, IAST: ') is one of the many Dharma-related texts of Hinduism composed in Sanskrit. It is dated between the 3rd to 5th-century CE, and belongs to the Dharmas ...
.
Ayurveda
Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repo ...
, ancient Indian system of wellness, deals with holistic approach to the wellness, and it includes food,
dhyana
Dhyana may refer to:
Meditative practices in Indian religions
* Dhyana in Buddhism (Pāli: ''jhāna'')
* Dhyana in Hinduism
* Jain Dhyāna, see Jain meditation
Other
*''Dhyana'', a work by British composer John Tavener (1944-2013)
* ''Dhyana'' ...
and
yoga
Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consciou ...
.
Thai cuisine
Thai cuisine ( th, อาหารไทย, , ) is the national cuisine of Thailand.
Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with strong Odor, aromatic components and a spicy edge. Australian chef David Thompson (chef), David ...
was
influenced by
Indian cuisine
Indian cuisine consists of a variety of regional and traditional cuisines native to India. Given the diversity in soil, climate, culture, ethnic groups, and occupations, these cuisines vary substantially and use locally available spices, he ...
as recorded by the Thai monk
Buddhadasa
Phra Dharmakosācārya (Nguam Indapañño) ( th, พระธรรมโกศาจารย์ (เงื่อม อินฺทปญฺโญ); ), also known as Buddhadāsa Bhikkhu ( th, พุทธทาสภิกขุ; , 27 May 1906 ...
Bhikku in his writing ‘India's Benevolence to Thailand’. He wrote that Thai people learned how to use
spices
A spice is a seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garni ...
in their food in various ways from Indians. Thais also obtained the methods of making
herbal medicines
Herbal medicine (also herbalism) is the study of pharmacognosy and the use of medicinal plants, which are a basis of traditional medicine. With worldwide research into pharmacology, some herbal medicines have been translated into modern remedies ...
(Ayurveda) from the Indians. Some plants like sarabhi of family
Guttiferae
The Clusiaceae or Guttiferae Juss. (1789) (''nom. alt. et cons.'' = alternative and valid name) are a family of plants including 13 genera and ca 750 species. Several former members of Clusiacae are now placed in Calophyllaceae and Hypericacea ...
, kanika or
harsinghar, phikun or ''
Mimusops elengi
''Mimusops elengi'' is a medium-sized evergreen tree found in tropical forests in South Asia, Southeast Asia and northern Australia. English common names include Spanish cherry,Bailey, L.H.; Bailey, E.Z.; the staff of the Liberty Hyde Bailey Ho ...
'' and bunnak or the
rose chestnut etc. were brought from India.
Filipino cuisine
Filipino cuisine ( fil, lutong Pilipino/pagkaing Pilipino) is composed of the cuisines of more than a hundred distinct ethnolinguistic groups found throughout the Philippine archipelago. A majority of mainstream Filipino dishes that compose Fi ...
, found throughout the
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
archipelago, has been
historically influenced by the Indian cuisine.
"Philippine Cuisine."
Balitapinoy.net
. Accessed July 2011.
Atchara
''Atchara'' (also spelled ''achara'' or ''atsara'') is a pickle made from grated unripe papaya originating from the Philippines. This dish is often served as a side dish for fried or grilled foods such as pork barbecue.
History
The nam ...
of Philippines originated from the
Indian
Indian or Indians may refer to:
Peoples South Asia
* Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor
** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country
* South Asia ...
''
achar'', which was transmitted to the Philippines via the
acar
Acar is a type of vegetable pickle of Maritime Southeast Asia, most prevalent in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. It is a localised version of Indian '' achar''. It is known as atjar in Dutch cuisine, derived from Indonesian ''acar' ...
of the
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
,
Malaysia
Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
and
Brunei
Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely sur ...
.
Indian influences can also be noted in rice-based delicacies such as ''
bibingka
''Bibingka'' (; ) commonly refers to a type of baked rice cake from the Philippines that is traditionally cooked in a terracotta oven lined with banana leaves and is usually eaten for breakfast or as merienda (mid-afternoon snack) especially du ...
'' (analogous to the Indonesian ''
bingka''), ''
puto'', and ''
puto bumbong
''Puto bumbong'' is a Filipino purple rice cake steamed in bamboo tubes - widely known as puto bumbonger or bumbongizer. It is traditionally sold during the Christmas season. It is a type of '' puto'' (steamed rice cake).
Etymology
The name is ...
'', where the latter two are plausibly derived from the
south Indian
South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...
''
puttu
Puttu ( ml, പുട്ട്; ta, புட்டு; si, පිට්ටු) (pronounced ), alternatively spelled pittu ( ta, பிட்டு), is a dish native to the South Indian states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and parts of Karnataka, ...
'', which also has variants throughout
Maritime Southeast Asia
Maritime Southeast Asia comprises the countries of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and East Timor. Maritime Southeast Asia is sometimes also referred to as Island Southeast Asia, Insular Southeast Asia or Oceanic Sout ...
(e.g. ''
kue putu
''Kue putu'' or ''putu bambu'' is an Indonesian ''kue''. It is made of rice flour called ''suji'' and coloured green with pandan leaves, filled with palm sugar, steamed in bamboo tubes (hence the name), and served with desiccated coconut. This ...
'', ''
putu mangkok
''Putu piring'' is a round-shaped, traditional steamed rice flour ''kue'' or sweet snack filled with palm sugar. It is found in Singapore, Malaysia, and Southern Thailand under various names. It is usually made using stainless steel molds wit ...
''). The ''
kare-kare
Kare-kare is a Philippine stew (''kare'' derives from "curry") that features a thick savory peanut sauce. It is generally made from a base of stewed oxtail, beef tripe, pork hocks, calves' feet, pig's feet or trotters, various cuts of pork, ...
'', more popular in Luzon, on the other hand could trace its origins from the
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War (1756–1763) was a global conflict that involved most of the European Great Powers, and was fought primarily in Europe, the Americas, and Asia-Pacific. Other concurrent conflicts include the French and Indian War (1754 ...
when the
British occupied Manila for 2 years mostly with
sepoys
''Sepoy'' () was the Persian-derived designation originally given to a professional Indian infantryman, traditionally armed with a musket, in the armies of the Mughal Empire.
In the 18th century, the French East India Company and its oth ...
(Indian conscripts), who had to improvise Indian dishes given the lack of spices in the Philippines to make
curry
A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included.
There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradit ...
. This is said to explain the name and its supposed thick, yellow-to-orange
annatto
Annatto ( or ) is an orange-red condiment and food coloring derived from the seeds of the achiote tree (''Bixa orellana''), native to tropical America. It is often used to impart a yellow or orange color to foods, but sometimes also for its flav ...
and peanut-based sauce, which alludes to a type of curry.
Cuisine exchange with Central Asian and Islamic world
Later, arrivals from
Arabia
The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plate. ...
,
Central Asia
Central Asia, also known as Middle Asia, is a subregion, region of Asia that stretches from the Caspian Sea in the west to western China and Mongolia in the east, and from Afghanistan and Iran in the south to Russia in the north. It includes t ...
, and centuries of trade relations and cultural exchange resulted in a significant influence on each region's cuisines, such as the adoption of the ''
tandoor
A tandoor ( or ) is a large urn-shaped oven, usually made of clay, originating from the Indian Subcontinent. Since antiquity, tandoors have been used to bake unleavened flatbreads, such as roti and naan, as well as to roast meat. The tandoor ...
'' in
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
which had originated in northwestern India.
Cuisine exchange during European colonial period
The
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
and
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
during their rule introduced cooking techniques such as baking, and foods from the
New World
The term ''New World'' is often used to mean the majority of Earth's Western Hemisphere, specifically the Americas."America." ''The Oxford Companion to the English Language'' (). McArthur, Tom, ed., 1992. New York: Oxford University Press, p. 3 ...
and Europe. The
new-world vegetables popular in cuisine from the Indian subcontinent include
tomato
The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word ...
,
potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Unit ...
,
sweet potatoes
The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the bindweed or morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable. The young sho ...
,
peanut
The peanut (''Arachis hypogaea''), also known as the groundnut, goober (US), pindar (US) or monkey nut (UK), is a legume crop grown mainly for its edible Seed, seeds. It is widely grown in the tropics and subtropics, important to both small ...
s,
squash
Squash may refer to:
Sports
* Squash (sport), the high-speed racquet sport also known as squash racquets
* Squash (professional wrestling), an extremely one-sided match in professional wrestling
* Squash tennis, a game similar to squash but pla ...
, and
chilli
Chili or chilli may refer to:
Food
* Chili pepper, the spicy fruit of plants in the genus ''Capsicum''; sometimes spelled "chilli" in the UK and "chile" in the southwestern US
* Chili powder, the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties ...
. Most New world vegetables such as sweet potatoes, potatoes,
Amaranth
''Amaranthus'' is a cosmopolitan genus of annual or short-lived perennial plants collectively known as amaranths. Some amaranth species are cultivated as leaf vegetables, pseudocereals, and ornamental plants. Catkin-like cymes of densely pack ...
, peanuts and
cassava
''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively ...
based
Sago
Sago () is a starch extracted from the pith, or spongy core tissue, of various tropical palm stems, especially those of ''Metroxylon sagu''. It is a major staple food for the lowland peoples of New Guinea and the Maluku Islands, where it is ...
are allowed on Hindu fasting days. Cauliflower was introduced by the British in 1822.
In the late 18th/early 19th century, an autobiography of a Scottish
Robert Lindsay mentions a
Sylheti
Sylheti may refer to:
* Sylhetis, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group in the Sylhet division and South Assam
* Sylheti language, a language of the Sylheti region
* Sylheti Nagri
Sylheti Nagri or Sylheti Nagari ( syl, , ISO: , ), known in cla ...
man called Saeed Ullah cooking a curry for Lindsay's family. This is possibly the oldest record of Indian cuisine in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
.
Factors driving globalisation of Indian cuisine
Universal appeal
A 2019 research paper by US economist
Joel Waldfogel, based on travel data from
TripAdvisor, affirmed India's
soft power
In politics (and particularly in international politics), soft power is the ability to co-opt rather than coerce (contrast hard power). In other words, soft power involves shaping the preferences of others through appeal and attraction. A defin ...
which ranked Indian cuisine fourth most popular. Italian, Japanese & Chinese food being top 3. Indian cuisine is especially most popular in United Kingdom, South Korea, Thailand, Japan, Germany, France and US.
[Indian food fourth most popular in the world, a study of cuisine trade finds]
ThePrint
The Print is an Indian online newspaper, owned by Printline Media Pvt Ltd. It was launched by journalist Shekhar Gupta in August 2017.
History
Printline Media Pvt. Ltd, founded by journalist Shekhar Gupta, was incorporated in New Delhi, India ...
, 29 August 2019. In another 2019 survey of 25,000 people cross 34 countries, the largest fans of India cuisine who have tried it are the Indians (93%), UK (84%), Singaporeans (77%), Norwagians (75%), Australians (74%), French (71%), Finnish (71%), Malaysians (70%), Indonesians (49%), Vietnamese (44%), Thai (27%), and mainland Chinese (26%).
[Indian cuisine ranks among world’s Top 10]
Asian Age
''The Asian Age'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper with editions published in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. It also prints an "international edition" in London. It was launched in February 1994.
The same publishing company also prod ...
, 14 March 2019.
Unique molecular taste and richness of spices
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
reported the results of a 2019 study by the researchers at the
Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur
Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur (IIT Jodhpur or IITJ) is a public technical university located in Jodhpur in the state of Rajasthan in India. It is one of the eight new Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) established by the Ministry ...
, which analysed over 2,000 popular online recipes from
Tarla Dalal
Tarla Dalal (3 June 1936 – 6 November 2013) was an Indian food writer, chef, cookbook author and host of cooking shows. Her first cook book, ''The Pleasures of Vegetarian Cooking'', was published in 1974. Since then, she wrote over 100 books a ...
's portal ''"TarlaDalal.com"'' containing 200 ingredients out of the 381 known globally. Each Indian dish on average contains at least 7 ingredients. Each ingredient have average of over 50 molecular flavor compounds. Data scientists studied the numbers and amount of molecular flavor compounds shared by each ingredient combined in a dish. Western cuisine tend to pair similar molecular flavor compounds, which is why it tastes bland. On the other hand, the secret to Indian cuisine's unique and delicious appeal is that at molecular level the ingredients used in Indian dish share less molecular flavor compounds, which provides contrasting uniquely balanced taste. Indian cuisine does not uses ingredients that overlap in molecular flavor compounds, "we found that average flavor sharing in Indian cuisine was significantly lesser than expected... Each of the spices is uniquely placed in its recipe to shape the flavor sharing pattern with rest of the ingredients." The more overlap two ingredients have in terms of shared molecular flavor compounds, the less likely they are to be used in the same Indian dish.
[Scientists have figured out what makes Indian food so delicious]
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
, 3 March 2015.
Long and globally networked evolution that is widely ranged
Indian cuisine reflects an
8,000-year history of various groups and cultures interacting with the
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...
, leading to diversity of flavours and regional cuisines found in modern-day India. Later, trade with
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies.
** Britishness, the British identity and common culture
* British English, ...
and
Portuguese
Portuguese may refer to:
* anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal
** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods
** Portuguese language, a Romance language
*** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language
** Portu ...
influence added to the already diverse Indian cuisine.
Large diversity of fusion and regional variations within Indian cuisine
Another reason for the popularity of Indian cuisine is evolution of a large number of distinct diaspora and fusion Indian cuisine such as
Indian Chinese cuisine
Indian Chinese cuisine, Chinese Indian cuisine, Sino-Indian cuisine, Chindian cuisine, Hakka Chinese or Desi-Chinese cuisine is a distinct fusion culinary style that combines aspects of both Indian and Chinese foods and flavours. Though Asian ...
(Chindian or Indian and
own cuisine-
Cantonese cuisine
Cantonese or Guangdong cuisine, also known as Yue cuisine ( or ) is the cuisine of Guangdong province of China, particularly the provincial capital Guangzhou, and the surrounding regions in the Pearl River Delta including Hong Kong and Maca ...
fusion),
Malaysian Indian cuisine
Malaysian Indian cuisine, or the cooking of the ethnic Indian communities in Malaysia, consists of adaptations of authentic dishes from India, as well as original creations inspired by the diverse food culture of Malaysia. Because the vast ...
,
Indian Singaporean cuisine
Indian Singaporean cuisine refers to food and beverages produced and consumed in Singapore that are derived, wholly or in part, from South Asian culinary traditions. The great variety of Singapore food includes Indian food, which tends to be Tam ...
(based on Tamil cuisine),
Anglo-Indian cuisine
Anglo-Indian cuisine is the cuisine that developed during the British Raj in India. It was brought to England in the 1930s by the Veeraswamy restaurant, followed by a few others, but not by typical Indian restaurants. The cuisine introduced dishe ...
(developed during the British Raj in India with adoption of western dishes with Indian ingredients).
Contribution of the Indian diaspora towards promoting Indian cuisine
In 2019, according to data released by
United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
, 17.5 million of
overseas Indians
Overseas Indians (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ), officially Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs) are Indian people, Indians who live outside of the Republic of India. According to the ...
formed the world's largest
diaspora
A diaspora ( ) is a population that is scattered across regions which are separate from its geographic place of origin. Historically, the word was used first in reference to the dispersion of Greeks in the Hellenic world, and later Jews after ...
, including 3.4 million in UAE, 2.7 million in USA, and 2.4 million in Saudi Arabia.
[With $78 billion, India still highest overseas remittance receiver]
Economic Times, 28 November 2019. Indian migration has spread the culinary traditions of the subcontinent throughout the world. These cuisines have been adapted to local tastes, and have also affected local cuisines.
Curry
A curry is a dish with a sauce seasoned with spices, mainly associated with South Asian cuisine. In southern India, leaves from the curry tree may be included.
There are many varieties of curry. The choice of spices for each dish in tradit ...
's international appeal has been compared to that of
pizza
Pizza (, ) is a dish of Italian origin consisting of a usually round, flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomatoes, cheese, and often various other ingredients (such as various types of sausage, anchovies, mushrooms, onions ...
. Indian tandoor dishes such as ''
chicken tikka'' enjoy widespread popularity.
The UK's first Indian restaurant, the
Hindoostanee Coffee House
The Hindoostane Coffee House, opened at 34 George Street, London in 1810, was an Indian restaurant, and the first of its kind in the British Isles. It was founded by Sake Dean Mahomed, a former captain in the British East India Company's Bombay A ...
, opened in 1810.
By 2003, there were as many as 10,000 restaurants serving Indian cuisine in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
alone. According to
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands
* Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...
's
Food Standards Agency
, type = Non-ministerial government department
, nativename =
, nativename_a =
, nativename_r =
, logo = Food Standards Agency.svg
, logo_width =
, logo_caption =
, seal =
, seal_width =
, seal_caption =
, picture =
, picture_width =
, ...
, the Indian food industry in the United Kingdom is worth 3.2 billion
pounds, accounts for two-thirds of all eating out and serves about 2.5 million customers every week. A survey by ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' in 2007 stated that more than 1,200 Indian food products had been introduced into the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
since 2000.
Indian cuisine is very popular in
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical United Nations geoscheme for Asia#South-eastern Asia, south-eastern region of Asia, consistin ...
, due to the strong Hindu and Buddhist cultural influence in the region. Indian cuisine has had considerable influence on Malaysian cooking styles
and also enjoys popularity in
Singapore
Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
. There are numerous North and South Indian restaurants in Singapore, mostly in
Little India
Little India or India Town (less commonly known as Indian Street or India Bazaar) is an Indian or Desi (South Asian) sociocultural environment outside India or the subcontinent. It especially refers to an area with Indian residences and a dive ...
. Singapore is also known for
fusion cuisine
Fusion cuisine is cuisine that combines elements of different culinary traditions that originate from different countries, regions, or cultures. They can occur naturally and become aspects of culturally relevant cuisines, or they can be part of ...
combining traditional
Singaporean cuisine
Singaporean cuisine is derived from several ethnic groups in Singapore and has developed through centuries of political, economic, and social changes in the cosmopolitan city-state.
Influences include the cuisines of the Malays, the Chinese an ...
with Indian influences. Fish head curry, for example, is a local creation. Indian influence on
Malay cuisine
Malay cuisine is the traditional food of the ethnic Malays of Southeast Asia, residing in modern-day Malaysia, Indonesia (parts of Sumatra and Kalimantan), Singapore, Brunei, Southern Thailand and the Philippines (mostly southern) as well as ...
dates to the 19th century. Other cuisines which borrow inspiration from Indian cooking styles include
Cambodian
Cambodian usually refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Cambodia
** Cambodian people (or Khmer people)
** Cambodian language (or Khmer language)
** For citizens and nationals of Cambodia, see Demographics of Cambodia
** Fo ...
,
Lao,
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
,
Vietnamese
Vietnamese may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia
** A citizen of Vietnam. See Demographics of Vietnam.
* Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam
** Overse ...
,
Indonesian
Indonesian is anything of, from, or related to Indonesia, an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. It may refer to:
* Indonesians, citizens of Indonesia
** Native Indonesians, diverse groups of local inhabitants of the archipelago
** Indonesian ...
,
Thai
Thai or THAI may refer to:
* Of or from Thailand, a country in Southeast Asia
** Thai people, the dominant ethnic group of Thailand
** Thai language, a Tai-Kadai language spoken mainly in and around Thailand
*** Thai script
*** Thai (Unicode block ...
, and
Burmese cuisines. The spread of vegetarianism in other parts of Asia is often credited to Hindu and Buddhist practices.
Gallery
Bhang eaters before two huts (6124556163).jpg, Bhang
Bhang (IAST: ''Bhāṅg'') is an edible preparation made from the leaves of the cannabis plant originating from the Indian subcontinent. It has been used in food and drink as early as 1000 BC in ancient India. Bhang is traditionally distribu ...
eaters from India c. 1790. Bhang is an edible preparation of cannabis
''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...
native to the Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...
. It has been used in food and drink as early as 1000 BCE by Hindu
Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
s in ancient India
According to consensus in modern genetics, anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent from Africa between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. Quote: "Y-Chromosome and Mt-DNA data support the colonization of South Asia by m ...
.
Nimmatnama-i Nasiruddin-Shahi 283.jpg, A page from the ''Nimatnama-i-Nasiruddin-Shahi The ''Ni'matnāmah Naṣir al-Dīn Shāhī'' ( Naskh: ; ) (c. 1500) is a medieval Indian cookbook, written in Persian language using Naskh script, of delicacies and recipes, and some accompanying paintings illustrating the preparation of the recipes ...
'', book of delicacies and recipes. It documents the fine art of making kheer
Kheer, also known as payasam, is a sweet dish and a type of wet pudding popular in the Indian subcontinent, usually made by boiling milk, sugar or jaggery, and rice, although rice may be substituted with one of the following: daals, bulgur whe ...
.
Sweets 1.jpg, Medieval India
Medieval India refers to a long period of Post-classical history of the Indian subcontinent between the "ancient period" and "modern period". It is usually regarded as running approximately from the breakup of the Gupta Empire in the 6th cent ...
n Manuscript Nimatnama-i-Nasiruddin-Shahi (''circa'' 16th century) showing samosa
A samosa () or singara is a fried Indian pastry with a savory filling, including ingredients such as spiced potatoes, onions, and peas. It may take different forms, including triangular, cone, or half-moon shapes, depending on the region. Samo ...
s being served.
See also
*
Indian cookbooks Indian cookbooks are cookbooks written in India, or about Indian cooking. Some of the oldest cookbooks were written in India Indian cooking varies regionally and has evolved over the centuries due to various influences. Vegetarianism has made a sign ...
*
Ayurveda
Ayurveda () is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. The theory and practice of Ayurveda is pseudoscientific. Ayurveda is heavily practiced in India and Nepal, where around 80% of the population repo ...
References
Notes
Citations
{{DEFAULTSORT:History Of Indian Cuisine
History of Pakistani cuisine
History of food and drink
South Asian cuisine