Indian dishes don’t just taste great, they also tell a story of the subcontinent’s vast and diverse culture. Many dishes are so old, their origin stories have been retold several times and are subjects of legends. Others are more recent and equally legendary. These stories speak of innovation due to necessity and creativity. If waiting silently with your partner for the best Indian takeout in NYC feels awkward, then try talking about these stories to pass time.
Pav Bhaji
Pav Bhaji was invented in Mumbai by a local vendor to serve mill workers. According to the legend, mill workers had very short breaks due to which they preferred light meals for lunch. Noticing their plight, a local vendor replaced rice with pav and the curry with a thick spicy mixture called bhaji. The dish was an instant hit with the workers and soon became a popular street food.
Chicken Tandoori, Chicken Tikka & Butter Chicken
A popular Indian food in New York, chicken tandoori traces its origins to Moti Mahal Delux. The chef and owner Kundan Lal Gujral was known for many innovations in the Indian cuisine of which tandoori chicken is one of the most popular with butter chicken and chicken tikka being others. In one such experiment, the chef skewered and marinated a chicken before frying it in a tandoor, giving birth to tandoori chicken.
Jawaharlal Nehru, the then Prime Minister of India, loved the dish and turned Moti Mahal into his official banquet where he ordered the dish for many visiting dignitaries including world leaders. Soon boneless chicken started being used, leading to the invention of chicken tikka.
The story of butter chicken is even more interesting. The chefs at Moti Mahal had to serve tandoori chicken to a VIP guest late at night after their operating hours. But they only had half chicken. So the chef used some butter and tomato sauce to create butter chicken. And now almost every Indian restaurant in New York serves it.
Idli
As far as most people are concerned, idli is purely south Indian. So you might be surprised with the theories about how it emerged due to foreign influences. In one version, Hindu kings of Indonesia introduced steaming to the southern kingdoms and brought a dish called kedli with them between 800 and 1200 AD.
In another version, Arab settlers invented the dish during the time of Prophet Muhammad because they were unfamiliar with Indian cuisine and wanted to avoid confusion about what’s halal and what’s haram. They ate the rice balls with coconut paste for taste.
Tehri Biryani
People tend to think of biryani as a meat dish and tease people who order veg biryani. The story of tehri biryani will change their perspective. Muslim rulers who employed Hindu bookkeepers replaced the meat in biryani with potatoes, to cater to their dietary sensitivities, giving birth to tehri biryani. The dish was popular during the second world war when meat prices were too high. So the next time someone throws shade at you for ordering veg biryani from the best Indian takeout in NYC, tell them this story.
Sambar
Idli and Sambar are a pair as far as most are concerned. Considering that idli came around 800 AD, it’s reasonable to believe that sambar came at the same time. But in truth, the sambar was invented in the 18th century in the kitchens of the Thanjavur Maratha ruler Shahuji. It was invented when the chefs ran out of kokum, an essential ingredient for amti. On suggestions of the chef, Shahuji prepared the dish with tamarind and served it to his cousin Sambhaji.
Paneer
Paneer is another popular Indian food in New York that was created by accident. It was created when a group of Mongols was riding in a desert with milk in leather bags. The milk got spoiled and turned into a cheese cottage. The riders dared to try it and loved it. The Mughals (related to but not Mongols) introduced paneer to India later.
Jalebi
Jalebi is a popular sweet dish. It’s basically fried syrup prepared in thin swirling patterns. Historians trace its origins to West Asian countries where rulers often served it to the poor during Ramadan. It is known by many names like Zalabia in Arab countries, Zlebia in Tunisia, Jeri in Nepal and so on.
Kebabs
Kebabs are associated with West Asia but are an important part of the Indian cuisine. You can find a variety of kebabs in an Indian restaurant in New York including some vegetarian versions. Historians claim that it was invented by Turkish soldiers who’d charr the meat and eat it with bread.
