BBC Travel - The Surprising Truth About Indian Food

I was in a narrow kitchen in Mumbai, one of India’s most strikingly modern cities, watching an ancient Indian meal being cooked on vessels of baked clay.

The food was being prepared using only ingredients native to the subcontinent, which meant that the sharpness of chillies (native to Mexico) and the starch of the potatoes (imported from South America) were missing.

In a country famous for its rich red curries made from tomatoes (introduced by the Portuguese) and fluffy soft naans (from Central Asia), many of the most famous ingredients that go into typical ‘Indian’ food aren’t actually native to India.

“No cabbages, cauliflower, peas or carrots, either,” said Kasturirangan Ramanujam, one of the cooks preparing the meal. But that won’t stop him from making an elaborate feast .