History of Indian Cuisines

Did you know that Indians used to eat alligators (the references probably meant crocodiles) but not potatoes and tomatoes? How did so many of Indians turned vegetarians? Why was beef prohibited? 

Hunters and Gatherers

Cave painting, Bhimbetka

India has a diverse culture, and not surprising, the food habit varies with it’s geography. Having a long history of assimilation of different cultures, Indian cuisines have also evolved over the years. Before the agricultural revolution people all around the world were hunters and gatherers. Hunting for meat was a common practice among Indian hunters and gatherers too, as evident from the pre-historic rock painting. Archaeological studies have shown that hunters and gatherers died more healthy than the bodies unearthed of the agricultural people. This is because the farmers diet was restricted to the grains they cultivated. Hunter and gatherers had a balanced diet from the meats, fishes, and the different fruits, nuts and vegetables they gathered. The native fruits of India includes mango,banana, orange, tamarind, jackfruits and Indian blackberry (also called jamun, from which Jambudeepa probably originated). Some Indian tribes, like those living in the islands of Andaman, have remained largely unchanged since the great coastal migration. They live in the forest and depend on hunting, fishing, and gathering. The tribals still use primitive bows, arrows, and spears to hunt. They love pig meat but hate to eat birds or deer. Honey is their favourite dessert. They hardly wear any clothes but are fascinated about their ornaments. The tribes of Andaman are yet to invent pottery and use hollowed wood as containers.

Farmers

As the earth got warmer, some of the hunters and gatherers turned to a quasi-sedentary agricultural lifestyle. Our ancestors tamed the wild and laid the foundation of our modern civilisation. This phase is known as the Neolithic revolution. The transition was not a sudden revolution that happened around 10,000 years ago. It was a gradual change occurring over thousands of years. Earliest evidence of agriculture comes from Ohalo II site in Middle East dating back to 23,000 years ago. Full-scale agriculture started much later, independently at different places around the world. Agriculture did not result in an immediate population growth as its benefits were offset by deaths due to malnutrition, disease and warfare. Evidence of early transition has been reported from north-central India. State Archaeological Department excavated a mound in Lahuradeva, Uttar Pradesh, in 2006. The mound was believed to belong to local goddess Samai Mai, who helped them with good harvest. The villagers were not far off. Excavation unearthed one of the earliest evidence of agriculture that started 9,000 years ago. Rice cultivation still dominates this part of India. Evidence of early agriculture has also been found from Mehrgarh where it started independently. The early tillers practiced shifting-agriculture. It is still practiced by some tribes of Northeastern India, Odisha, and Madhya Pradesh. The local vegetables includes karela, cabbage, egg plant, okra, pigeon pea, cooking banana, onion, etc. Along with agriculture, they started domesticating livestock. The first evidence of domestication is found from the Middle East dated as 11,000 years old. It probably started in India during similar times. At that time India’s population was estimated to be around 100,000 people. Sheep, goats, cattle, and pigs were common animals that were domesticated. The quasi-sedentary lifestyle gave people ample time for art and craft. Art and craft led to trading, and the money from trading helped in the growth of Harappan Civilisation.

Early City Dwellers

Harappan Canal used for Irrigation

The roots of the civilisation was planted 8000-9000 years ago. The big cities like Harappa and Mohenjo-daro emerged around 4600 years ago. Burials of Harappan site contains personal jewelleries made of beads and shells and pottery containing food for afterlife. The food found in the burial sites gave indications of what these people ate. Wheat and barley were staple diet and different types of bread were made from wheat. At least four varieties of wheat have been found from Harappan sites. Pulses like chickpea, masur, mung and horse gram were also important as foods. Recent studies (1, 2) indicate that rice cultivation began during Harappan Civilisation far earlier than previously thought. They used ‘multi-cropping strategies across both seasons, growing foods during summer (rice, millets and beans) and winter (wheat, barley and pulses), which required different watering regimes’. The grains were stored in large granaries. From the huge quantities of bone one can estimate that beef, buffalo, mutton, turtles, tortoises, gharials and fishes were common in their diet. The people of Harappan Civilisation might have been the first ones to enjoy the delicious kebabs and tandoori dishes as evident from the tandoor ovens in their homes.

According to a paper published by Dr. Anindya Sarkar in Nature in 2016, the Harappan civilisation continued to flourish even after the decline of monsoons around 7,000 years ago. The crop patterns shifted from large grained cereals like wheat and barley to drought-resistant small millets and rice. The later crops has lower yield and thus in the later stages of Harappan Civilisation the large central storages were replaced by individual household based crop processing and storage system. According to Dr. Sarkar, this might have resulted in gradual de-urbanization rather than a collapse. As the cities started to get decentralized, the western sites were abandoned, and the population started to move towards east. The people of Indus had to interact with those living in Ganges plain, incorporating their culture, pottery, and language. After a bold experiment with urbane lifestyle they turned back to more stable agriculture. They diffused with the rest of India, but their journey continued.

Vedic Era

According to the latest genetic study there has been an influx of people from Pontic Steppe after the decline of Harappan cities. The new guest mixed with the locals and started a new Vedic culture that was agricultural, pastoral and philosophical. Vedas are ancient Indian scriptures that were probably conceived 3000-3500 years ago. Salt was rare and expensive. Spices were also limited to mustard, sour citrus, turmeric and long pepper. Along with the regular rice, wheat, vegetables and dairy products mentioned earlier, meat was a common food. Rice was mostly boiled, while sometimes they were fried as well. Ghee and vegetable oils were used to fry the food. Vegetable oils were made of sesame, mustard, safflower etc. Animal fats from fish, pig, alligator, bear and ass were also used. The texts mention more than 250 animals, of which 50 were fit for sacrifice. Meats of various animals like cattle, sheep, swine, deer, fowl and tortoise were sold in the market. Birds and fishes were also common. Epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata depicts the life of Kshatriyas who consumed rice with meat. Sita’s favourite dish was rice with deer meat, vegetables and spices. During Dasharatha’s yajna to beget sons many dishes of meat, like mutton, pork, peacock, and chicken, were served. The Pandavas ate meat and rice while in Kaniyaka forest.  Charaka, a principal contributors to Ayurveda of 3rd century BCE, considered meat as nourishing. He recommended deer, goat, hare, rohita fish, tortoise, parrot, quail, partridge, peacock and even alligator. Sushrutha, Indian Physician of 7th century BCE describes beef as pavitra (pure). Even Maharishi Yagyavilkya is said to have enjoyed tender beef. However, like with most things about India, there is no one law that fits all.  Some sections of Vedas specifically opposed killing and consumption of cows as they give birth to new life. Even killing of all forms of life have sometimes been discouraged as all forms of life has soul.

Buddhist Era

Sanchi Stupa by Ashoka

Jains and Buddhists have left a strong influence on Indian food habit, especially in North India. While rice, wheat, pulses and dairy products were still a staple food there was more variety in the spices like ginger, cumin, cloves, a sour myrobalan, and vinegar. Some of the spices, like black pepper, arrived from South East Asia. The Greek influence that started during Alexander’s time, also left its influence on Indian food, and vice versa. That is a reason why there is a lot of similarity between the two cuisines. Olive, lemon, zucchini spices, garlic and other herbs such as oregano, basil, mint, fennel and thyme common in our food are some of the influence left over by them. Coming of Sakas and Kushans from Iran also had it’s impact. Most of these new rulers turned to Buddhism. Buddhist principal of non-violence has led to decrease in meat consumption in India. Buddha opposed ritual sacrifices, but was not against occasional meat eating if the animal was unintentionally killed. Vegetarianism became common in Ashoka’s time (3rd century BCE), as he made Buddhism his state religion. Ashoka wrote in his edicts that no living being must be slaughtered for sacrifice or festivals. Cooking of meat that was common in the royal kitchens was also almost stopped during his rule. While most of Indians still consumed meat and fish, the Buddhists and Brahmins became strict non-vegetarian. Sacrifice of cows and eating beef became prohibited during Gupta Period (4th-6th century). Later, during Shankaracharya and Ramanuja’s (8th century) time animal sacrifices were replaced with sacrifice of vegetables and animals made of flour. According to 11th century Iranian scholar Al-Biruni, cow was an animal that was used for travelling, carrying loads, in agriculture, for milk and dairy products, and even the dung was used as fuel and manure. he thought that economic reason led to prohibition of cow meat consumption. Because of its usefulness, cow was also considered holy.

Islamic Era

Islamic conquests left a drastic influence on Indian cuisine. Eating pork became less common as it was prohibited in Koran, and thus discouraged by the Muslim kings. Non-vegetarian diet got restricted mostly to mutton, chicken and fish, while Kshatriyas still hunted wild animals like deer. The Arab traders brought coffee, hing (asafoetida) and pista to India. Timurid Dynasty enriched our food with relishes like meats with cream and butter sauces, dates, nuts, and sweets. The Slave dynasty was followed by the Mughal rule. Almonds, biriyanis and pullao, samosas, baked breads, cream, rose water and kababs was added to India’s already diverse menu list.

New World Influence

The cuisine of India and the world changed after Columbus set foot in South America and Vasco da Gama reaching India six years later. Before then Mayan  and Inca Civilisations were like in a different planet. Their language, culture and food habit was different from the rest of the world. A lot of things that are very common in Indian kitchen today were missing from the kitchens few centuries ago. It is difficult to believe that papaya (Central America) guava (Peru) chilli (from Chile), potato (Bolivia Peru), tomato (Mexico, Peru) and maze (Mexico) were amongst the things that were missing. They all came to India from Latin America because of the slave trade. Our cuisine was enriched through the blood and sweat of the slaves working for the profit of European companies. Even paneer might have been a later Portuguise-Bengali invention. While some historians have provided evidence of Paneer in ancient text, others have considered the evidence as not sufficient. According to some historians, acidulation of milk was a taboo among Hindus, and only later in Bengal was it introduced by the Portuguese.

Variety is the Spice of Life

India is a melting pot of different cultures. Earliest migrations happened ~60,000 years ago from Africa. New set of hunters and gatherers arrived 12,000 years ago from Iran. Later, pastoral people from Pontic Steppe came. Alexander was the first western king to have crossed the Indus. After the decline of Mauryan Empire, the Indo-Greeks invaded the western part of India. The Indo-Greek rule was followed by a series of invasions by the Indo-Scythians, Indo-Kushans, Huns, Turks, Afghans, Mughuls and finally the Europeans. They all left their mark on Indian cuisine. When we enjoy the samosa, we must not forget that the concept of samosa was brought to India by the Mughuls, and the potatoes (along with chilies and tomatoes) stuffed inside it by the Europeans from Peru, and some of the spices that make it so yummy came from Southeast Asia.  Variety is the spice of life, and we would have missed the spice without all the intermixing. The vibrant colorful India is a legacy of that diversity. We can either choose to remember the bitter fractions of our past and fight or celebrate the uniqueness of our non-uniqueness. Our great diversity gives us this magnificent opportunity to show the world how to live together in peace and harmony. 

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Written by Subhrashis Adhikari

Author of 5 Questions of the Inquisitive Apes

"Engaging and entertaining, this page-turner is remarkable in its narration and will give you a new perspective on various aspects of life. Wellresearched and heartfelt, the encouraging tone throughout the book tries to motivate towards a happier life." - Times of India