Hi everyone,

I'm curious about what people in the Indian subcontinent ate a few hundred years ago.

I was surprised to learn recently that signature 'Indian' dishes, such as the Punjabi butter chicken, are probably recent innovations since tomatoes and green chillies were imported from South America only after the Spanish conquest.

The alu poshto, a favorite in Bengal, came to be because the British were growing opium in the region. [See source below for more]

In a recent visit to the South of India, I had the opportunity to speak to people from rural pockets. I was told that millets, such as the pearl millet, used to be staples. They added that the prevalence of rice in the region was a recent trend. I understand this is anecdotal; I have no source for this other than what these people told me but I thought it was interesting enough to add. The way I understand it, the South of India had mostly been isolated from the rest of the country until the British united all of it. I'd also like to know whether South Indian diets differed significantly from diets in the rest of the subcontinent.

Thanks!

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomato

http://indianexpress.com/article/lifestyle/food-wine/how-british-greed-spurred-the-creation-of-one-of-bengals-most-loved-dishes/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pearl_millet