10 Popular Indian Foods That Are Actually Foreign

When you think of Indian food, you probably imagine spicy curries, buttery breads, and comforting sweets — the flavors that make our hearts (and stomachs) sing. But what if I told you that some of the dishes we proudly call “Indian” actually crossed oceans, empires, and centuries before landing on our plates?

Food is a living story, shaped by traders, travelers, colonizers, and migrations. So, let’s take a delicious trip back in time and see how our most beloved ‘desi’ foods didn’t start in India at all.
Yes, the beloved samosa you munch with chai didn’t come from your grandmother’s kitchen. Historians trace its roots to ancient Persia, where it was called sambosa, a pastry stuffed with meat or nuts. Persian traders brought it to India in the 13th or 14th century, and Indian cooks made it their own by stuffing it with spiced potatoes, peas, and sometimes even noodles.
Soft, fluffy naan feels like the soul of an Indian meal. But naan was actually introduced to India by the Mughals. It was baked in tandoors by Persian and Central Asian cooks for royal banquets. While India gave naan its many regional twists like garlic, butter, or cheese, the bread itself is a tasty immigrant.
That fiery pork vindaloo you order in Goa? Pure Portuguese influence. The dish evolved from carne de vinha d’alhos, meat marinated in wine and garlic, brought by Portuguese sailors in the 15th century. Local cooks added chillies, tamarind, and spices, turning it into the spicy Goan staple we love today.

Brace yourself. Many food historians agree that chicken tikka masala was created in the UK by South Asian immigrants to satisfy British taste buds. The story goes that a chef in Glasgow added a tomato cream sauce to leftover tandoori chicken, and the iconic dish was born. Today, it’s more popular in Britain than it is here!
While biryani feels like India’s culinary pride, its ancestry is Persian. The word itself comes from birian (to fry or roast) and birinj (rice). Persian soldiers brought early versions of spiced rice and meat to India. The Mughals refined it into the aromatic, layered dish we now fight over at family gatherings.
Mulligatawny means “pepper water” in Tamil, but the creamy soup as we know it was created for British colonizers craving a starter before their meals. Local cooks blended rasam with meat and rice, making it hearty enough for the colonial palate. Ironically, it’s more popular in the UK than in India today.
This one might sting. Chai, our national fuel, originally comes from China. Tea plants are native to East Asia, and the British popularized large-scale tea plantations in India in the 19th century to break China’s monopoly. India then added its magic: spices, milk, and sugar, turning plain tea into masala chai, a daily ritual for millions.
Our favorite festival dessert is actually a cousin of the Persian sweet luqmat al qadi. Mughal cooks adapted the recipe, frying khoya balls and soaking them in rose-scented syrup. ‘Gulab’ means rose water. Today, you can’t imagine an Indian wedding without a mountain of gulab jamuns.
This summer delight with rose milk, vermicelli, basil seeds, and ice cream comes straight from the Persian faloodeh, a frozen dessert with vermicelli noodles. The Mughals brought it here, and India’s sweet tooth did the rest. Now, every street-side stall gives it a local spin.
That crispy, syrupy jalebi swirling on your plate? It originated in the Middle East as zalabiya or zulabiya. Persian traders introduced it to India, where we deep-fried it into golden spirals and dunked them in sugar syrup. If that’s not the ultimate ‘imported’ indulgence, what is?
Food knows no borders, and neither should we. These dishes prove that India’s culinary magic lies in its openness to adapt, adopt, and reinvent. Every bite of biryani or sip of chai is a reminder that food is a global story, one that keeps evolving with every new hand that stirs the pot.

Next time you bite into a samosa, maybe smile at its journey from Persia to your plate. After all, being ‘desi’ has always been about mixing, mingling, and making something deliciously our own.