The tomato is so central to Indian food today that most people forget:
It joined our cuisine only around 150–200 years ago.
Before tomatoes arrived, Indian sourness came from:
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tamarind
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raw mango
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lemon
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kokum
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yogurt
Tomatoes radically transformed this landscape.
THE TOMATO ARRIVES… AND IS DECLARED POISONOUS
Tomatoes originated in the Andes and were cultivated by Mesoamerican civilizations.
The Portuguese brought them to India in the 16th century.
Indians viewed them with suspicion:
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They resembled European “nightshade” poisons
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Their bright colour looked unnatural
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People believed they caused madness or moral corruption (!)
In fact, early Marathi, Konkani, and Hindi documents call tomatoes:
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Vilayati baingan – foreign eggplant
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Madrasi apple
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Bilayat tamatar
For nearly 200 years, tomatoes were ornamental plants in Portuguese and Mughal gardens.
THE TURNING POINT: THE GREAT “SOURNESS GAP”
Northern India lacked tamarind.
Raw mango was seasonal.
Lemon was expensive.
Yogurt couldn’t survive long summers.
Tomatoes offered:
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acidity
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colour
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consistency
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year-round supply
With expanding railway networks, tomatoes became available in cities.
The British Catalyze Tomato Adoption
The colonial horticultural departments distributed seeds of:
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“Improved Red”
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“Pusa Ruby”
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“Hillside Early”
These were hardier, less bitter, more flavourful.
Tomatoes began to appear in:
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Anglo-Indian stews
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Railway canteen dishes
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Military mess halls
Indian cooks experimented—and loved the results.
Regional Transformations
Tamil Nadu & Karnataka
Tomato rasam became a default weekday dish by the early 20th century.
Maharashtra
Tomato saar appeared in Brahmin kitchen manuals around the 1910s.
Punjab
The classic red gravy of butter chicken, paneer butter masala, etc., is entirely tomato-dependent—and is a post-1950s creation.
Bengal
Tomato chutney (plastic chutney) became a wedding essential.
Goa & Kerala
Goan fish curry (ambot tik) originally used kokum exclusively; now tomato is commonly added.
Tomato Riots and Economic Power
In 1973, Bangalore faced the infamous Tomato Riots, where price spikes inflamed public anger.
Even today, tomato price increases become national news.
This speaks volumes about how essential the fruit has become.
THE IRONIC TRUTH
India’s most beloved souring agent—used in sambhar, curries, pav bhaji, chutneys, biriyani bases, street chaats—is a Central American immigrant that Indians avoided for 200 years.
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