Whose Samosa is it Anyway?: The Story of Where ‘Indian’ Food Really Came From

Did the European traders come before the Arab conquerors? Can you say cinnamon is an Indian spice even though it first grew in Sri Lanka on the Indian subcontinent? What are the origins of chutney and samosa or of the fruit punch, and how are they connected to India? Who taught us how to make ladi pav, and how did the Burmese khow suey land up on the wedding menus of Marwaris? In Whose Samosa Is It Anyway the author tries to find an answer to the most basic questions about Indian food only to conclude that there is no such thing as a definitive Indian cuisine and that there are as many hyper-local Indian cuisines as there are Indian states.