The History of Indo-Chinese Cuisine is as Rich as Its Flavors

+ a recipe for Hakka Noodles

Hi all! I hope everyone’s having a great week. Today’s dispatch is a guest post penned by writer and content creator Karishma Pradhan, who shares cozy, made-from-scratch comfort recipes via The Home Cooking Collective. She wrote this feature for the digital version of Dill Magazine back in 2021, and I’m excited to bring it back both for our longtime and new subscribers. Today, everyone gets this post + Karishma’s recipe for Hakka-style noodles. This Friday, paid subscribers will be receiving not one, but TWO bonus recipes for Schezwan chili paneer + a Schezwan chutney. This publication is entirely reader-supported, so if you’ve been enjoying the “That One Dish” experience so far, please consider upgrading your subscription to keep this operation running smoothly. Thank you!

Without further ado, please welcome back Karishma!

I can still recall the first time I tried Indo-Chinese food while visiting Mumbai with my family over a decade ago. We often traveled to India every few years to visit our relatives in Maharashtra, but on this particular vacation, my parents planned a special day trip to explore the city. Just after touring the Gateway of India, we sat down at a Chinese restaurant and devoured a wide offering of dishes. First, we received an appetizer of gobi Manchurian, deep-fried cauliflower coated in a glossy chili tomato garlic sauce. Then the entrees arrived—chili chicken (boneless chicken swimming in a spicy soy gravy) served with rice and Hakka noodles (wok-fried noodles with vegetables like carrots, peppers, and onions glazed in a soy-vinegar sauce).

A mix of confusion, surprise, and delight set over me as I examined each dish. I immediately recognized familiar notes—soy sauce, vinegar, and velvety sauces thickened with cornstarch—from Chinese restaurants back home in the United States. But there was also a characteristic Indian flavor, a heavy-handed presence of fiery Kashmiri chilies and warming spices. This amalgam of ingredients produced a uniquely complex flavor profile, unlike anything I had eaten before. To many, the food was neither Indian nor Chinese, but a distinctive cuisine in its own right¹.

History of Indo-Chinese Cuisine

India and China have influenced one another for millennia, given their proximity as neighboring countries and interactions on the Silk Road. Large influences, such as the introduction of rice to India from China, occurred as early as 3000-2500 BC². However, it was Chinese migration to Kolkata that most likely revolutionized Chinese cuisine in India. In the 18th century, Kolkata, previously known as Calcutta, was the capital of British India. Additionally, the city served as a major port, was easily accessible from China, and offered economic opportunities for migrants.

In 1778, the first recorded Chinese settler, Tong Achew³, set up a sugar factory and sourced dozens of workers from China. More immigrants from Hakka Chinese and Cantonese backgrounds followed Achew’s path and arrived in Kolkata in subsequent years. By 1793, there were multiple shops owned by Chinese settlers in the city. Many worked in tanneries, retail shops (such as shoe stores), and open-air markets, and opened Chinese restaurants, forming a Chinatown by the mid-19th century⁴. These restaurants initially catered to the ethnic Chinese community through more traditional cooking, but eventually, adapted to the Indian palette using local ingredients. The resulting collection of dishes fused the techniques of Chinese wok-style cooking with Indian spices and achieved status as a new sub-cuisine. Though it is unclear when the first Indo-Chinese restaurant first opened, the longest surviving family-owned restaurant in Chinatown, Eau Chew, opened in the early 1920s⁵. Over the next century, more ethnic Chinese opened Indo-Chinese restaurants, including Nelson Wang, who is credited with the invention of the iconic chicken (and gobi) Manchurian dishes in 1975. Today, this popular cuisine has spread globally to countless restaurants in major cities like Mumbai, New York, and London.

Preparation and Example Dishes

Indo-Chinese techniques employ a hot wok to stir-fry dishes at high heat; this is hardly used in Indian cooking (the kadai is a similarly shaped vessel that Indians use, but the shape is more suited for deep-frying and simmering). Though Hakka and Cantonese cooking in China tends to be lighter in flavor, Indian adaptations are heavy-handed with oil and spice. Dishes often begin with a flavor base of traditional Indian spices and aromatics, then deviate from the typical Indian flavors with the layering of soy-based sauces or gravies thickened with cornstarch. Despite their names, many of the most popular dishes, such as “Hakka noodles” or “paneer schezwan,” bear little resemblance to the foods of these communities in China⁶. Hakka noodles in India are wok-fried with lots of vegetables, but it is unclear if there is even an equivalent dish in the Hakka community. Schezwan (the Indian spelling for Sichuan) chili paneer, likewise, features Indian-style fresh cheese, paneer, in a sweet and tangy sauce with a fiery Kashmiri chili paste from northern India.

Present Day Kolkata Chinese Community

At one point, there were around 20,000 ethnic Chinese residents in Kolkata (some estimates are even as high as 70,000), but that number has decreased dramatically over the last several decades. In 1962, China-India relations soured after a border dispute and tensions surrounding Tibetan autonomy, leading to the Sino-Indian War. India saw China as the aggressor⁷, and the aftermath of the war led to anti-Chinese sentiment in the country. The Indian government detained thousands of ethnic Chinese in a prison camp for years on unproven allegations of being spies, then forcibly deported many⁸. Additionally, greater opportunities elsewhere in Canada and the United States encouraged many to leave India. Anti-Chinese sentiment increased again after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Kolkata’s Chinese community has faced struggles keeping their businesses alive, and at times, experienced hostility from residents claiming they have the “Chinese virus.”⁹ Coupled with outward migration and boycotts on Chinese products following a border clash [in 2020]¹⁰, India’s Chinatown faces the potential of disappearing completely.

Though the Chinese population is dwindling in India, the cuisine they have developed is deeply embedded in Indian society, its roots spreading outward to the rest of the world. Emigrants of Kolkata are opening Indo-Chinese restaurants elsewhere, like Steven Lee, the owner of London’s Hakkaland, or Peter Lo, the owner of Queens’ Tangra Masala. As the popularity of this cuisine reaches new audiences, I am hopeful that more of the world will embrace this cuisine—and the rich history that it stems from.

Recipe by Karishma Pradhan

Hakka Noodles are wok-fried noodles with vegetables glazed in a soy-vinegar sauce. Compared to many other Indo-Chinese dishes, they are milder in spice, which helps to highlight their other qualities—a slight charred flavor from the wok, salty soy sauce, and some acidity from the vinegar. You can absolutely add spices to this if you’d like, such as garam masala or even some Schezwan chutney or red pepper flakes. Use whatever vegetables you have at home—bean sprouts, spinach, carrots, or peppers are all delicious.

The noodles themselves are a special type of noodle, called “Hakka Noodles” that can be purchased at specialty Indian stores or on Amazon. Ramen noodles are a great substitute if you can’t find them.

Serves 2

• 2 tablespoons neutral oil, such as canola or peanut oil, plus more if needed

• 1 small red onion, sliced

• 1 cup raw assorted mixed vegetables, such as bean sprouts, chopped spinach, and/or thinly sliced carrots

• 1 tablespoon minced or grated ginger

• 1 tablespoon minced or grated garlic

• 4 ounces Hakka noodles or 1 package instant ramen noodles

• 1 tablespoon soy sauce, plus more if desired

• 1 tablespoon seasoned rice wine vinegar, plus more if desired

• 1 large or 2 medium scallions, thinly sliced on a bias

1. Set a medium stockpot of water to boil.

2. Heat oil at medium heat in a wok, cast iron pan, or skillet.

3. Add red onion and sauté, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 3-4 minutes.

4. Add the spinach and sauté for 2 minutes, until just barely cooked.

5. Add the ginger, garlic, and bean sprouts, and sauté for 2 minutes until bean sprouts are just barely cooked through and garlic/ginger are aromatic.

6. When the water comes to a boil, add the noodles and cook according to package instructions. Once the noodles are cooked, drain and set aside.

7. Increase the heat of the pan to medium-high and add the cooked noodles, soy sauce, and vinegar.

8. Sauté frequently, about 3-4 minutes, to allow the noodles to char slightly. If there is any sticking, or the noodles appear dry, add a bit of oil. If the noodles are burning at all, turn the heat down.

9. Remove from the heat, garnish with the scallions and serve immediately.

1. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352618117301257

2. https://ricepedia.org/culture/history-of-rice-cultivation#:~:text=Based%20on%20archeological%20evidence%2C%20rice,the%20cultivation%20of%20domesticated%20rice

3. https://www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/explore/story/65084/kolkata-homage-tong-achew

4. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/0376983619856540

5. https://www.getbengal.com/details/kolkata-s-oldest-family-owned-chinese-restaurant-eau-chew-gets-heritage-eatery-tag#:~:text=Eau%20Chew%20is%20one%20of,say%20it%20started%20in%201927

6. https://www.outlookindia.com/outlooktraveller/explore/story/71265/all-about-the-hakka-cuisine-of-kolkata

7. https://thediplomat.com/2012/08/historys-hostage-china-india-and-the-war-of-1962/

8. https://openthemagazine.com/features/india/the-1962-jailing-of-chinese-indians/

9. https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/blink/know/covid-19-a-threat-for-kolkatas-chinese-community/article31422692.ece

10. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/18/world/asia/india-china-border.html