In China, Indian food is increasingly gaining traction. A decade ago, it was rare to see Chinese patrons at an Indian restaurant unless they were accompanied by Indians or Westerners.

Now, it is far more common for Chinese couples or families to have "an Indian" as part of their culinary adventures. But it is still considered "exotic".

In India, Chinese food is ubiquitous.

Growing up in my hometown - a city of about a million people now and the capital of a newly carved out province - the only "foreign" food we had was Chinese.

Nothing has changed since; apart from the fact that Chinese restaurants have proliferated and no self-respecting restaurant would dare to ignore Chinese food in their menus.

There is no "foreign" food anywhere in sight to rival Chinese as the most popular non-Indian food.

It is the same in the big metros: all four or five-star hotels inevitably have a "Schezuan" restaurant to demonstrate that they serve "international" cuisine. Thai, Mexican or Italian restaurants are rare or their cuisines are served up as part of "food festivals".

Chinese food is also part of the vibrant street-food culture in India. One in every 10, by my rough count, mobile stalls sells Chinese.

Chinese food in India, though, is a matter of interpretation - the Chinese would not recognize it as theirs. It has been indigenized and Indianized so much that it would not be recognized by them.

Indians are happy with their own version of Chinese and squirm when they get to taste the real deal in China. I have had at least a dozen guests from India who have been flabbergasted at the bewildering range of choice here - and put off by chicken feet or pig's blood. The default option back home is hot-and-sour soup, egg fried rice and a Chinese chicken "curry".

They take tastes with them. In Dallas, for example, where my brother lives and there is a considerable Indian diaspora with a craving for their own version of Chinese, an astute entrepreneur started a "Bombay Chinese" restaurant - and predictably, it was a runaway hit.

Things, though, are changing. As more Indians travel abroad, and increasingly to China, more are open to a little adventure which has spawned a new culture of "authentic" Chinese food in India.

One example is the politically-incorrectly-named "Mainland China" chain, which has upmarket restaurants operating across all major cities.

It reportedly has chefs from China, costs a bomb and the last time I tried, I couldn't get a seat.

Contact the writer at ravi@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 04/27/2015 page4)