Vedas, a restaurant in Shanghai, offers several dishes that are specifically from southern India [Photo by Belle Taylor/China Daily]

"Madras curry" is an English name to an Indian dish that was probably originally called something like "curry". The name is said to have come from the British sailors who landed in the city of Madras - now named Chennai-in 1640. They would have eaten something probably not too far removed from what is being served in Vedas today.

Both dishes we ordered featured ingredients that are characteristic of southern India, spices that have been used in the food of the region for hundreds of years, the most important of which is aromatic curry leaves (Murraya koenigii).

These, we are told, are one of the main ingredients that differentiate the foods of the north and the south of the country. Our waiter brings out a plate of the leaves for us to smell. They have a musky scent and quite a strong aroma.

Our waiter informs us that when Indian chefs move abroad and want to cook South Indian cuisine, the first thing they do is try to source curry leaves. If they cannot do this, they will struggle to recreate the dishes with anything resembling authenticity. Perhaps this is why so many Indian restaurants outside the country, including in China, focus on northern cuisine.