Where food meets tradition
Arisi Upma Kozhakkatai or Pidi Kozhakkatai is a lesser-known gem in the traditional South-Indian breakfast item arena. Pidi means to grasp or hold and so these are twice-cooked savory dumplings that are made up of rice, lentils and seasoning and hand-moulded into their oblong persona.
Thickly cubed pumpkin is stewed in salt, water, jaggery and turmeric powder, thickened with a fine puree of coconut and red chillies and finished off with a tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves and a lone red chilli.
A delicious breakfast side, grated coconut is ground along with green chillies salt and hing and finished off with a seasoning of mustard seeds, urad dal, curry leaves and red chili.
Keerai Molagootal is a classic Palakkad Iyer dish that is delicious, honest, and wholesome. It is an amalgam of coarsely pureed greens, toor dal (Tuvaram Paruppu), and coconut.
Poriyal or Poduthuval as we call it in my family is a dry side-dish made of vegetables. For this delicious beans poriyal, chopped beans are cooked in a little oil seasoned with mustard seeds and urad dal and it’s finished off with a sprinkling of coconut-green chilies- Jeeragam (Cumin seeds) blend.
It’s dinner time. The honest roti and the saucy sabzi/curry are united together in holy matrimony in a gastronomic ceremony, only to be sacrificed at the altar of hungry mouths. Much like other popular food combo counterparts – dal-chawal, idli-sambar-chutney, puttu-kadalai etc theirs is a …