Kerala Food: Jackfruit chips curry, something rarely made

Jackfruits, which grow along the Western Ghats of India and in some parts of South India, are really huge. They have many culinary applications. See Jackfruit, the jumbo

As I have mentioned in my post Gold color chips and a golden hearted Lady

fried chips made from the fruits are common and available in many shops. Properly made, they are an excellent anytime snack.

But curries made with the chips? Well, that is not common. Not only with gravy but sautéed and even ‘puzhuk’. We used to have these at Olavipe occasionally. You know, for a different taste.

The other day my wife, Annie (see photo), made jackfruit chips curry at our Chennai residence after a long time, and everyone liked it. This is something that goes well with rice, chapathis, pooris, appams, puttu and so on. It is quite simple to make. You can serve ‘chakka’ curry anywhere in the world if you have the jackfruit chips with you.

An indicative recipe is given below:

1. Keep one and a half cups of fried jackfruit chips in water till they are well soaked. This may take about an hour.

2. Fry two onions long cut, add to it two tomatoes quartered, one green chilli round cut, two or three flakes of garlic and salt to taste.

3. When the above is cooked, add the powders – coriander, chilli and turmeric – and garam masala to taste. Add curry leaves. Fry well.

4. Add the chips along with the water in which they were soaked, add more water for gravy if required, and bring to boil.

Jackfruit chips

Curried jackfruit chips.

Photos by me.

Click to enlarge.

Jackfruit chips add taste to meat curry as well. Use it instead of potatoes.

Well, if it doesn’t work out, don’t blame me. I can always say that the quality of the jackfruit chips may not have been good. Incidentally, thicker chips are better for use in the curry.

Related post:

Giant fruits from a small tree

Kerala photos: A man sized taro plant

Click on photos to enlarge

I took these photos (copyright reserved) of ‘chembu’ (Colocasia) at the residence of Mr. AL Thomas at Cochin. I wonder how big its roots would be when harvested.

The leaves and roots of this tropical tuber are widely used for culinary purposes in many parts of the world. According to UN statistics, Nigeria, Ghana, China, Cote d’ lvoire and Papua New Guinea are the major producers with a combined output of 9.2 million metric tons in 2005.

Taro leaves are a good source of vitamins and minerals. They contain Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, Niacin, manganese, potassium and copper. The corms contain high portion of starch and dietary fiber.

The range of recipes using taro is vast – from snacks to curries to burgers. Some of the sites which provide details are given below:

http://www.hawaii.edu/hga/Lessons/maui98/TARO/trecip.htm

http://fooddownunder.com/cgi-bin/recipe.cgi?r=25908

http://www.newkerala.com/recipes/Indian-Recipes/Kerala-Special-Recipes/Taro-Curry-Recipe.html

http://showmethecurry.com/2008/09/01/crispy-seasoned-arbi-taro-root-indian-snack-recipe/

http://www.revver.com/video/1135911/crispy-seasoned-arbi-taro-root-indian-recipe-video/

Taro root.

Source: Wikimedia Commons

Also see:

Photos: Vegetables for Onam

Kerala photos: Butterflies of Olavipe

Health food: Pumpkin

The humble pumpkin is what the doctor ordered. It is a cheap, simple to cook and tasty health food. And, all parts of pumpkin except the root are edible and have excellent nutritional value.

During my childhood I have heard it said in my village that smokers should eat a lot of pumpkin. They had a point all right. Pumpkin contains a good dose of beta-carotene. Modern research confirms that beta-carotene could reduce the risk of some types of cancer and is a prophylactic against heart disease. Carotenoids give pumpkins the orange color.

There is more. The anti-oxidants lutein and zeaxanthin contained in pumpkins may offer protections against cataracts and macular degeneration and therefore, are good for the eyes. Also contained in this nature’s package are nutrients like iron, zinc and fiber.

There are so many easy ways to make attractive looking and delicious pumpkin (by itself or in combination with other food) preparations for the table. Boiled and mashed pumpkin flesh is said to be a good baby food. Ammachi (see Oru Desathinte Amma.) used to make a sweet munch – diced pumpkin pieces coated with sugar. That was great.

How many people include pumpkin leaves and flowers in their home menu? They involve very little preparation time, cooking is easy and the flavor good. Use them in salads or soups. The leaves can also be stir fried, boiled, roasted, steamed or stewed. Many recipes are available on the Internet. Or develop your own. Add spices, masala if you want the Indian taste

The flowers are excellent as well. They can be added to salads and curries. Or make fritters with them. At my home, some dishes are served hot garnished with whole pumpkin flowers. They look lovely and blend well with the food.

Do not throw away the pumpkin seeds (pepitas). They have high nutritional value and are considered helpful in avoiding prostrate problems, arthritis, and osteoporosis. The pumpkin seeds may also reduce cholesterol levels.

Eat pumpkins regularly. They are good for you.

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(Photos by me from Olavipe. Copyright reserved. Click on them for enlarged view.)

Also see: Ammachi's Health Recipe - may lower cholesterol, blood sugar.

Kerala kitchen – some implements of the past

Recently, I came across some quaint old kitchen implements in the Archives at Thekkanattu Parayil, Olavipe. Assuming that you too might find them interesting, I am presenting a few photographs below:

This is an old noodles maker which was used for idiyappam (string hoppers). The handle on top is pressed and turned to make the dough into strings.

This too is an idiyappam press, made of wood. Now metal presses and screw extruders are used mostly.

Grated coconut is an essential ingredient in many Kerala recipes. This beautifully carved grater is, I think, made from a single block of wood. Notice how nicely the collection bowl is shaped.

Curry salt used to be kept in the kitchen in wooden boats like this.

This type of curd churner may be still in use in some old houses.

(Photos by me. Copyright reserved. Click on them for enlarged view.)

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Also see:

Kerala Food: Breakfast range

Kerala Cuisine: Manga thera (mango mat) recipe

Kerala Cuisine: Manga thera (mango mat) recipe

Now is the season for making manga thera. Here is the description of how we make this delicacy at Olavipe.

Thera is produced by spreading (by hand) several layers of mango pulp thinly on mats made from kaitha (pandanus or screw pine) leaves, and then sun drying it. This can also be done on muram, an almost flat grain winnowing pallet woven from bamboo strips, or panampu (bamboo mat). In all these, the nice pattern of weaving would show on the bottom layer of the thera.

Cots or benches are put out in the sun, on which the mats are placed. The drying is done during the hottest time of the day, say, from 11 AM to 4 PM. Flies and insects won’t be around in the heat. But one has to go out in the sun to do the spreading. The advantage with muram is that it can be brought in to add new layers and put out again.

Usually smaller, juicy nattu manga (native mango) and not the larger table fruits are used. (See: Mango Memories). These are pounded in wooden mortars with the skin on and the pulp taken and sieved. It should be viscose enough to spread thin and even. If required, a little water can be added.

The first three or four layers should be mango pulp only. This is to give the thera a light sour taste. If the mango is too tart, a little sugar can be added. Each coating should be applied when the previous one is almost but not fully dry. Otherwise the new layer won’t stick properly.

For further layers a new ingredient is required – parboiled rice dipped in water and roasted, powdered and strained. Add it in the proportion of ¼ to ½ cup to four cups of pulp, along with sugar as required. Three or four layers of this should be enough.

Then two more layers with 1 cup rice powder to 4 cups pulp and sugar as required. But before this, the edges of the thera should be carefully loosened from the mat. Give a final polish with say ½ cup pulp. Cut into desired size pieces – we normally have 1”x 5” – and dry.

Notes: (1) The proportions are only indicative. Sugar content should be adjusted according to the natural sweetness of the mango. (2) When rice powder is mixed the consistency should be right to spread thinly and evenly. (3) The number of layers with rice powder should be actually determined by the desired thickness. (4) The more the final drying, the thera would be harder but the shelf life would be longer. (5) Some people do not use rice powder or sugar but only mango pulp.

Tail piece: In his interesting blog MUSINGS FROM ANTIQUE ORIGINS Murali Ramavarma talks (http://muralirvarma.blogspot.com/2007/12/nostalgic-thoughts-on-new-year-eve.html) of mangaathira and a special pulisserry made from it. Sounds delicious!

[With inputs from my wife Annie and sister Kochuthresia.]

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Also see: Mango trees: 'ottu mavu' and 'nattu mavu'

Kerala food: banana aftermath of Onam

The practice of tenants and workmen presenting onakazhcha (offering for Onam) to their landlords continued in our place till the 1950s. The offerings by the lower castes were, invariably, bananas of the type known as nendrakka or ethakka (see photo). One cannot of course think of Onam, then and now, without these bananas. The return gifts for those who bring the kazhcha were a measure of paddy and a dhoti.

The offering given by those who ranked higher in caste set up was sugar. It would be packed in a cone made of newspaper and tied with bast fiber from banana plants. During my childhood, cotton thread and cords were not so common. Sometimes jute strings were used.

With all the kazhcha we would have heaps of bananas of different stages of maturity. A group of women would prepare them for making different food items. They would sit on the eastern veranda of the nalukettu, gossip and attend to the work on hand. Sometimes Ammachi (Oru Desathinte Amma.) would join them for a while. What happened finally was that most of the bananas would be given to the servants.

Of the many preparations made from bananas, I remember a few. Chips of course were on the top of the list. There were four types of them – the regular thin round ones that are most popular in the market now, thick half pieces which were eaten with meals or used to make sharkarapuratti (coated with jaggery), small cubed pieces, and the last, cut into small batons. Though all these were of the same material and fried in coconut oil, the bite varied in each type and there was a subtle difference on the palate.

The skin of the unripe banana cut into small pieces and sautéed with pepper powder was a favorite with meals. I once heard a joke about a Nampoothiri (Kerala Brahmin) telling the tenants to take the fruit inside and give him only the skin as kazhcha.

The bananas which were smaller in size were allowed to ripen to the full and then sun-dried, first with the skin on and then without the skin. If properly done and stored, these would keep and provide an excellent dessert either with honey or syrup or grated coconut and sugar, or even plain.

Those days Kerala was self-sufficient in nendrakka. Today, I believe, most of it is imported from the neighboring Tamil Nadu.

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Photo acknowledgement: F. Kakkassery. Click on image for enlarged view.

Also see: Ammachi's Health Recipe - may lower cholesterol, blood sugar.

Kerala food: Kappa (cassava or casava, yuca, manioc, Manihot esculenta)

A banner of Kerala - kappa, shrimps, kallu
Image provided by Narayanan Thampi, Cochin

In Kerala, kappa is a favorite of the people. This root is a secondary staple food that is consumed at breakfast, lunch, dinner or as snack. It is a native of South America. There is a story behind its arrival in Kerala from where it has spread to other parts of India.

Vishakham Thirunal Rama Varma Maharaja (1880-85) of Travancore heard about the properties of this woody shrub and realized its potential. He wanted to popularize it among his people and imported some planting material from Brazil. They were planted in a fenced area. A royal proclamation was made stating that the root of the plant had great qualities and was only for palace use, and any one interfering with the plants would be severely punished. According to the story, all the plants were stolen overnight. Thus the Maharaja achieved his objective of spreading the cultivation of kappa.

But for a long time the carbohydrate-rich kappa remained a poor man’s food. One popular method of cooking it is to cut it into drum shaped (chenda murian) pieces, boiling with salt. It is delicious with chutney made of crushed small red onions, green chili mixed with coconut oil.

Then there is kappa and meen (fish) preferably sardine, curry. This excellent carbohydrate-protein mix became extremely popular and found its way into the homes of the rich as well. It goes well with toddy that is tapped from coconut trees and fermented. Kappa also goes well with meat and shrimps.

The food items made with kappa include biriyani, puzhukku, puttu, pakoda, bondas, chips and puddings. Sago is also produced from it.

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Also see:

Kerala food: Peechappam, a forgotten item?

Kerala food: Achappam
Kerala Cuisine: Manga thera (mango mat) recipe

Kerala food: Achappam

Achappam is a crisp savory. It is round, golden brown in color and with an intricate design that resembles a flower. A mold heated in oil is used to make it; ‘achu’ in Malayalam means mold.

I used to think that achappam is a South Indian delicacy till reading recent posts (June 21, 22) in my good friend Jacob Matthan’s Jacob's Blog (an interesting site, I must say). He and his wife Annikki stay in Oulu, Finland. They go to a Thai restaurant in Oulu and guess what they find? Achappam!

This image is from Jacob's Blog, which has a few good pictures of the savory. Jacob immediately writes about it in his blog. He follows it up by providing the recipe for this delicacy. And the recipe is by none other than late Mrs. K.M. Mathew, the famous culinary expert. Jacob is her nephew.

Go to Jacob's Blog and read all about it.

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Also see:

Kerala Cuisine: Manga thera (mango mat) recipe

Something different about puttu, the versatile Kerala food.

There are quite a few excellent sites, like Meera's Blog, that deal with Kerala cuisine. Therefore, unless I write something different about puttu you are not going to read it.

Puttu is definitely one of the most versatile food items. Though generally considered a breakfast dish, it can be eaten at any time, lunch, dinner or even tea. Puttu goes well with almost everything – pappadam, preserves (hot or sweet), honey and syrups, fried eggs, egg roast or curry, any vegetable, meat or fish curry, ripe bananas fresh or boiled, and what else have you?

Without claiming any expertise on the subject, one thing that I know from experience in a home where puttu was a regular item, is that instead of mixing the rice powder with water, using coconut water for the purpose improves the taste considerably. And the ideal would be coconut that is between tender and fully mature.

When the myth (?) about coconut containing cholesterol gained currency, many people gave up puttu. The famous Kerala cardiologist, Dr. George M. Eraly (DM, Vellore) has an answer to that - substitute grated coconut with chopped up onion. If you like it hot, mix a bit of thinly round cut green chilies with the onion.

Now here is a bit of local history. In one of our (Parayil) houses a boy called Lonan (name changed) joined the kitchen staff at the age of eight. His mother was working there and his job was to help her in making puttu. To be more precise, he specialized in pushing out the done puttu without breaking, using the baton-like ‘puttu kol’. In course of time he came to be known as ‘Puttu Lonan’.

He did the same job, day after day, for sixty years before leaving for his heavenly abode – certainly God would not have abandoned him to hell after all those decades spent in the smoke and heat of the kitchen. He was a contented man, doing what he knew best to do, and in the process, provided well for his family.

There is more serious history, which I’ve not been able to counter check. I read some time ago that puttu was invented and introduced as regulation breakfast for the Travancore Army that was deployed at River Periyar to stop the advance of Hyder Ali of Mysore in the 18c. The military puttu was made using the upper half of coconut shells as molds, the steam escaping through the eye on top.

So far, I haven’t seen anything about ‘patriotic puttu’ on the cookery sites, My wife Annie used to make it sometimes. Instead of rice powder, rava/sooji (semolina) is used for this version, with diced green capsicums and carrots (can also add beans etc.) mixed in. It is one way of getting some vegetables inside hardcore non-vegs! Serve it for breakfast on Independence Day and Republic Day. The Indian colors on the puttu would provide a patriotic look.

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Also see:A power-pack for breakfast.

Kerala kitchen – some implements of the past

Kerala food: Peechappam, a forgotten item?