It is the start of the jackfruit season in India. Everywhere, millions of jackfruit trees are in celebration. While the younger trees bring forth just a few, the ancient matriarchs sometimes produce hundreds, covering their trunks and branches and even a few exposed roots with beautiful fruits. The fruits usually ripen in the months of April…
Indian
Kadgi Podi – Tender Jackfruit Chips (V+GF)
There were several jackfruit trees embraced by pepper vines in our land when we bought it more than 8 years ago. To add to their number, my husband planted around 25 different varieties of special, grafted jackfruit plants. To my delight, some of them have started to blossom now. This morning, he brought in a…
Mango Blossom Chutney (Vegan + Gluten Free)
Covering the courtyard of my ancestral home at Thalassery stands a huge old mango tree. Proud and tall, it produces baskets of delicious country papaya mangoes (also called popai ambo in Konkani and kappa manga or ko manga in Malayalam) invariably every year. During the ripening season which coincides with the summer holidays, we children used to run to the base of…
Sweet Khichadi – A traditional teatime snack (Gluten Free)
Whenever I think of Khichadi, all of sudden, I am a little schoolgirl again, transported back to the magical time of childhood. I remember waiting for the long bell to ring at the end of the last period to rush back home, often running at breakneck speed, to see what goodies mother has cooked for…
Dudali – A traditional arrowroot dessert (Gluten Free)
In the good old days of my childhood, when fast food was unheard of, pure unadulterated arrowroot powder was freely available in the market. Whenever a person in the family was struck down by illness, especially typhoid or diarrhea, and unable to take solid food, arrowroot powder would promptly be used to make a reviving hot…
Arrowroot Drink (Gluten Free)
Historians believe that mankind has been cultivating and using arrowroot for well over 7000 years. During my childhood, nearly every household in Kerala had a patch of arrowroot and of turmeric. All members of large joint families participated in planting, tending, harvesting and processing of organic produce of the finest quality. Alas, with the change…
Agati Flower Pakoda – A hot and spicy snack (Vegan)
Last week, our dear friends from Coorg, a planter couple, visited us together with a couple of their friends. My husband asked me to make some fried snacks, something new and unique, as his dear friend loved to have a spicy fried snack along with his lunch. We quickly plucked some fragrant agati blooms (Agatipoove in…
Cherry Tomato Pickle (Vegan + Gluten Free)
Three years ago, my husband was traveling through our neighboring district of Coorg. Full of lush green coffee and pepper plantations, it is one of the more enchanting places on earth. Though planters for generations, the Coorgs (Kodavas) are a cultured, hospitable, good-natured, well-educated, honest and proud people with a rich tradition and a legendary love of…
Sheera / Rava Kesari – A quick and easy dessert
My son loves sheera. Often, he asks me to make some sweet dish for him. One look at his face and I can tell, he yearns for sheera! I am only too happy to comply, as it takes just under 20 minutes to make this delicious, sweet dessert. Sheera, which is also called rava kesari,…
Kobba Sukke – Sugarcane Chickpea Dish (Vegan + Gluten-Free)
In our compound, by the side of the house, there is a sizeable clump of sugarcane. Three years ago, my husband got a plant as a gift from one of his friends. Since then, nourished with farmyard manure and watered regularly, the clump has yielded dozens of juicy, sweet sugarcanes. When my husband goes out…