Almost a month, since my grandmother passed away. I keep seeing her face in flashes, just before I fall asleep. Along with the regret of not being able to spend enough time with her, in the last couple of years, I also regret not sitting down with her to take down some of her signature recipes.
When I think about my childhood in Kerala, the first thing that comes to my mind is the food. Kappa and Meen Curry, Kothu Porotta, Pappadam, Naadan Kozhi Varutharachathu, Puttu, Naadan Beef Fry and so on. No Malayalee household is complete without one or two of these dishes on the dining table. I remember being greeted into my grandmother's house with a mountain of rice and spicy red fish curry with Pappadam.
I had a particularly tiring day of mothering yesterday, with the child being a crank as usual during meal times and to top it I decided to go for an hour long run. So I came back home dead beat and none of the food at home could satiate my hunger. I quickly looked up Swiggy, zoned in on a newly opened Malayalee restaurant called Theeram and placed an order for Appam, Kozhi Varutharachathu and Chicken Dosa (?), only in Bombay will you find these golden gems. We don't eat Dosas stuffed with chicken, perhaps on the side, yes. But never inside. And nope, we don't eat Chinese Dosa, Manchurian Dosa or Cheese Dosa. In fact, they don't exist!
Anyway, coming back very quickly to the topic in hand; Malayalee cuisine. There really is no better food on the planet. Period! But, I've cheated on it for the past two decades or so. Although, the mind craves for it and it brings back a flood of memories, the body is not too kind to accept it anymore. The spice and grease (especially in the restaurant made Malayalee food) is a bit too much.
Still, Appam and Stew is my go to meal on particularly gloomy mornings. Kerala Porotta with a generous side of prawn, fish or chicken curry is all I need for a sound sleep at night. I have been on a quest to find my piece of home, each time we explore the menu of a new restaurant. The further away from home, that I am, the pull to go back, becomes stronger and stronger.
The last time I ate an Ada Payasam must have been in the early 2000s, for one of my sibling's weddings. Ever since, I have been dreaming a sweet little dream of laying my hands on it again. It hasn't been fulfilled till now.
Malayalee food is so much more than a hunger saviour. It's an emotion. The bits of coconut cut into neat little rectangular pieces inside the meat gravy, the smell of freshly fried Pappadam in coconut oil and the aroma of Kadala Curry is enough to bring a tear to my eye.
Kerala is so much more than it's backwaters and beaches. The unique food of the region is what makes it stand out from the rest of the country. I think I might make some Pazham Pozhis today just for old times sake.
(Image Source : https://food.ndtv.com/opinions/10-things-you-must-eat-in-kerala-695529)
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