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Ingredients, spices same in cuisine from all south states
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Saturday, 01 August, 2015, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Chef E Munichandrudu
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fiogf49gjkf0d India is a land of diversity - be it culture, customs or food and beverage. A land of numerous culinary delights, India is sure to intrigue any tourist. While the cooking styles vary from the north to the south, the flavours used in the south vary from state to state.
The cooking style of the dishes in the southern states is mainly within clay pots. The region specialties and delicacies are curated using simple masalas and are either steamed or simmered with very less oil. Extremely light on the stomach, the dishes have found a place with all ages and across borders. Being high in nutritive value, these recipes can be eaten for breakfast and serve as a complete meal for both infants as well as the elderly.
The staples among the states include the presence of rice, the use of lentils and spices, dried red chillies, fresh green chillies and coconut. Native fruits and vegetables including tamarind, plantain, snake gourd, garlic, and ginger are also household essentials. Ragi is consumed in large quantities in southern Karnataka. For the cuisine to taste authentic, one would need essentials such as mustard seeds, curry leaves, tamarind and asafoetida.
There is definitely more to the cuisine than the popular Idli, Dosa and Uttapam. Vadas, Paniyaram, Sevai Coconut Upma, Pachor, Kozhukkatta, Unniyappam, Kariveppila Vada, Vada Curry, Appam with Vegetable Stew, Semiya Vegetable Upma, Vella Ellu Kozhukatta are other dishes that are relished in southern India. No meal is complete without the famous filter kaapi. The coffee drink is made by mixing frothed and boiled milk with the decoction obtained by brewing finely ground coffee powder in a traditional Indian filter. The specialty is that it is served at the exact drinking temperature after cooling it down manually by mixing it in two glasses.
The Southern States
The states from where the south Indian cuisine emanates are majorly Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Kerala Cuisine
The state is known as the land of spices. It has many exquisite foods to showcase. It almost needs no introduction and features an array of dishes such as Kolakottai (stuffed masala rice steamed cake), Pachor (rice and lentil cooked with jaggery and coconut) and Malabar Sambhar (spicy vegetable and lentil broth). The dishes are served with sauces, some sweet and others sour. Sauces like the popular puliinji or injipuli which is also known as Ginger-Tamarind pickle induces both sweet and sour flavours. While tamarind and lime are used to make sauces sour in North Malabar areas; the Travancore region uses only kodampuli (Garcinia gummi-gutta).
Karnataka Cuisine
From the different staples of Bajra and Jowar to the wide use of Kokum, the cuisine of the state shows a lot of diversity - the north, south, west, and Melanadu cuisine of Karnataka. From areas such as Hubli, Bidar, Haveri, and Dharwad, the local cuisine includes Jolada rotti, Mosaru, Sarru, and Jhunka. South Karnataka includes the Mysore region. Regular meals consist of raagi, kokum, and yogurt. The meals are usually had in a particular order as well. The west coast of Karnataka is where you get the Udupi cuisine. It is focussed on fruits and vegetables. The Malenadu cuisine is heavily influenced by the variety of fruits and vegetables available in the rich forests of Western Ghats. The ingredients like tender bamboo shoots, colocasia leaves, turmeric leaves, and raw jackfruit are easily found in the Sahyadri ranges. Steaming is the favoured method of cooking in the region.
Andhra Pradesh Cuisine
Andhra Pradesh cuisine features Hyderabadi twists in addition to its coastal influence. Generally known for its tangy, hot and spicy taste, the cooking is very diverse due to the vast spread of the people and varied topological regions. The liberal use of spices makes the food one of the richest and spiciest in the world.
Tamil Nadu Cuisine
Tamil Nadu food is primarily vegetarian and easy to digest. The interesting part about the people from Tamil Nadu is that their palate varies from region to region. While some regions enjoy extremely spicy food, some cut the use of spices with flavours of jaggery and tamarind juice. The Chettinad food is high on spice and masalas whereas the Kanchipuram area uses milder flavours in their traditional food.
Overlapping Dishes and Differences
There are a lot of similarities in the dishes from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, namely Vegetable Rawa Khichdi (semolina cooked with mixed vegetables and spices), Ragi Saugatti (ragi flour cooked with curry leaves and mustard) and Kuli Paniyaram (rice and lentil shallow dumplings).
This is also the case with dishes from Kerala and Karnataka where Godumbha Upma (broken wheat cooked with mustard), Udupi Sambhar (lentil cooked with vegetables and homemade spices), and Bisibilla Huliyana (rice and lentil cooked with homemade spices) are common.
The ingredients and spices used are similar across the various cuisines. However, there are small aspects that make each one different from the other. For example, Bisibilla Bhath prepared in Andhra Pradesh is generally on the spicier side whereas Bisibilla Huliniyana prepared in Karnataka consists of similar ingredients but is less spicy in nature. Similarly, Sambhar is one of the staple dishes of south India, however, it is prepared differently in different states. For example, Sambhar prepared in Tamil Nadu is sweeter in nature as compared to the Kerala Sambhar. As for the ingredients in the Kerala Sambhar, yam and carrots are predominantly found, while Chennai Sambhar has more of drumsticks in it.
Notable Healthy Dishes
In most parts of south India, the ingenious Idli is available around the clock. Made with Rice and Urad Dal, the dish is simple but extremely high in nutritional value and low in calorie count, making it an easy choice for breakfast. Idlis are highly recommended by several organisations in the world for health quotient, including the WHO (World Health Organization). Containing carbohydrates, proteins, enzymes, fats, amino acids and fibre, they are void of saturated fat & cholesterol. The plain Idli can be paired with several delectable accompaniments including the Chennai Sambhar- a low calorie curry made from split red gram (daal), spices, and pieces of various vegetables like drumstick and pumpkin. A number of chutnies can also be served with the dish including the sweet & savoury Mango, Pudina, Venkayam Chutney, Inji Chutney, Tomato, Curry Leaf, Coconut, Mix Lentil Powder, and Coriander, making it a cross-country favourite.
Innovating even with simple dishes like Idli, while still maintaining its nutritive value is imperative. To make Idlis more exciting, the trend is to mix several ingredients into the original recipe resulting in variants like Kanchivaram Idli, Ragi Idli and Rangoli Idli.
With only 51 calories, the dish is the lowest in the calorie count as compared to the Katori Upma at 247 calories, Masala Dosa at 415 calories and Rice Payasam at 277 calories. Even when compared to international breakfast dishes such as eggs at 155 calories, bacon at 541 calories, ham & cheese at 565 calories, Idlis rank the lowest on calorie count.
Another healthy recipe is the Kal Dosa which is a total of just 100 calories. It has no saturated fat, no cholesterol and no trans-fat. This can easily be prepared at home with steamed rice and lentils. Kal Dosa is slightly thicker than the traditional dosa and is spongier than normal. One may call it an Indian pancake. This is usually a healthier option as it is steamed and very little oil is used.
(The author is chef at Sofitel, Mumbai)
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