South Indian Food: Curious to explore Keralite cuisine? This South Indian state is a treasure trove of diverse flavours and nourishing ingredients. These are celebrated through elaborate meals like the Sadhya and simple daily meals eaten at home. We have compiled a list of some of the most iconic pairings of Keralite dishes. This list has a dual function. Firstly, if you want to try making Kerala food at home, this list will help you get started with a few traditional recipes and understand the key differences between them. Secondly, if you plan to visit Kerala and enjoy local food, this list will help acquaint you with some of the popular delicacies you may find on restaurant menus. Therefore, you would be able to make informed decisions about what to order. Are you ready to delve into Kerala's mouth-watering culinary scene? Continue reading below:
Here Are 12 Traditional Food Combinations From Kerala You Must Taste:
1. Appam with Stew
Kerala Food: Appam and stew is a beloved pairing. Photo Credit: iStock
In Kerala, stew or ishtu generally refers to a mild, flavourful curry with a coconut milk base. It is generally whitish in colour (or light yellowish due to the addition of turmeric). There are several versions of stew, often categorised based on the main ingredient: vegetable, chicken, mutton, etc. Whole spices lend the stew a subtle yet delicious aroma, while two extracts of coconut milk give it a creamy consistency. Click here for the complete recipe
A popular pairing with stew is appam. This refers to a soft, fluffy pancake-like delicacy made using a fermented rice batter. Coconut is also added to it in some form. The batter is spread on an appachatty - a special non-stick pan that gives appam its distinctive rounded shape (reminiscent of a shallow bowl). Read the full recipe here.
2. Puttu with Kadala Curry
Kadala curry features black chickpeas (channa) cooked with coconut and Kerala garam masala - a spice mix typically made with fennel, mace, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, etc. Other simple ingredients like curry leaves, garlic, chillies, etc. are used to enhance the overall flavour of this curry. Its spiciness can be customised to your liking. Here's the step-by-step recipe.
A classic combo in Kerala is puttu and kadala curry. Puttu is a steamed savoury cake-like treat made with rice flour and coconut. It has a slightly coarse and chewy texture, which complements curries well. It is often steamed in a cylindrical mould. Want to try making it at home? Here's a recipe.
Also Read: 15 Easy South Indian Recipes You Will Love
3. Idiyappam with Egg Curry
There are multiple versions of Kerala-style egg curries. Some recipes include coconut milk while others don't. The exact souring agent used may also differ. But all of them are packed with the goodness of many spices that this state is renowned for. Read one recipe for a Kerala egg curry here.
If you want to appreciate the layers of yumminess of this egg curry, opt for a layered accompaniment: idiyappam (string hoppers). It consists of bundles of steamed noodle-like strands made of rice flour. A special idiyappam mould/presser is used. This stringy delicacy may be served as a ball or as a slightly flattened pancake. Either way, ensure you top it with lots of spicy curry and dig in before it turns too soggy! Here's how you can make idiyappam at home.
4. Parotta with Kurma
Another curry-like preparation you must try is Kerala-style kurma. While this dish has many versions across the country, this particular one derives its unique flavour from local staples like coconut and specific spices. Like stew, kurma can be made with vegetables as well as with chicken/meat.
Malabar parotta, one of the most famous flatbreads of Kerala, is a great way to scoop up kurma. While it has a few similarities with what is considered "paratha" in other parts of the country, it is not the same delicacy. It has a soft yet flaky texture with layers that are not always easy to master. Read the recipe here to learn more.
5. Parotta with Kerala Roast/Fry Dishes
Parotta is too iconic a dish for us to list only one combo with it. If you don't want to eat it with curry, enjoy it with semi-dry preparations brimming with flavours. For instance, you can scoop up fried fish preparations, chicken/mutton pepper roast, chemmeen (prawns) roast, chicken/mutton/pork fry, etc. with flaky parottas. Here's a recipe for Kerala Chicken roast. If you're looking for a mutton recipe, try this one.
6. Appam with Nadan Kozhi Curry or Parippu Curry
Just like parotta, don't limit yourself to one or two pairings with appam. It can be paired with so many lip-smacking dishes! If you want to explore something other than stew, opt for a delicacy like Nadan Kozhi curry. This traditional Kerala-style chicken curry can be easily made at home. Here's a step-by-step recipe. If you want a vegetarian alternative, why not opt for lentils? Parippu curry is a mild Keralite preparation of yellow moong dal and actually tastes great with appam. We have tried it and found ourselves craving it again and again! Click here for a recipe.
7. Pathiri with Chicken/Mutton/Fish Curry
Kerala food: Photo Credit: iStock
Pathiri is a traditional flatbread that is believed to have originated from the Malabar region of Northern Kerala. While it may not be as popular outside the state as Malabar parotta, it is a delight you must not ignore. Pathiri is made using only 3-4 basic ingredients, including rice flour, salt and water (full recipe here). Its soft and delicate texture is similar to that of chapatis/rotis rather than other rice flour-based Keralite foods. Its outside appearance may remind you of a very flat dosa, but it's not the same thing. Within the overall category of Keralite cuisine, pathiri is said to be a part of the Malabari Muslim cuisine. Pathiri can be combined with a wide variety of dry preparations as well as curries. It is often served with richly spiced chicken, mutton or fish curries. Here's a Kerala-style prawn curry recipe you can pair with.
8. Ghee Rice with Meen Moilee
Rice is an essential part of Keralite cuisine as it's the most commonly consumed grain in the state. It's used to make an innumerable amount of delicacies, ranging from snacks to desserts. Multiple rice varieties are found in Kerala, including Matta rice (Palakkad Matta rice/Kerala red rice), Jeerakasala Rice (Wayanadan Kaima rice), Gandhakasala Rice, Navara Rice, and more. You can enjoy plain boiled rice or ghee rice with many types of dishes. A comfort food combo is steamed Kerala rice with Meen Moilee. The latter is a fish curry with a coconut milk base. It has a delicate and slightly sweet taste unlike many of the other fish curries which have stronger tastes marked by tartness or spiciness. Here's how to make Meen Moilee at home.
Ghee rice is also a staple food in Kerala. This fragrant dish is made by cooking rice with ghee, basic spices, onions, roasted cashews, raisins, etc. Click here for a recipe.
9. Kerala Rice with Sambar and Vegetable Preparations
Kerala Food: Sambar and rice are often eaten with vegetable sides. Photo Credit: iStock
If you're looking for a vegetarian pairing with Kerala rice, the options are endless! If you want something light and satisfying, choose sambar. This curry-like preparation differs slightly from region to region in South India. Thus, the sambar you get in Tamil Nadu will not taste exactly the same as the one you get in Kerala. Relishing it with plain rice can help you appreciate these intricacies.
Many types of vegetable preparations are often eaten along with sambar rice. They add extra fibre and vitamins to the meal, apart from bringing delightful textures and aromas. Choose popular dishes like avial, thoran, erissery, pachadi, etc. If you want to enjoy only the vegetable delicacies without a curry, skip the sambar and choose ghee rice instead of plain rice.
Also Read: How to Cook Thoran? Kerala's Best Loved Stir-Fry Preparation
10. Kappa and Meen Curry
Kappa refers to tapioca or cassava. In Kerala, it is often boiled, mashed and mixed with coconut, green chillies, garlic and spices to make a wholesome dish (Full recipe here). A fiery red fish curry known as meen curry is often eaten with kappa. It is traditionally cooked in a clay pot known as manchatti. It has a distinctive tanginess derived from the use of tamarind or kudampuli (Malabar tamarind). The simple starchiness of the tapioca complements the spicy richness of the curry quite well. Click here for an easy recipe for meen curry.
11. Thattu Dosa with Chutneys
You can find numerous varieties of dosas in Kerala and one of the unique types you must try is thattu dosa. Its name is said to have been derived from the humble roadside eating joints known as "thattukadas" in Kerala. Thattu dosa is generally smaller and thicker than the regular dosa. It is soft and spongy on the inside, with a slightly crisp exterior (Complete recipe here). Thattu dosa can be served with chutneys, sambar, curries, etc. For a classic pairing, opt for coconut chutney (Click here for a recipe.) You can also explore regional variations of ginger chutney, tomato chutney, curry leaves chutney, etc.
12. Pazham Pori and Tea
Kerala Food: Pazham Pori is a fried delight popular during tea time. Photo Credit: iStock
For the final entry on our list, we are moving beyond savouries to bring you an iconic tea-time combo in Kerala: Pazham Pori (banana fritters) and Chai (Tea). Ripe Nendran bananas (Nenthra Pazham) are typically used for making these delicious filters. The fruits are sliced/chopped and coated in a lightly sweetened flour batter before being fried to golden perfection. Read the complete recipe here. While pazham pori can be relished as they are, having them along with tea enhances overall satisfaction. In most parts of Kerala, tea is more commonly consumed than coffee and you can easily find various options for the same in most eating joints.
Also Read: 10 Delicious South Indian Mutton Dishes You Must Try
This compilation is in no way an exhaustive list. There are several other iconic delicacies, drinks and meal combos you must taste in Kerala. So, when are you planning to visit and discover them authentically?