Cuisine in Kerala

It's not only the holistic traditional science of Ayurveda or the abundant greenery that magnetises tourists to Kerala. The cuisine in Kerala is also a key cultural feature of this southern Indian state. Keralan cuisines feature both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. What makes the cuisines special is the expert blend of a variety of spices. Since the state is home to Hindus, Muslim and Christian communities, there is a huge range of cuisines available in Kerala for gastronomes.

Stew
It is always a wonderful option to begin your culinary journey with a steaming bowl of stew, a preparation of coconut milk and Malabar coast spices. So, if you are visiting hill stations like Munnar, you can really look forward to having a finger-licking experience with mutton, chicken, lamb or vegetable stew. A ball of stew is usually served with appams (rice flour pancakes). Visitors can also try a variety of other dishes including puttu, idiyappam and idli along with beef curry or fish moilee.

Moplah
It is a popular dish in the Malabar region of Kerala. Though the dish is cooked in coconut oil, it still retains the original Arabic flavour. Moplah cuisine is different from the north Indian Mughali cuisine in the fact that it is cooked using coconut milk, chilli powder and spices. Unlike the Mughlai cuisine, Moplah uses less of ghee and butter, added only as supplements. Popular Moplah or Malabari cuisines include alisa (wheat and meat porridge combined with stuffed chicken), Porotta (along with baked mutton), fish biryani, mutta mala (a preparation of egg yolks minus fat) etc. Fish is an inseparable part of the Mopla cuisine in Kerala.

Seafood
Blessed with thousands of miles of coast, Kerala is also a great place to taste a range of freshly cooked sea food. The shacks along the beaches and backwaters of Kerala offer toothsome seafood. Visitors can directly buy from fishermen seafood like fish, lobster, shrimp, oyster etc. Give it to the shack owners and they'll cook it fresh for you.


Malayali
Keralan cuisines not only serves you non-vegetarian dishes but also a number of pure vegetarian dishes. So, do remember to have a plate of thali, traditionally served on a plantain leaf. A thali consists of boiled rice, a number of side dishes (including pickels, chutneys, pappadums, banana/ jackfruit chips, kozhalappam, cheeda etc.)and payasam (a sweet milk dessert).

Festive Season Cuisines
How would you like to savour special dishes like honey roasted duck, lamb stew or banan cake? Yes, you can have these lip-smacking dishes if you plan to visit Kerala during Christmas or New Year celebrations. The Syrian Christian community is known for preparing food items like thoran (a preparation of meat with shredded coconut), piralen (stir fried chicken) and meen molee (spicy stewed fish).


So, next time when you visit Kerala, don't just limit yourself to breakfasts of idli and sambhar or dosa and chutney. Do remember to gorge on the variety of delectable cuisines that Kerala has in store for you. And yes, how can you forget the long tea? �