We had heard a lot about Kerala cuisine, but never had had the chance to relish it. Our holiday gave us THE perfect opportunity to do so.
On one of our canoeing rides, our guide, Anil, was very kind enough to invite us to his house for the Onam celebrations. Anil, Jayanti and Anandu ; one of the simplest, and the most down to earth family, who lived it king size with whatever they earned everyday or managed to fish out of the lake.....
Our delicious lunch that day had Vendekka Varathathu, prawns fry (caught in the lake RIGHT outside the house and tossed on to a pan!), parippu curry, avial, rice and poppadums.
Hopefully I have made some justice to Jayanti's expertise.
Parippu Curry is a mild and light curry and is an essential part of the traditional vegetarian feast (sadya) in Kerala. It is usually served with plain hot rice, ghee and poppadums for festivals.
Moong Dal can be substituted with Tur Dal, and fresh coconut can be substituted with dry / desiccated coconut.
Bon Appétit