Kerala
is known worldwide as a wonderful tourist destination. The backwaters,
beaches and hill stations of Kerala are known for their calm and serenity,
which provide a relaxing holiday in God's Own Country. Kerala Backwater
offers tours to Kerala, India, that showcase the best of Kerala. One of
Kerala's popular attractions is its delicious Kerala cuisine.
Kerala is a coastal state, it is a covered with emerald green paddy fields
and has plantations where spices that have been exported worldwide for
centuries, are grown. Add to this mixture a touch a coconut and a bunch of
bananas and you're halfway to a recipe for Kerala cuisine, which you can try
on Kerala Backwater tours.
The cuisine of Kerala is characterized by the use of coconut, either
chopped or grated and used as garnishing, coconut milk or paste is used to
thicken gravies and coconut oil is used for cooking. Breakfast specialties
of the cuisine of Kerala are usually made from ground rice and pulses that
are steamed or fried in different ways. "Puttu", a dish of steamed
rice powder is a popular breakfast. Garnished with coconut and eaten with
stew, curry, or bananas, Puttu is best eaten by hand, though it can be eaten
with a spoon.
Traditional south Indian specialties, such as dosas, idlis, sambhar and
uttapam are part of the breakfast cuisine of Kerala, which you can enjoy,
when you travel on Kerala tours with Kerala Backwater. Typically Kerala
breakfast dishes include "Vallepam" - a frilly pancake made from
fermented rice paste, cooked in a curved pan and served with stew or coconut
milk. Also called hoppers, Vallepam is also made with egg and meat curry.
Lunch and dinner are similar in the cuisine of Kerala. Rice is the staple
diet of Kerala, India. A typical lunch or dinner meal would consist of rice,
dal - a gravy made of pulses, various seasonal vegetables cooked with
coconut and different spices for flavor, a seafood curry and a sweet dish
for desert, such as "payasam or "pradaman." Sweet dishes are
usually made using rice, milk, sugar or jaggery and bananas and cooked to
form a thick custard like consistency.
Seafood is very popular in Kerala and consumed with every meal. Various
fish including sardines, mackerel, tuna, rays and shark are eaten, as are
crabs, mussels and oysters. "Karimeen" or fried fish is a popular
dish as is fish curry called "Fish Moilee." Various locally
available vegetables such as tapioca, cassava and yam form part of the
cuisine of Kerala. Seasonal fruit such as papaya, jackfruit, mangoes and
lime are eaten at different times of year. Bananas and coconut are available
year round and are a staple of the Kerala diet. The refreshing juice of the
tender coconut is a delightful drink, which you can enjoy on Kerala Tours
with Kerala Backwater.
Apart from meals, various snacks are part of the cuisine of Kerala. These
include banana chips, murku (friend rings made from a batter of rice, pulses
and spices), shakaruperi (banana chunks coated with jaggery and ginger) and
various kinds of halwa (thick pudding made from flour and sugar and flavored
with fruits), which are eaten during the day. The best Kerala cuisine can be
had during the festival of Onam. A grand lunch called "Sadya" is
the highlight of Onam day. Enjoy tasting the delicious cuisine of Kerala
while on Kerala tours with Kerala Backwater.
Two of the integral constituents of Kerala cuisine are Coconut and Banana
The coconut tree is an integral part of the landscape of Kerala. On Kerala
tours with Kerala Backwater, you will be wonderstruck by the green landscape
covered with coconut palms, their green fronds swaying in the breeze.
Coconuts in Kerala are an essential part of the lifestyle of Kerala, they
are also an important part of the cuisine of Kerala.
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