Kerala, known as God’s own Country, is famous for its exquisite rice recipes. Rice is a staple food for the Keralites. The rich taste of the rice delicacies, each with a unique recipe, seems doubtless to spread the strong flavored aroma across the room. An amalgam of spices with pure white rice makes them lip-smacking dishes.
1.Kurumulaku Kanji
It is also known as pepper porridge, traced back to tribal cuisine. This meal is high in fiber and nutrition and therefore preferred for new mothers after the delivery. It has a simple recipe with rice and spices like pepper powder, cumin powder, ajwain, crushed garlic, and coconut milk.
2.Malabar Chicken Biryani
Biryani is one of the most loved dishes in India. This chicken biryani is pot-style with rich flavors to spice up your meal. It is popular in the northern part of Kerala. The spicy chicken masala is mixed with rice and fried onions in a pot. The chicken is cooked before layering.
3.Appam
It is also known as palappam, which seems like fluffy pancakes. Made out of rice and coconut batter. People eat Appam for breakfast along with stew. The preparation is similar to that of dosa batter, which needs early preparation. Appam is a perfect go-to dish as it is easy to make.
4.Aravana Payasam
It means a black kheer made of ghee, jaggery, rice, and cardamom, without the milk. This payasam is prepared from matta rice. It is an ooey-gooey dessert that is mouth-watering. It also has a longer shelf life and should be stored in an airtight container. The taste is enhanced if you add roasted dry fruits and Nendran bananas.
5.Orotti
Commonly known as rice roti is famous in the Malabar region. It is a simple dish to make with primary ingredients. You can spice it up by adding shallots and cumin seeds while making the dough. On the other hand, you can add a sweet tinge by mixing sugar while making the dough. This rice roti can go well with pickles, chutneys, or curries. Treat your taste buds with this dish.
6.Vattayappam
It is a steamed rice cake served as a tea-time snack. Vattayappam means rice and coconut ground and fermented with yeast. Squashy and soft in textures with millions of air pockets, it melts in your mouth as soon as you take a bite of Vattayappam. Delicious as it sounds, this dish is a healthy and filling snack that is easy to make.
7.Ghee Rice
Ghee rice or Nei Choru is a simple delectable dish with the most primary ingredients out of all the rice dishes. Traditionally, Kaima rice is required to make this dish. The aroma of ghee with the small white grains is just unforgettable. They say that there is beauty in simplicity, but this dish proves to be delicious when simple.
8.Palada Payasam
It is a sweet delicacy that is prepared during festive occasions like Onam. The three main ingredients used are rice ada, milk, and sugar. This dish requires patience and its making is laborious and requires a lot of time for obtaining the desired color of the payasam.
9.Malabar Mutton Biryani
Malabar mutton biryani is loved by many and thus a regular visitor on dining tables. Most popular and palatable amongst all the biryanis in India. It is unique in terms of the style of preparation and the rice used. For all the mutton lovers out there, this biryani is a must-try.
10.Idiyappam
Malabar mutton biryani is loved by many and thus a regular visitor on dining tables. Most popular and palatable amongst all the biryanis in India. It is unique in terms of the style of preparation and the rice used. For all the mutton lovers out there, this biryani is a must-try.
11.Puttu Pazham
It is a nutritious breakfast delicacy with a whole lot of health benefits. It is cylindrical and made entirely of rice flour. Puttu Pazham is served with chicken, fish, or chickpea curry and papadum. Unique in its ways, this dish is one of Kerala’s famous savories.
12.Thattu Dosa
A light and comfortable meal makes you think of nothing else but dosa. Thattu dosa is derived from the word “Thattu Kada” meaning street-side food in Kerala. It is smaller in size and is porous. It might sound bizarre, but this dosa is served with an omelet sometimes. Coconut chutney and Thattu dosa are a perfect combination as well.
13.Arikadukka
Arikadukka is a popular seafood famous in the Malabar region of Kerala. This rice dish has a unique method of preparation. Mixed with mussels and rice, cooked in shells, and then fried. People enjoy eating this, especially during the rain when it is served hot and fresh. It is a mandatory item on everybody’s travel-eat list.
14.Pathiri
A melt-in-mouth flatbread, similar to the regular dosa but popular in the Malabar region of Kerala. Soft, flat, and healthy enough to eat without counting your calories. Rice flour, cooking oil, and water are the primary ingredients for making Pathiri. Can be served with curries that can complement the mildness of Pathiri. It is prepared during the fasting season of Ramadan.
15.Pathal
Deep fried with a coconut-like aroma is Pathal, a common dish among Muslims. Similar to that Pathiri, the only difference is that Pathal is deep-fried. In addition, people add jeera, coconut, onions, and further deep fry, which tastes even better.
16.Kalathappam
A North Malabar sweet delicacy that serves as a tea-time snack. A small recipe that doesn’t take long to make. Rice flour, jaggery, fried shallots, and coconut flakes are the main ingredients used and cooked similarly to a cake. A must-try dish, so take out your recipe books and make a note of Kalathappam.
17.Unniyappam
Unniyappam means small rice cake. It is sweet and round and given as a prasad in some temples in Kerala. It is alos served in the onam sadya. It is preferred to make using raw rice. It is fried in oil and made from rice, jaggery, roasted coconut piece, roasted sesame seeds, and cardamom powder.
18.Kinnathappam
Another dessert to enjoy during Ramadan is Kinnathappam. It means plate cake. It can also be called a steamed cooked rice cake. Soft and wiggly, this dish is prepared in no time. Adding nuts and cashews will make the cake even tastier.
19.Kunji Kalathappam
Kunji Kalathappam is in no way similar to that of Kalathappam. Pooni rice is used for making this dish. It is a 1-2 hours recipe. It is deep-fried and eaten as a breakfast item or tea-time snack. Fennel seeds, cumin seeds, and cashew nuts are added for extra taste.
20.Ela Ada
Finally, the banana leaf came into the picture. Kerala, as we know, is famous for its banana dishes. Ela Ada is made with rice flour dough with the standard jaggery and coconut combination. It is wrapped and steamed in banana leaves, thus, making the dish unforgettable because of the banana flavor. It is made during the festivals.
