The 16th Annual General Body Meeting (AGM) and get-together of Gokulam Kodava Sangha was held on Aug. 7 at Kodava Samaja (Ground Floor), Gen. K.S. Thimayya Road, Vijayanagar 1st Stage, Mysuru.
Sangha President Nayakanda U. Appaya presided. On the occasion, Sangha members’ children who have excelled in the field of education and achievers were felicitated.
Sangha Secretary Mynda-panda A. Thimmanna read the annual report while Treasurer Chendanda Navin Aiyappa presented the financial report.
On the occasion, Ammatanda K. Chinnappa was unanimously elected as the new President of Gokulam Kodava Sangha.
Annarkanda Prathima Thimmaiah compered and conducted games along with Pulianda Narien Uthaiah.
Committee Member Bollachanda Jhansi Subbaiah rendered the invocation. The get-together concluded with a cultural programme by Prathima and troupe which enthralled the gathering.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore /Home> News / August 18th, 2022
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has released a grant of Rs. 1 crore towards the celebration of Madikeri Dasara.
MLA M.P. Appachu Ranjan had requested the Chief Minister to announce funds for Madikeri Dasara and the CM subsequently recommended the Finance Department to release the grants. The CM also released Rs. 50 lakh for Gonikoppa Dasara.
The Dasara Committee, which was facing a fund crunch as there was no significant contribution from people or corporates, is elated by the grants and is planning to celebrate the festival in a grand manner.
A delegation led by Virajpet MLA K.G. Bopaiah met the CM yesterday in Bengaluru and requested him to sanction funds which were agreed upon.
Gonikoppa Sri Cauvery Dasara Committee Honorary President and former ZP Member C.K. Bopanna, B.N. Prakash, Gonikoppa Sri Cauvery Dasara Committee President Ramakrishna and General Secretary Jimma Subbaiah were present.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / August 18th, 2022
The Annual Kail-Poldh Festival get-together will be held on Sept. 11 (Sunday) from 9 am to 5 pm at Kodava Samaja premises in Vijayanagar 1st Stage here.
The day-long programme comprises Ayudha Puja, Sports and Games, Lucky Dip, Honouring eminent Kodavas and distribution of Scholarship to meritorious children. In all, 42 scholarships will be awarded to Kodava students who have studied in Mysuru and passed the respective exams.
Details of Scholarship:
Highest scorers in final exam of 7th Std., SSLC (English), SSLC (CBSE), SSLC (Economically Weaker Section), PUC, BA, B.Com., B.Sc. (Computer Science/Maths), BBM, MBA, Law, MA, M.Com., M.Sc., (PCM/CBZ); BE, BE (Mech), BE (Arch), BE (Computer Science), BDS, MBBS, B.Sc./M.Sc. (Ag.), Diploma in Commercial (Secretarial) Practice, Best sports students in PUC; CBSE XI & XII and ICSE I & II; SSLC (CBSE)
Highest marks in Science; PG in Medicine, MD or MS;
Achievers in Sports at State-level, Graduation in Home Science or Hotel Management; Highest marks in SSLC for Kodava Police Family, Sportsperson in Kodava Police Family representing University of Mysore, must be Kodava Samaja Members.
Applications for the award of Scholarship and Honouring of eminent Kodava Members of Samaja for their achievements in various fields should be sent to Hon. Secretary, Kodava Samaja, Mysuru, to reach before Sept. 2 by 5 pm along with Xerox copies of relevant marks card, certificates, family name and contact phone/mobile number.
source: http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> News / August 17th, 2022
A new bilingual title of 21 poems deep-dives into the culture and literature of Coorg, hoping to become a tool to revive their language after UNESCO listed it as a Definitely Endangered Language.
Duditaptkaras, bards of Kodagu, singing traditional songs of the land
“Come and see the ainmanes of old where our ancestors lived as one.”
This line is extracted from Ainmane, a poem in A Place Apart: Poems from Kodagu, by Bacharanianda P Appanna, is dedicated to one’s ancestral home and sums up the core of this seminal literary project. For the first time, poetry by this authority on Kodava takkë (language of the Kodavas) has been translated and transliterated into English by cultural researcher Kaveri Ponnnapa. Apart from home, family, culture and tradition, forest and prayer are the other subjects from everyday life that find their way here.
The language spoken by an estimated 1.25 lakh Kodavas, it was listed by UNESCO as a Definitely Endangered Language. With her studied knowledge, Ponnapa swung into action to resurrect the language of her community. She collaborated with Appanna and his wife Ranu, an educator and poet, and together they released this ode. In the transliterations that appear in the third section of the book, Ponnapa uses the Roman script to relay Appanna’s poetry and creates an exhaustive glossary, thereby paving the way to familiarise it to the larger audience. This was after she realised that it was easy to read for Kodava speakers like her and those with limited or no knowledge of the Kannada script. The accompanying illustrations by Rupesh Nanaiah act as cultural markers of identity and though they are not directly illustrative, the essence of what it means to be Kodava reflects through this seamless symphony of poetry and art, making each poem read like a love letter about the land and its people.
Edited excerpts from an interview with Ponnapa.
What led to Kodava takkë being identified as one of UNESCO’s listed Definitely Endangered Languages of the world? There are multiple, complex reasons why our language finds itself in this position today, including the lack of good educational facilities and economic opportunities for Kodagu [Coorg], its people. The young continue to migrate out of the district. When this happens, there are far greater pressures for them to learn and use a dominant language such as English to secure their place in a new environment. Historically, the Kodava population has been extremely small. This kind of migration for an already small population implies that ultimately, we have an even smaller number of speakers.
The second contributing factor is that ours was an oral tradition. The historical method of oral transmission broke down to be replaced with formal education using the Kannada script, which was then also used to write Kodava takkë. It has limited the expansion of the language to those with access to a Kannada education. The diaspora in particular, who do not have the opportunity to learn Kannada, have no access to written works in their language which would enrich and expand their knowledge of Kodava takkë and encourage them to keep up with their mother tongue.
A woman carrying poliya, a basket of assorted food items which seals a new relationship between two clans at a marriage ceremony; (right) Stag horn dance of Kodagu. Hunting, a sacred activity, was once an integral part of life. These dances exist to this day. Pics courtesy/Kaveri Ponnapa
What did you discover while working on the project? I was deeply struck by how the language ideally expressed our specific experiences as a people, and like so many aspects of our culture, was embedded in the landscape, which we hold sacred. Appanna was born and lived in Kodagu when it was still an independent state, when our cultural identity was more strongly defined. His understanding and knowledge of the Kodava language, culture and landscape makes him an invaluable repository of our heritage, a great deal of which has passed into history, but needs to be documented for our future.
Since we were dealing with poetry and song—the traditional ways in which all our cultural knowledge was transmitted across generations—it was fascinating to explore the rhythms of unfamiliar poetic expressions spun out of familiar words, which, in the simplest of ways, became capable of expressing a great deal of meaning and emotion.
Ross Perlin of the Endangered Languages Alliance, had observed: “It’s hard to maintain the full richness, depth and complexity of a culture without its languages.” This depth and richness was revealed while writing the book.
All of Bacharanianda P Appanna’s writing projects are collaborative efforts with his wife Ranu Appanna
How did you overcome challenges of translations and transliterations? The use of the Kannada script for Kodava takkë comes with a series of compromises and challenges, reflected in a loss of linguistic nuance, loss of vocabulary as well as distinct changes in pronunciation and speech for the Kodava language.
While transcribing the words of the poems, many of them sounded different from the original. People habituated to viewing Kodava takkë through the lens of Kannada find it difficult to make a shift, and are content to stay with inaccurate renderings, until the nature of the language itself changes. It took repeated readings, clarifications, and consultations with the Appannas, as well as other native speakers and elders before setting anything down on paper.
Creating audio recordings—which will soon be accessible on my website—was another important way to access the linguistic sounds and rhythms that are lost when written in a script that cannot encompass many of its sounds.
Kaveri Ponnapa
How can Kodava takkë stay alive? One of the ways is to provide a more universally accessible script that is available to the greatest number of speakers. This is where Romanisation comes in. The idea of the transliteration came from my personal experience of being part of the diaspora, and despite being a fluent speaker, having no means to enter into the written works in my language to be able to expand my cultural and linguistic knowledge.
To order a copy : www.coorg.com
source: http://www.mid-day.com / mid-day / Home> Sunday Mid-Day News / by Fiona Fernandez, Mumbai / May 22nd, 2022
The iconic Pandicurry is the most emblematic and popular food people identify from Coorg. But the kadi (good food) and kudi (liquor) of the Kodava region in Karnataka are as wide and wild as they could get.
The Kodava Cuisine
“Pandicurry please!”
The allure of the tangy-spicy curry keeps calling me back to Coorg, every time. Of course, I am a lover of coffee too but if I were baring my heart to you, I would tell you that pork takes precedence every time I visit the Scotland of South India. No other style of pork has made such an impact, not even the sorpotel!
Let’s agree that the iconic Pandicurry is the most emblematic and popular food people identify from Coorg. But the kadi (good food) and kudi (liquor) of the Kodava region in Karnataka are as wide and wild as they could get. From wild mangoes and mushrooms to tender bamboo shoots, the food here is full of organic ingredients that establish its supremacy over other cuisines emerging from the state.
Wild Mushrooms
In this context, it’s important to mention that Coorg was in fact a state itself, landlocked and rich with biodiversity that attracted foreign attention almost immediately when the British came to India. Ruled as a kingdom established originally by the Nayakas, the state was self-sufficient and housed a clan-based community of warrior tribes. It was the hunted boar, that actually led to the pandi curry’s foundation.
For centuries Coorg was quite inaccessible, a landlocked region. It explains the heavy reliance on locally sourced ingredients. On a recent visit to the Evolve Back Coorg which sits pretty in a 300-acre coffee plantation and traces the traditions of the valley efficiently, I found peppercorn growing carelessly creeping around jackfruit, silver oak and mango trees among the robusta coffee the estate produces.
Robusta Coffee
For the uninitiated, Coorg is also the rice bowl of Karnataka, it grows in abundance here thanks to plenty of rains and rich soil composition. Upon finding The variety of rice items alone is quite humbling at The Granary, the main restaurant at Evolve Back so I had to turn to a specialist who could explain better. Sudhansu Sekhar Jena, the senior sous chef helps me out – “Kadambuttu, Thaliya Puttu, Paaputtu, Noolputtu, Koovale Puttu and various seasonal pickles are signature dishes of Coorg cuisine, just to name a few,” he explained.
While small dumplings of steamed broken rice make the Kadambuttu, Noolputtu is a fine lump of pressed rice noodles and what makes Paputtu stand out is the addition of coconut milk and a dash of shredded coconut which is steamed together with rice. With this newly acquired knowledge, I settled for lunch with paputtus and a delicious koli curry (chicken curry).
Sudhansu Sekhar Jena , Senior Sous Chef – F&B Production, Evolve Back Coorg, shares the recipe of Paputtu and also tells the detials of the dish.Paputtu is generally known as palputtu ( pal means milk and puttu is steamed rice cakes). It’s made of akki thari (coarse ground rice rava), grated coconut, salt and water. It’s steamed in a special kind of steamer called sekala and goes very well with non-veg curries.
Ingredients:
2 cups thari or coarse rice rava 1 – 1 1/2 cups fresh grated coconut 2 cups whole milk / light coconut milk 2 cups water 1 tsp cardamom powder Salt to taste Oil to grease
METHOD:
Wash the rice thari and soak for 1/2 an hour in the 2 cups of water. Add the milk, cardamom and salt and mix well. Squeeze the freshly grated coconut to extract a little milk and add it all to the mixture. Grease the plates with little oil. Pour the prepared mixture into the greased plates till two-thirds full to allow room for the thari to expand. Divide equally between plates and steam for 25-30 minutes or until done. The puttu should look firm, with no soggy bits in the centre. Cover the plates with a clean tea cloth and allow the puttu to cool a little before cutting them into pieces.
Clean & wash Crabs, add salt, and turmeric powder, and keep aside. In a vessel heat oil, add chopped garlic, mustard seeds, ginger julienne, slit green chilli, and curry leaves. Then add onion slice and fry till light brown, add sliced tomato and all Masala powder, salt and little water and sauté till oil comes up. Now add coconut paste & simmer gently, cooking till coconut paste is well cooked. Then add Crabs and salt, and bring to Cooked. When Crabs are tender, remove them from the fire, add temper and serve.
For tempering:
Heat a little oil and add mustard seed, curry leaves, and red chilli whole. when mustard seed crackles pour into the Crabs Masala. Serve hot.
Monsoon brings even more joy for the tribe that used to be reliant on hunting-gathering in forms of mud crabs and fresh fish from the opulent rivers running through the forests of Kodagu. Mahseer, rohu, tilapia, katla, giant gourami are some of the fish which can be caught in river Cauvery, India’s fourth largest and the lifeline to this side of the peninsula.
Anjali Ganapathy, a Chef who calls herself an armchair ethnographist, has been tracing and presenting Coorg cuisine at her estate home, after running a successful catering service in Bengaluru for years. I reach out to her for more information and trivia.
“Traditionally we were hunters”, Ganapathy affirms.
“Our farms and forests had no boundaries and weaponry such as firearms and machetes were a part of every household. They were used for protection as well as hunting to provide for the family,” she tells me. It was the norm.
Meat from wild boar, venison and wild fowl came from the forests according to Ganapathy and though fast disappearing, mud crabs, river and paddy-field fish can still be found in a Coorg home kitchen, she informs. Bush meat has been replaced by commercially available chicken, mutton and pork.
I wanted to taste the Kaad Maange curry (wild mango curry) but Sudhansu informed me that the season just got over. Ruefully I decide that it’s never too late to plan another visit to Coorg. So I head to the Sidapur Coffee & Culture Museum to sharpen my coffee knowledge instead, since it is housed within the property. Welcoming a group of excited guests, Jenny starts her session with a smile and a question – “How many of you know the difference between Arabica and Robusta?
Assisted by a very skilled Barista, we embark on an aromatic journey of coffee produced in the estate, presented in a variety of concoctions including the famous Moroccan Nous-Nous (half and half) edition and Vietnamese Cold Coffee (with condensed milk to sweeten it). The beauty of a great coffee is not the design you see, but the firmness of the froth that doesn’t allow a spoon to dip, Jenny informed us with a demonstration. After six shots of coffee, I am convinced that I shall never have instant coffee again.
I still don’t know what makes the curry of the pandicurry, so I head back to Peppercorn, the specialty restaurant by the lake at Evolve Back to sit down with the sous chef.
What follows is a deep dive into the organic ingredients that make Kodava cuisine a secret.
A unique souring ingredient, Kachampuli, (Coorg’s version of a Balsamic/black vinegar) is extracted from the ripe fruits of the Garcinia Gummi Gutta tree, commonly known as Brindle berry or Malabar tamarind. The fruits are usually placed in baskets over large vessels to allow the juice to gently drip down (over a few days) as the fruit gradually becomes pulp through natural fermentation. The extract is then reduced over a woodfire to make the vinegar like black smokey sour liquid.
“It is typically used towards the end of the cooking process in many Kodava dishes (including the Pandi curry) and accentuates the flavours of the meat and the colour of the dish,” shared Jena.
Enriched with this information, I wander into the reading room where the resort serves free coffee all day long. Looking over the rice fields being pattered with relentless rain, my mind wanders to the visual of an Ainmane, the Kodava-style clan house. I can almost smell the Baale Nuruk (a fritter made with rice flour and ripe bananas) in the kitchen in my virtual visit when my thoughts are interrupted by a gentleman dressed in khakis. I take him to be a naturalist at the resort. Sweetly he offers a glass of ‘Coffee Wine’, a dark amber-coloured liquid kept at the coffee counter. Intrigued, I take a sip and instantly, a wave of delight hits my throat. It smells of coffee and leaves the aftertaste of pepper, a unique combination indeed.
Coffee Wine
“Pigout has helped me achieve a deeper understanding of how the cuisine took shape, its evolution and a study of how to preserve and as well as prepare for what could possibly be the future holds for a micro cuisine, that is rooted in a wild landscape”, shared Ganapathy.
She has been running Pigout Coorg Kitchen from her family home (also an AirBnB) since the pandemic. “Your best bet at trying fresh ingredients with homegrown produce would be in someone’s home,” she chimes.
On my last day in Coorg, walking around the pool villa with a glass of Chukku Kaapi (also known as Bella Kaapi – coffee made with jaggery and ginger extract) I made a vow to come back to this wild land of delectable fares, soon enough.
source: http://www.firstpost.com / FirstPost. / Home> Arts & Culture / by Chandreyi B / August 12th, 2022
Mysore Narasimachar Srinivas was born in 1916 in Mysore. He belonged to a Brahmin Family and studied various areas like caste, society, religion and so on. He brought up various ideas related to sociology.
He published a book called ‘Religion and Society among the Coorgs of South India’. It put forward a new approach to study Hinduism. Srinivas took two aspects to distinct various sociological aspects. These distinctions are – field view and book view. He advocated field view which helps in observing and examining things more clearly.
According to him, we cannot isolate religious beliefs completely from our life. Religious factors always correlate with social norms and values. No religion is autonomous or eternal. He provides an approach for those who do not regard religion as pure and society as corrupt. They have blind faith in intangible things which are not practically accepted. For him, Hinduism is not solitary and inseparable. According to regional transformation, it goes on changing. This field view of his ideology gives a perfect picture of how religious practices and norms are making everybody more engaged with societal norms especially in the case of Coorgs.
His second distinction, i.e., the book view of Hinduism has many impediments. This view was accepted by almost every believer. This was based on our historical texts. But those texts are away from the real picture of religion and give false understanding. Those texts were based on idealism but in reality away from realism. Whereas the field view takes us closer to the actual practices prevalent in reality, like caste and joint family.
Study of local Coorgs
The book concentrates on the rituals and cultural structures among Coorgs. Kodagu also is known as Coorgs is a rural district situated in Karnataka. They are known as descendents of Arabs or Greeks and famous for coffee production. They worship nature and do not have any deity like Brahmins. They live in mountainous regions with specific language and customs. M.N. Srinivas focused on festivals and customs that are performed by coorgs. He personally spent a lot of time among a Coorg joint family and provides an empirical view of coorgs and Indian society He argues that puranas are responsible for complete Sanskritization of culture and he gives the example of Coorgs. In this, he illustrates that educated Coorgs want to identify the village gods with Shiva and they also explain why gods start liking liquor and meat due to losing their caste when they were crossing Malabar. He states that how they want to preserve social structure using local customs.
His sociological perspective of religion is based on religion skepticism rather than faith. Even after the efforts of Srinivas more than 50 years ago, the religious sociology as a discipline has not been established in India as it has been in the West. His sociology of religion is based on examining the norms, practices and faith structure according to societal needs. The critical analysis of religion through his lens is based on kinship, economics and politics factors. After independence when he established his theories on Coorgs, it hardly received any opposition. But there is also one more reality that his empirical study about Hinduism is not used further by many sociologists in India. It is very irrational for many philosophers to judge the values of any religion objectively. But for the betterment of society, implementation of every reform based on meaningful assessment is necessary.
Undoubtedly, Hinduism is an ancient philosophy prevailing for thousands of years. Thinkers like Srinivas do not condemn its theological aspects. His appraisal was totally based on practical and logical standards. He wants it to be a religion of tolerance but not a religion of hierarchy. Certain practices like untouchability, caste system, women oppressions, etc. must be denounced for the growth and advancement of society. Using religion as an excuse to continue such practices deserve criticism.
This journalist-turned-author talks about his new book Round and About with PT Bopanna, and his journey as an author.
Bengaluru :
Taking a leap of faith and moving to Mumbai 40 years ago, without a job or a plan worked out for PT Bopanna, veteran journalist and author of books such as Dateline Coorg and Are Kodavas (Coorgis) Hindus?. Growing up, Bopanna had no idea that he would become a journalist, and moved to Mumbai from Kodagu in search of better prospects. “I never thought I’d become a journalist, I never had a flair for writing. But when I was in college, I realised that journalists had the power to change the world, that’s what made me want to become a journalist,” he says.
forward to today, Bopanna’s newest book, Round and About with PT Bopanna, is a compilation of lighthearted articles written by the author. What’s special about this book is that Bopanna is able to tap a lighter, more humorous vein in this book, which he hasn’t been able to do in his other projects. The title of the book was inspired by the daily column, ‘Round and About,’ by Behram “Busybee” Contractor, a humour journalist. When Bopanna understood that journalism was his calling, he enrolled in a journalism course at Bhavan’s College in Mumbai. “Even though I wasn’t great at writing when I was younger, I always enjoyed reading the newspaper and books.
I was intrigued by ideas such as Marxism and rationalism,” says Bopanna. Since he also saw the rise of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), he was also influenced by Periyar EV Ramaswamy Niacker’s ideas, who started the DMK. When Bopanna went back to Kodagu, he started working as a part-time correspondent for a newspaper, he was past the age of 30, which points to the fact that one is never too old to follow their passion. Bopanna was working at another newspaper when he started reading the astrological columns.
“I didn’t believe in astrology, but it did pique my interest. Once, the astrology section said that if I were to start a website, it would do well. After I read that, I compiled some of the information I was putting in my columns, and started my website coorgtourism. info.com in 2005, and after that, there was no looking back,” says Bopanna. However, the traffic on his website wasn’t as much as Bopanna wanted it to be. So he thought, “Why don’t I download all this material and bring it out in the form of a printed book?” This is how Bopanna’s career as an author started, with the release of his first book, Discover Coorg.
Writer C P Belliappa came up with the title of the book, and also wrote the foreword. Most of Bopanna’s books are about Kodagu, his home, and he writes about the rich cultural and political history of the region. “My book, Are Kodavas Hindus? was inspired by sociologist M N Srinivas’ work, who went to Oxford for his PhD and wrote his thesis on religion and society in Coorg,” Bopanna says of his journey as an author. Hence, what started as a dream to change the world, was fulfilled by an astrological prediction. Bopanna says a journalist’s profession can be a quite disappointing, however, the key is to ‘wait for the good tidings to come.’
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Fia Majumdar, Express News Service / August 10th, 2022
Saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Hero Trio will make their NYC Debut this August to celebrate Charlie Parker’s Birthday at Smoke Jazz.
Located at the junction of 106th and Broadway (aka Duke Ellington Boulevard), Smoke Jazz Club is one of New York City’s premier live music venues. Renowned for offering top-notch programming of accessible, timeless jazz featuring legendary performers, modern masters, and rising stars, Smoke stands apart with its candlelit dining room, stellar acoustics, and classic American cuisine.
Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Hero Trio also includes bassist Harish Raghavan and drummer Rudy Royston. Their performance will set on Thursday and Sunday at 7 and 9 p.m., and on Friday and Saturday at 7, 9 and 10:30 p.m.
Hero Trio earned high praise for its eclectic 2020 self-titled debut and the 2022 follow-up Animal Crossing. Animal Crossing is a digital-only EP featuring four new songs, each an unlikely addition to the canon of jazz standards which is also the titular theme from the wildly popular video game.
At Smoke, Mahanthappa will explore Parker’s compositions, classic standards, and modern covers with the Raghavan and Royston. “The idea behind Hero Trio was to turn the idea of playing a set of standards on its ear and freshen up the idea,” the saxophonist explains.
Rudresh Mahanthappa is widely known as one of the premier voices in jazz of the 21st century as well known for his exellent alto saxphone performances. He has been recognized by multiple jazz magazines including DownBeat Magazine, Jazz Journalists’ Association,and JazzTimes Magazine. He has also received the Guggenheim Fellowship and the Doris Duke Performing Artist Award, and is currently the Anthony H. P. Lee ’79 Director of Jazz at Princeton University.
For information visit https://www.smokejazz.com/calendar/.
source: http://www.nysmusic.com / NYS Music / Home> Blues-Jazz> NYC Metro> Upcoming Shows / by Savanna Tong / August 07th, 2022
MX Player recently launched the first look of its upcoming original series, Shiksha Mandal. The show is a hard-hitting narrative inspired by true events that revolve around incidents in the educational system of India. The lead actor, Gulshan Devaiah, shares, “They say teaching is the most noble of all professions and having been a teacher myself, for a brief period in my life, I truly believe in that.”
He adds, “The story of Shiksha Mandal is about an education scam that brings to light the motives of certain unscrupulous people and their network of scoundrels, who conjure up scams for their personal profits and ruin the life of many talented, honest and hardworking students of this nation. It’s no exaggeration to say that many such scams have been happening around us and we may have even heard of one in the news recently.”
Mincing no words in encouraging people to take responsibility to avoid such incidents that destroy the fabric of society, Gulshan says, “If the young students are the future of India, then we are its present and must take the responsibility of creating an education system that operates on merit and is free of any corruption. Education can be a business, but it cannot be a corrupt business.”
source: http://www.tribuneindia.com / The Tribune / Home> Lifestyle / August 08th, 2022
The essence of Madikeri, this signature ingredient is at the heart of Coorg’s culinary tableau
One of the most underrated profiles in the world’s taste arsenal is sour. Too often associated with unpleasant tastes, it takes a lot of finesse to balance sour flavours and make them shine. Luckily, this is something that India excels at. Whether it’s tamarind, lemon, vinegar or tomatoes, many of our regional cuisines employ souring agents as a standard part of their flavour profiles. For the Southern town of Coorgin Karnataka, there’s a very unique addition to this sour family in the form of Kachampuli.
Also known as the Malabar Tamarind or Kudam Puli, Kachampuli is a deep, dark vinegar native to the region made from the ripe fruits of the Garcinia gummi-gutta tree which are commonly found in the evergreen forests of Coorg. The fruit is a member of the mangosteen family and has a distinct sharp sour taste and a lingering aftertaste that is totally unique among the common souring agents in India. It’s an essential part of Kodava cuisine, especially when cooking meat due to the amylase enzymes it produces that help to break down proteins, but it can also find its way into fish and vegetarian dishes too.
It can be used in its fresh form, soaked and then cooked in a similar way to tamarind. It can also be converted into a type of vinegar by slightly fermenting the fruit and simmering it down to a dark reddish-purple liquid which retains its signature tartness while also lending fruity overtones.
The main characteristic of Kodava cuisine is the use of local and seasonal ingredients. The forests and paddy fields of the Coorg region are verdant and lush, ensuring that there’s always plenty of fresh produce available throughout the year. Foraging is also an integral part of Kodava traditions and Kachampuli is an essential ingredient in many of their signature dishes including the famous Pandi Curry.
Kachampuli has plenty of benefits beyond being a great taste enhancer. Like many acids, the fruit can be a great digestive and some consider it to be an effective appetite suppressant and weight loss aid. It also has Hydroxy citric acid (HCA) which is thought to boost metabolic rates and combat lipid peroxidation, thereby maintaining liver health.
If you want to take your tastebuds on a trip to Coorg and experience the magic of Kachampuli, here’s a quick and easy recipe that lets the ingredient shine.
Typical Coorgi Pandi Curry with Kadambuttu / Image Credits: edible.travelssk_/Instagram
Ingredients:
Masala Blend
2 tbsp oil
½ tsp mustard
½ tsp jeera
curry leaves
1 finely chopped onion
1 green chilli finely chopped
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp salt
1 tsp roasted gram powder
1 tsp Kachampuli vinegar or fresh kachampuli
½ tsp jaggery
For Serving
2 cups puffed rice
2 tbsp finely chopped onions
3 tsp roasted gram powder
2 tbsp finely chopped tomato
2 tsp coriander leaves, finely chopped
A handful of sev mixture
Method
In a large pan heat oil and add mustard, jeera and a few curry leaves. Let it splutter.
Next, add the finely chopped onion and green chilli. Sauté well till it turns almost golden.
To this, add turmeric and salt. Sauté for another minute.
Add the Kachampuli and the jaggery.
Saute this mixture for 3 minutes.
Next, add roasted gram powder and mix well.
In a large mixing bowl take 2 cups of puffed rice, add in ¼ cup of the prepared masala blend, 2 tbsp onions, 2 tbsp tomato and 3 tsp roasted gram powder. Mix it lightly.
Serve garnished with a few coriander leaves and the sev mixture
source: http://www.slurrp.com / Slurrp.com / Home> Articles / by ShireenJamooji / August 05th, 2022
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