Tamil Nadu is a hot favorite spot for tasting the various south Indian dishes, both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. The tourist here gets to taste the dishes that might not be very famous in north India but are equally delicious, if not better than the ones that are famous. The menu only gets bigger during the festivals which by no means, can be called few. During the festival of Pongal, the varieties of delicacies, right from the spiciest food to the sweetest desert, increase many folds. To relish these sumptuous delights one surely has to come to these land.
1. Uttapam
Uttappam with toppings
Uttapam is a dish very similar to the dosa, and is a specialty of Tamil Nadu food. It is made by grinding the Urad Dal and rice powder together. It is then allowed to ferment for a few hours and then slow fried over very minimal oil over a skillet. Uttapam is flat and crispy at the sides just like a dosa but soft and doughy in the middle like an Idli. The uttapam is then given a little topping of tomatoes, onions, capsicum etc. It tastes delicious with either coconut chutney or Sambar, however I would recommend the coconut chutney. You can also try it with the spicy tomato and chilli chutney which tastes quite heavenly.
2. Banana Bonda
Tamil Nadu food surprises!
It tastes as good as it looks- Banana Bonda
I know all of you have seen and eaten Bondas, but this bonda has a different stuffing though cooked in the same way. Instead of adding potato and other veggies to it, it is stuffed with banana which is then fried in oil. Contrasting the usual spicy Bonda, this is sweet due to the banana and is eaten as snack with tea. Tamil Nadu food never ceases to amaze!
3. Rasam
Rasam ? The Watery soup with a lot of flavour.
Rasam is my personal favourite! Tamarind forms the base of this soup like dish, and added to it are tomatoes, pepper and cumin seed. The rasam is almost a pre-meal appetizer, which is light and doesn?t fill you up too much before a meal. The rasam is a famous dish that is poured over the rice like a normal curry. Though it is almost colorless, it has a burst of flavour. You can also drink it as you would a soup. It is good for sore throat too.
4. Dosa
The Poster boy of Tamil Nadu Food
Paper dosa served in a cone shape.
There are so many types of Dosas. There are a few famous kinds of dosa which are available all over the country. Let?s start with paper dosa. Most of the dosas are paper-thin and like all the other Tamil Nadu Food, it is made by a batter with the mixture of urad dal and rice, spread over a pan and cooked mildly. It is then shaped into a thin paper like layer and served in a cone shape along with some chutney and sambar. All the other dosas are made in the same way but depending on their names the extra ingredients are added. Like the egg dosa has the same procedure but an egg is cracked and poured onto the dosa, spread across and cooked along with the dosa in some oil/ghee.
Some other kinds of dosas are:
Tomato Dosa, Onion Dosa, Rawa Dosa, Vegetable Dosa, Plain Dosa, Masala Dosa etc.
5. Muruku
Something to munch on with tea
Muruku on a banana leaf.
Muruku is one of the most famous snacks that got its origin from Tamil Nadu, and its name means twisted. Again, the batter for the muruku is made by a mixture of rice flour and urad dal with some salt, water, cumin seed etc. It is then deep fried in oil in various shapes till it turns hard. It is loved by people all over India.
6. Sambar
Sambar with many different ingredients.
Sambar is a curry just like the dal but what makes it differ is the different spices and vegetables that are used to prepare it. Sambar is a little sour because of the tamarind base that it is prepared in, and consists of various vegetables. Some of the famous vegetables used to make Sambar are: Drumsticks, Brinjal, Pumpkin, potatoes and radish. One of the main ingredients that gives it the taste is the use of curry leaves. This Tamil Nadu food accompaniment is served with almost all the South Indian dishes be it rice, idli, dosa etc, and it tastes brilliant with almost all of them!
7. Coconut chutney
Coconut chutney.
Uruttu Chammanti is the local name for coconut chutney in Tamil Nadu. It is made with grounded coconut, dry red chilly (particularly roasted red chilly) ginger, mustard seed and served cold along with the dishes such as Dosa, Idli, Vada. It tastes delicious and the coconut gives it a flavour that perfectly balances out with all the other dishes.
8. Idli and Vada
Tamil Nadu food to relish!
Idli and vada in one plate.
Idli and Vada, collectively save breakfasts for people who are late in the mornings, almost everytime! These Tamil Nadu food items complement each other beautifully, and are total comfort foods. Idli is made with a mixture of urad dal and rice and looks like a small, spongy pancake once cooked and is one of the signature dishes of Tamil Nadu.
Vada, on the other hand, is either doughnut-shaped or round like an idli and is prepared with fermented Bengal gram mixed with curry leaf, cumin seed and mustard seed. The vada is then shaped and deep fried giving us a crispy yet soft food served with sambar and coconut chutney.
9. Lemon Rice
The best way to avoid wasting rice is by making it into lemon rice.
A lifesaver dish for all those moms who are running late on tiffins, this Tamil Nadu food dish has oodles of flavor that pops in your mouth with its unique tang. Moreover, lemon rice is a quick and tasty dish 0and is pretty easy to make! A seasoning of onions, tomatoes, curry leaf, red chilly, salt and lemon juice is made and cooked rice is added and fried with the seasoning. Some groundnuts and added to the dish to give it some crunchiness and balance out the sour taste of lemon and served with chutney or vegetable salad.
10. Paruppu Payasam
A simple sweet treat from Tamil Nadu
The delicious looking Paruppu Payasam
One of the best sweet dishes of Tamil nadu is the Paruppu Payasam. It is made by roasting Moong dal and cooking it in the pressure cooker. Some jaggery syrup is added to the mashed moong dal and stirred till completely cooked. This is then served with roasted cashew nuts and tastes very rich and creamy.
