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AN ENAK! EXPERIENCE
A Kerala Sadya was served on Thursday Oct 11th at Kayra Restaurant, 46, Jalan Tun Mohd. Fuad 1, Taman Tun Dr. Ismail, 60000 Kuala Lumpur. Thirteen beautiful ladies partook of a truly delightful experience. Seated before a wall painted with a beautiful scene of a Kerala shoreline of houseboats, coconut palms and an idyllic pastoral setting, we relaxed in a cool air conditioned place with a great ambience. |
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| We had a Thali experience, that is food was served in the traditional manner on a bed of coconut palm on a “silver” platter, a mound of rice with six small portions served in six small bowls around the platter. There was a lentil gravy, an avial which is a mixed veg in a light mixed spice sauce, an intriguing red dish which proved to be shredded beetroot with shredded coconut, a tofu in yellow gravy with cumin and coconut milk, a fried cutlet which proved to be a tapioca and shredded coconut puff and a sweet dessert dish called “payasam” made with green gram. Payasam is a very popular sweet served at the end of a meal in Kerala. It had interesting hard bits in it which proved to be pieces of coconut, some cashews fried in ghee with coconut milk and brown jaggery which is a kind of sugar. This was the vegetarian fare. Those who opted for the fish had a fried mackerel in curry sauce and you could order a fried chicken if you so wished to complement your meal. There was also a handkerchief-sized chapati folded in quarters and crispy papadums. A delightful meal altogether although I thought the portions looked too small, yet after the meal there was a feeling of having eaten too much. | ||
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| Kerala is a pastoral land of coconut palms, rice fields and seas teeming with fish. People from Kerala speak Malayalam. Many Keralites or Malayalis have migrated to Malaysia and made their home here. Payasams, avials and kootus are household words and the ubiquitous coconut is a must in most dishes. Mamak food served by the Muslim Mamak Malayalis has its roots in Kerala and is a common street food here in Malaysia. The Christian Malayalis have their specialities like chicken stews, fish and chicken cutlets tapioca yucca curries, hot and spicy vindaloos, apoms with coconut milk and steamed and baked rice flour cakes with cashew nuts and raisins. The list goes on. | ||
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May the Enak experience open the doors to savouring more Malayali or Keralite food, which is an experience in itself. Kerala is a vast country and is often known as God’s own country! According to Hindu mythology Kerala was created by Lord Parasurama, an incarnation of Vishnu, by throwing his axe across the sea to create new land for his devotees to live peacefully. So, Kerala became God’s own creation and is known as God’s own country!
Review by Ivy Goh |
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