What is special on the menu for different communities in Kerala during Deepavali

different communities in kerala make a wide range of sweets and savouries during deepavali

There is more to Deepavali than lamps and crackers, it is also a time to binge on a delicious platter of sweets and savouries. The spread is varied for each community. MetroPlus looks at what is on the Deepavali plate of various communities that have made Kerala their home.

“Deepavali is about an elaborate oil bath, sumptuous breakfast and fireworks,” says K Gomathy Ammal, Thiruvananthapuram-based writer and member of the Tamil Brahmin community. Ukkarai/okkarai, a sweet dish made with split Bengal gram, jaggery, coconut and ghee, and Inji lehyam, a medicinal mix, are must-haves for Deepavali. The lehyam is consumed soon after the customary oil bath. “Idli and chutney is had with with any type of vada. Sometimes we prepare vellayappam, a deep-fried snack made with rice, fenugreek, urad dal, ginger, green chilli, curry leaves and mustard. Wheat halwa is also made,” Gomathy adds.

Every Deepavali, Jyothi Venkitasubramanian, from Mattancherry in Kochi makes ukkarai, a family favourite. The sweet is a bit labour intensive, “but once you get the mixture right, it is delicious,” says Jyothi. In terms of savoury, it is always the ribbon pakkavada that scores. “Almost all Tamil households make the ribbon pakkavada for Deepavali, and mixture too,” she adds. “Now-a-days, people don’t eat too many sweets for health reasons, but one sweet and one savoury would definitely be part of the Deepavali special menu,” she adds. 

However, ukkarai and inji lehyam are not prepared in the Tamil households in Palakkad, says Vidhya Shanker who stays at Kalpathy in the district. “Idli-chutney-sambar combo is common for breakfast, along with homemade snacks and sweets. There will be ribbon pakkavada, thenkuzhal, muthusaram (crunchy snack made with rice and dal), omappodi, and sweets such as Mysore pak, ladoo, rava ladoo, wheat halwa etc.

Muthusankari Manikandan, who belongs to the Tamil-speaking Reddiar community in Thiruvananthapuram, says, “Kaimurukku and athirasam are a must for Deepavali. In addition, we make wheat halwa, thattai, thenkuzhal murukku, uzhunnuvada, pakkavada, ring murukku, cheeda etc.”

Deepavali celebrations extends over five days for Maharashtrians. “We perform Lakshmi puja on Deepavali day and whatever we prepare is offered to the deity. My mother used to say that the goddess likes sweets made of besan (gram flour) and rice,” says Smriti Pandey, a resident of Thiruvananthapuram who hails from Maharashtra. So there will be besan ladoo, karanji (deep-fried dumplings with sweet coconut filling), anarsa (sweet rice flour pastry), shankarpale (deep-fried snack made from rice flour), and savouries such as chiwda (crispy snack mix) and chakli (a variety of murukku). Puri,aloo sabji, kheer, pooran poli, bhajiya... etc are also prepared. “We don’t use onion or garlic in any of the main course dishes,” she says.

Lai batasha, which is puffed rice and sugar candy in circular shape, is another Deepavali special. “Since my husband is from Uttarakhand, I also make singhal Kumaoni, a Deepavali special from his place. It looks like jalebi and the ingredients are rice flour/semolina, banana, milk, curd, ghee and sugar,” she says.