COVER STORY
Changing eating habits and a plethora of tempting delicacies Vineetha Varma
The youth of Kerala growing up with a different set of food habits than that of their parents. The ubiquitous plastic packets with their eye-catching contents have replaced the bharanis in many kitchens. Where earlier breakfast meant hours of soaking, grinding and fermenting for idlis and dosas, it’s now a snap with boxes of colourful cereals, bread, jam, cheese and butter.
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s a 30-something working mother of a young lad with a voracious appetite and a discerning palate, I find it a challenge to feed him something that is appealing to the eye, tasty, nutritious and ready in no time all rolled into one.
It takes me back to my childhood days growing up in a large Keralan household where food was an integral part of daily life. My earliest happy memories were always associated with various sounds and aromas that arose from the kitchen of the ancestral home. Those were the days when advanced culinary skills were de rigueur for any self-respecting matriarch and with an army of domestic helps and fresh produce
Pallikkutam | April 2014
from one’s own land, a staggering amount of varied delicacies was churned out on a daily basis. Eating out was looked down upon and seasonal snacks were painstakingly made and stored away in large bharanis to be savoured throughout
when parents are working full time to make ends meet, it is indeed a challenge for any mother to be able to provide tasty nutritious meals as did her mother or grandmother. With urbanization, numerous bakeries, supermarkets and eateries have
the year. Refrigeration was unheard of and every meal was freshly prepared from scratch. Each meal session was sheer pleasure for the taste buds.
now bridged that gap—savouries and delicacies which were once rare and required hours of toiling have now become readily available. For those mothers who don’t have an option to spend hours in the kitchen, the instant gravies, spice mixes and powders are all means to be able to provide good food to one’s families without the guilt. Meals can be made much in advance and stored in large refrigerators
Things have changed, and how! Gone are those days where full-time domestic help was within easy reach. With nuclear families living in apartment blocks and tiny homes, coupled with the lack of time
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