Kothu Parotta – Divine food from Madurai!
Madurai, the capital of the Pandiya kingdom, is today a bustling city in Tamil Nadu, a city that never sleeps. If you are a food lover, then Madurai with its wonderful cuisine is the city to head to. It’s is well connected by rail, road and air so getting there is easy; getting away from its many charms is however pretty difficult!
The region has a rich cuisine with rice, lentils and vegetables being the main traditional ingredients; however with urbanization, meals have become a little less elaborate.
Kothu Parotta (meaning minced parotta) is a delightful street food popular throughout Tamil Nadu and best eaten from a roadside eatery with the resonating sounds of pounding with a heavy spatula as this dish is prepared in a cast-iron griddle. The first bite of this dish and you are transported to another world with its mix of crispy, flaky, peppery and delicately sweet balance of ingredients! There are many variants of this dish and you can have it as vegetarian or with eggs alone or combined with chicken or mutton.
Here is the recipe for the egg variant:
Ingredients-
- Parotta – 5
- Eggs – 3
- Onions (chopped) – 2
- Tomatoes (chopped) – 1
- Ginger (crushed) – 1”
- Garlic (crushed) – 5 clove
- Green chillies (chopped) – 2
- Fresh curry leaves – 10
- Coriander leaves – to garnish
- Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
- Cumin seeds – ½ tsp
- Fennel seeds – ¼ tsp
- Red chilli powder – ½ tsp
- Black pepper powder – ¼ tsp
- Salt – to taste
- Oil – 2 tbsp
Method
Heat oil in a heavy wok and add cumin and fennel seeds along with curry leaves; when the seeds splutter, add the chopped onions, ginger, garlic and green chilies. Fry for 4-5 minutes, stirring constantly till they become translucent. Then add the tomatoes along with all the powdered spices and salt. Blend well while stirring constantly.
Cut the parottas into bite sized pieces and add into the above mix. Toss very well to mix all the pasty ingredients together. When adding the eggs, create a little space in the center of your wok and add a few drops of oil; increase the flame to high and add the eggs. Give them 2 minutes to cook partially before starting the same routine of tossing and turning. By now you must be already drooling at the wonderful mix of heavenly aromas wafting your way. But wait, you aren’t done yet till you have garnished it with fresh coriander leaves.
This dish is best enjoyed hot from the fire and served with onion raita. Savor an earthy taste that not many dishes can compete with!
