Hello everyone! As you all know, we’ve just been to Kerala to attend HRH the son and his beautiful bride’s Hindu wedding. I just can’t forget the experience of the wedding feast, which was served for all of us guests, 500 of us. It was called Sadya which means banquet in Malayalam. It is a variety of pure vegetarian dishes traditionally served on a banana leaf.
We had the nalukootan sadya with four kari, which are istoo, avial, erisseri and kalan (Wikipedia). The spine of the banana leaf is taken as the central dividing line. The narrow end of the leaf is on the guest’s left. Pickles and chutneys are placed on the extreme left below the dividing line. The chutneys are pulinji and injithairu and the pickles comprise chetthumanga kari and lime pickle.
Above the pickles and chutneys on the other side of the dividing line, papadum, plantain chips, savoury elephant foot yam chips and a ripe banana are placed. The banana is the short, sweet kadalipazham. The papadum are placed over the chips without covering them entirely.
All the kari are served above the dividing line. They are placed in a row with a little space between each. Below the dividing line and on the extreme right, salt and a pigeon pea dish is placed.
The rice is served with a serving utensil woven out of split bamboo and in cylindrical. The rice is served by jerking the basket in a smooth motion. No ladles or spoons are used. Then the sambar is poured onto the rice.
Once the meal has been finished, it is closed along the centre. Closing the leaf away from you signifies complete satisfaction with the food and closing it towards you would means a signal to the cooks that it needs improvement. I closed my leaf away from me. The food was really delicious!
For: Dining in Tokyo, SEASONS – BEGIN THE FOURTH WEEK OF AUGUST
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