Thursday, January 07, 2016

Idli

From The tale of Idli: "K.T. Acharya, the food historian, speculates that the modern idli might have originated in the region that is now Indonesia (also about what ancient characters ate), which has had a long tradition of fermented food. According to him, cooks employed by the Hindu kings of the local kingdom may have invented the steamed idli there, and brought the recipe to India during the period 800-1200 CE. But this theory is being questioned by modern food historians such as Lizzie Collingham, Kristen Gremillion, Raymond Grew, Makhdoom Al-Salaqi (Syria), Zahiruddin Afiyaab (Lebanon). "
Some information about K.T.Acharya here. Another Indianfood expert Pushpesh Pant
More on what Rama and Sita ate (by D.Balasubramanian, here too) rom K.T. Acharya: "Lords Rama, Lakshmana and Devi Sita ate a vast menu that contained fruits, leafy vegetables, rice and meat. Achaya quotes a book stating that Rama and Lakshmana, while in exile at Dandakaranya, hunted animals for the pot, and that a favourite of Sita was rice cooked with venison, vegetables and spices (the dish called Mamsabhutadana). Of course, Lord Rama enjoyed eating the fruit ber (zizyphus) that Sabari tasted and gave him." Probably more in his book, some quotes here.

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