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Malayalam is the language of Kerala.
Keralites are popularly called "Malayalees" for the
language they speak. The people of Kerala form a well
educated society. Kerala is the first state in Indian
with 100% literacy. |
The
women mostly dress themselves in those wonderful
six meters of silk or cotton called SARI. The
more convenient dresses like Churidar and Western
fashion styles are popular among the younger generation.
The men mostly subscribe to trousers and shirt
like the rest of the world. How ever you shouldn't
be surprised if you find them dressed in the traditional
"Kasavu |
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Mundu",
a three to four meter long cotton twin cloth
with silk border, as formal dress and a
colourful cloth called "Kaily" or "Lunky"
at home as the informal dress. Mundu is
more popular in the rural areas. The typical
style of a Malayalee is "Mundu", top covered
with a silk cloth called "Melmundu" and
wooden slippers called as "Methiyadi". The
very interesting thing about a Malayalee
is his Moustache. Almost 90% of the men
having a nice Moustache. It is very easy
to identify a Malayalee. Most of the Malayalees
love to have a nice Beard too. |
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With
Kerala's variety of cultures and traditions, it is only
natural that the cuisine should be influenced by them
and show great variety and creativity. Visitors who
taste the specialities of Kerala invariably want more!
While the Hindus specialise in vegetarian food, the
Christians and Muslims have a variety of exclusive non-vegetarian
dishes. Generous use of coconut and of a variety of
spices is the hallmark of Kerala cooking and seafood,
inevitably, is a big part of Kerala cuisine.
Among the typical breakfast dishes are puttu, made from
rice flour and coconut steamed in bamboo, and appam,
a kind of pancake made from fermented rice flour and
coconut milk batter. Both these are popular with sweet
and savoury accompaniments. Idlis and dosas are also
made from rice flour, one steamed and the other a fine
pancake, and originated in the neighbouring state of
Tamil Nadu.
Rice is the staple for lunch, accompanied by a number
of gravies and dry vegetables, spicy and containing
coconut or coconut milk. Avial, thoren, kaalan, rasam,
olen, pachadi are some of these accompaniments. The
non-vegetarians will include spicy fried meat or fish,
the meen pollichathu which combines small pieces of
fish with grated coconut, or the famous 'Kerala red
fish curry'. The pathiri and kozhi (chicken) curry,
and biriyani are traditional Muslim specialities.
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Tapioca,
or kappa as it is known in Malayalam, is an important
staple and remains very popular. It is cheap, nourishing
and, along with fish curry, provides a balanced diet.
About a century ago the Maharaja of Travancore looked
for a means to avert famines and the death and disease
they caused. He researched several plants to find one
that could be easily grown and would provide a staple
food -- that one was tapioca.
Chips, fried in coconut oil, are a very popular snack
and while banana chips are the most common, one can
also find chips made of jackfruit, tapioca and yam.
The best loved sweet dish, and one that graces almost
every special occasion, is payasam. This is a kind of
sweet porridge that can be made from lentils, or vermicelli
or rice, with jaggery as the sweetener. Jaggery and
coconut milk are, in fact, a part of most sweets. There
are a number of sweet snacks, or palaharams, like aval
velayichathu which is sweetened beaten rice; or avalose
unda, a rice flour and jaggery combination; ada, which
has ripe jackfruit steamed in a rice flour covering;
and many more too numerous to describe. |
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