The legendary relationship of Kerala Catholics and beef

These words are meant for the ones away from home… who misses the taste and flavours of home kitchen.

My dear Catholics….

It’s about each one of you. Its about our culture and our tradition… it’s about nammude kappem pothum.

Think it and I’m sure you’ll desperately feel the nostalgia to go back home and have some hot beef... I’m not talking about chilly beef or beef dry fry. I’m talking (dreaming as well) about nalla nadan pothu curry. As a catholic I learned this tradition of taste from my family and ancestors who loved it, made it and ate it. Here I don’t wanna make it very specific to beef. It’s also pork (but I know not everyone like that too much even though that’s my favourite). 

While I write this I’m not sure why I’m writing this or what’s the reason or even is there a reason for writing it. It’s an instinct just like we move towards the butcher shop at the market after the Sunday mass to buy the freshly arrived red meat.

When I was a child it was a pleasure to cut the meat and wait for it to boil to remove the lid and be the first one to taste the perfectly cut pieces. And while writing about beef I can’t deliberately ignore the fact that beef fry we often see at the wedding receptions has an extra pinch of taste and I’m still researching on how to make it.

Now lets come to the matter... ingane kathi adichirunna mathiyo??? Vellom kazhikande?? So which’s your favourite? Kappa, appam or something else? Anyway I’ll vote for tapioca. And when its home made, I’ll raise both my hands. However, the combination of tapioca and beef is nothing but awesome. Sometimes I feel like I’d pledge anything for a plate of tapioca and beef. But actually there’s a grave fact remains that sometimes I feel bad about tapioca. It’s when I eat tapioca from the street shops in kochi. Its like learning mathematics from your Malayalam teacher. The worst a man can get.

Ok… so I think its time for all of us to go home and eat... yes!! All the classic dishes are waiting... pettannu challanne.. illel thanuth pokathille???