Tulunaadu has its own food system when it comes to different seasons. Depending on the availability of the resources and people’s adaptability level to the environment, each food system has several stories behind it. One such food that is a must try during the aati (rainy) season is colocasia leaf curry (chetla).
During rainy seasons, there is no shortage of plants, including weeds; and bushes that are visible everywhere. This is the time of year when colocasia is visible everywhere and readily available.
How to prepare the curry
The leaves must be collected and washed the day before so that they can dry. Before rolling, the peduncle of the leaf needs to be removed and then the leaves should be rolled into a spiral shape, folded spirally 3 to 4 times, and finaly knotted carefully so the leaves do not tear during this process.
The other vegetables, such as cucumber and potato, can be added to make the curry extra tasty. Few will add only chilly, coriander, jeera as well as tamarind and grind the mixture into a smooth paste. After tempering, the ground paste is added to heat up, and after checking the consistency, the rolled leaves can be added. It only takes a few minutes to bring the leaves to a boil, and you can remove them from the heat after adding the appropriate amount of salt. This can also be made as “Kootu.” There are other ways to prepare and the jackfruit seed as well as chetla are the best combination food ever.
Curry’s Advantages
In Tulunadu the rainy season is a complete package of constant rain falls. Earlier during this season, people used to work in the paddy field from morning until evening. A day cannot be missed as the important work of agriculture is being done in that season. However, colocasia leaves provide heat to the body temperature, thus keeping body temperature warm helping in avoiding normal rainy season diseases such as cough, cold, or fever.
In a few places, even grandmothers are attempting to bring this traditional food into the spotlight. However ,people now a days like instant food which hardly need any preparation. So let us slightly break the laziness, and why don’t we give a try to this mouth-watering curry in the next rainy season?
