It’s Puthari once again, and this year I’m hearing how the standing rice crops have been badly affected by unseasonal rains in some parts of Coorg. In other places, large areas have been destroyed by elephants, wandering further in search of food, after the mass flowering and subsequent withering of large tracts of the bamboo forests not long ago.

As every farmer knows too well, all the year’s work can come to nothing in the blink of an eye, and losing that precious rice crop means hard times for the family and community. Rice is the staple of millions of people around the world, and of course it really is the heart of Kodava cuisine. Where would we be without akki ottis and all the many kinds of puttus?! When those new grains of paddy are sprinkled on the Puthari payasa, it’s a moment of thanksgiving and hope for the year ahead.

With the easy access most of us have to foods grown far from the place we call home, Puthari is a good time to pause and give thanks to those anonymous farmers whose hard work puts the food we eat on our plates.

One food that is closely associated with Puthari celebrations, is the Puthari kalanji – a variety of yam that is harvested at this time of year.

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November can be the most challenging month in Vancouver. It’s wet, cold, and windy. The weekly weather forecast usually sounds something like “rain, rain, showers, heavy rainfall warning, cloudy with a chance of showers, rain and windy conditions, and a Sunday special – more rain!”

It really is impossible to tell what time of day it is by simply glancing out of the window, because the sun makes rare guest appearances. Sometimes it appears just around sunset, cracking a little break in the clouds to remind you it’s still sunny somewhere else on the planet. Forget fifty shades – Vancouver natives probably have a hundred words for November greys! It’s too easy to get really crotchety, craving sunshine, light, and colour, or hoping for some snow to come along, just to pretty up the scenery.

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After all that reminiscing about early mornings in my grandmother’s kitchen, I just had to rustle up a batch of my favourite chutney ever. I may not have hot off the fireplace akki ottis available to me at breakfast too often these days, but this chutney, on a bit of toast, goes a long way towards satisfying the craving 🙂

Ellu pajji

A spiced sesame and coconut chutney, with just a hint of smokiness

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