The Cochin Jewish Book Of Rice & Breads

By Dr Essie Sassoon, Bala Menon and Kenny Salem

Rice (ari in Judeo-Malayalam) has always been the staple food of the tiny community of Jews from the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin in Kerala. Rice also has spiritual and religious connotations, because of its association with weddings, festivals and other life cycle events. Kerala is famous for its scenic rice paddies and abundant produce and the Jews used the grain to create scores of dishes. The grain is kosher and not forbidden for Cochinis (as they are called in Israel) even during Passover, under a religious dispensation given to them by religious authorities! Rice takes on many incarnations throughout the day in In Cochini Jewish homes in Israel and Kerala, and continues to be the main fare, with side dishes made according to ages-old recipes. In the early days of their settlement in Israel, the Cochinis hoarded their rations of margarine, olives and wheat to barter these in the kibbutzes with Ashkenazi or European settlers in return for rice for their Shabbat meals. In the 20th century, however, wheat-based breads began to make inroads into Cochin kitchens

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tamarind Tree Books Inc.
• Release date: May 9, 2016
• ISBN: 9780991915767

Dr Essie Sassoon

Retired Gynaecologist. Born in the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin in Kerala; was Specialist Associate Professor at Calicut Medical College, when she volunteered for duty in Israel during the Yom Kippur War, serving at Telashomer Hospital in Ramat Gan; Later became Deputy Head of Department at Barzilai Medical Centre in Ashkelon, where she now lives. Twice honoured for meritorious service, Dr. Sassoon now devotes her time to her hobbies - cooking, sports and folk dancing.

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Introduction

The Cochinim (as the Jews from Cochin are called in Israel), love their food. Living for around 2000 years, in the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin, on the lush, monsoon-swept Malabar Coast in the southwestern corner of India, this close-knit, orthodox community stayed true to the dietary rules of the Bible, adapting the abundant and exotic local produce to develop some wonderful dishes.

Spices, especially the 3 Cs - cardamom, cinnamon and cumin - along with coconut, coriander and pepper dominate their cooking. The Cochin Jewish Book Of Savouries & Veggie Dishes combines the culinary wisdom of over 30 members from the Cochini community, living in India, Israel, United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada.

Some of the recipes are similar to the cuisine of Kerala Hindus, Christians and Muslims, among whom the Cochin Jews lived in close proximity for generations. The Cochinim, however, ensured that their food always remained kosher. This E-book is the fourth and final one in a series of 4 cookbooks in the Spice & Kosher series related to Cochini cuisine.

Kerala’s Jews or Cochinim make up one of the tiniest and most ancient of all Jewish communities in the Diaspora. Most of them settled in Israel after the founding of the country in 1948. Today, there are flourishing Cochini moshavim (settlements) in Israel - Nevatim and Shahar in the southern Negev desert, Aviezer, Mesilat Zion and Taoz near Jerusalem and Kfar Yuval in the far north. Cochinis also live in Binyamina, Petah Tikva, Rishon Le Zion, Ashdod, Jerusalem and Haifa.

The recipes here are not listed in alphabetical order - but arranged with the factoids that accompany some of them.

As they say in Hebrew: Be Te’avon – Enjoy!

What is For Breakfast?

For the Cochin Jews, like other Keralites, breakfast is mostly something made with rice. Apart from eggs, breakfast is generally vegetarian and involves the much-loved grain coming in different forms onto the morning plates, each outdoing the other in taste, in combination with an array of chutneys, stews, curries and dips.

It begins with a batter of rice and urad dhal (black gram), which are ground together with a little water and left covered overnight. In Kerala, this versatile lentil is called uzhunnum parippu and is available whole (black) or split and white with the skin removed.

Festive breakfast table at Rachel Roby's home in Petah Tikvah, Israel.

In many dishes, it takes the role of a spice, adding crunchiness. When the white split lentil is ground, it is the main ingredient in Kerala delicacies like dosa, idli, vada and popadums. Split, decorticated legumes (urad dhal, moong dhal and chana dhal) are also used like spices to make dishes such as rasam and sambhar.

When the batter rises with the dawn, it is ready to be ladled into medium-sized iron griddles or flat saucepans, greased with coconut oil or clarified butter. They are made into blintz-like dosas, the smaller, spongy uthappams; or if steamed to take the shape of little rice cakes (idlis); press it through a mould and it becomes idiyappam or string hoppers. There are also vellayppams and adas in the rice treasure chest.

Throughout Kerala, in small teashops, the favourite breakfast remains the famous puttu - created when fresh, grated coconut is added to powdered rice and steamed in small bamboo logs or coconut shells. Today, aluminum cylinders have come into vogue.

Appam (Rice Fritters)

Appam is one of Kerala’s signature breakfast dishes. A fermented flatbread, made with rice and coconut, it originated in the homes of Jewish settlers in Cochin and was popularized across the state by the Syrian Christians. In some parts of neighbouring Tamil Nadu and in northern Sri Lanka, a similar dish is known as Aappam. There are many varieties of appams made in Cochini Jewish kitchens. Makes 30 to 40 fritters.

Ingredients:

4 cups rice flour

2 large eggs

1 1/2 tsp active yeast

2 tbsp sugar

1 tsp salt

1 3/4 cups water

1 tsp oil

1/2 cup oil for frying

Directions:

Mix all ingredients (including 1 tsp oil) and set aside until batter rises (about 1 hour). Heat 1/2 cup of oil in frying pan until hot. Use a ladle to pour about 2 tbsp of batter into oil and fry until golden. Turn fritter and remove from pan when second side is also browned.

Use up all batter. Drain on paper towels.

Courtesy: Shlomo Mordechai, New York.

(Note: These fritters can also be cooked like pancakes in a deep round-bottomed pot, covered on low heat - Gila Rosenblatt, Aberdeen, N.J.)

Pic: rajeshodayanchal/Wiki-Licence_CC-BY-SA-4.0.

Uthappam (Fluffy, Spiced Crêpes)

Unlike a dosa, which is thin and crisp, the uthappam is similar to a thick pancake with your choice of vegetables mixed into the batter. In Cochin, the favourite is