The foreign influence on Kerala’s cuisine is significant, with each of the religions, from Islam to Syrian Christians, developing their own culinary and cooking styles. Mopla cuisine in the Malabar region has a unique flavor that is adopted by traders who visit the region frequently. Kerala’s cuisine is rich in coconut, rice, tapioca, and spices such as black pepper, cloves, cinnamon, and ginger. The Portuguese introduced cassava, which is widely used in Kerala today.

The area is also famous for the Sadya served at the Hindu festival Onam, where banana leaves contain rice and many vegetarian dishes. Kerala’s cuisine has a long coastline and offers a wide selection of seafood such as fish, shrimp, clams, and crabs.  The flavors and aroma of Kerala cuisines are fortified with chili, curry leaves, mustard seeds, turmeric tamarind, peppercorn, cardamom, cloves, ginger, cinnamon, and asafetida.

16 Kerala Famous Food and Dishes

Puttu and Kadala Curry

This is a staple food that is prepared and served throughout the state. Puttu is a cylindrical steamed rice cake made by cooking dried coconut in a pan. It is generally served with Kadala curry. This is a dish of black chickpeas with shallot, spices, and coconut milk, which can also be served with or dried coconut or ripe bananas.

Puttu and Kandala curries are loved by the Kerala people and are considered one of the most popular traditional Kerala dishes which are served at every small and grand occasion and ceremony. It is also counted as a famous breakfast recipe from many Kerala dishes.

Appam with Stew

Apam with stew, one of the traditional dishes in Kerala, is flavorful and delicious. Kerala’s famous food, made with rice flour, coconut milk, coconut water, and a small amount of sugar, is essentially a thin pancake with a crispy edge. These crepe-like bowls originally come from European stews and are best enjoyed with Ishtu, a stew made from cinnamon, coconut milk, cloves, shallot, and sometimes mango pieces and vegetables.

The sweet scent of coconut milk and the scent of spices are enough to attract gourmets to the kitchen.

Ela Sadya

Ela Sadiya is one of the best meals in traditional Kerala cuisine, and its aroma moisturizes your mouth. Ela Sadya is the king of all food in Kerala. Sadya offers more options than ever before, prepared for religious and ceremonial occasions such as festivals and weddings. This imposing lunchtime culinary combination such as Pachadi, Kichadi, Pulissery, Olan, Sambar, Varavu, Thoran, Aviyal, Payasam is served on banana leaves with hot steamed rice and for that money every day. You can run a huge Thali of choky ticks.

Parippu Curry or Dal Curry

If you’re looking to have a few correct meals to consume in Kerala you then definitely need to attempt out this delicacy of Kerala called Parippu curry. Though unexpected, it’s miles absolutely one of the maximum scrumptious of Kerala meals items. The Dal Curry served in Kerala is crafted from small grams and ghee with a large number of spices and chilies. Don`t miss out on this one by mistaking it in your typical Ghar Ki Dal. You will actually be dissatisfied in case you do so, accept as true with us!

Dosa Ghee Roast with Kerala Style Sambar

There is nothing to deny the fact that India is a land of diversity where food connects us all. If you’re looking for the best food in Kerala, try Dosa Ghee Roast in a Kerala-style Sambar that blows your mouth with great taste. Listed in the “50 Most Delicious Foods in the World”, Dosa and Sambar form a deadly combination in Kerala’s cuisine! Ghee roasted Dosa made from fermented rice and lentils is first perfectly cooked with pure ghee and then roasted until as crispy as possible. It’s arguably the best food in the Kerala area.

Idli Sambar

How about lip-smacking South Indian dishes in Kerala? Idli Sambhar happens to be one of the best foods in Kerala for breakfast and also the best health food in Kerala. Perhaps the most famous food in Kerala, Idli Sambar loves to be eaten not only in every home in Kerala but everywhere in India. Sambar is an exquisite combination of fermented rice cakes and spicy curry using vegetables such as spices and lentils. Idli Sambar is popular with foodies because it is widely accepted not only for its taste but also for its health benefits.

Nadan Kozhi Varuthathu – A special fried chicken dish

Would you like to add spices to the taste buds? Next, there is no national food in Kerala, so you should try one of Kerala’s local dishes, which is spicy chicken or Kerala-style shrimp curry. Nadan Kozhi Varuthathu is a richly seasoned fried chicken with banana leaves, onions, spices, garlic, and vinegar. It can be eaten with Chapati, Kerala Parotta (layered flatbread made from maida flour), hopper, and rice. It also serves as part of the popular street food list on the list of Kerala dishes with Dosa. Take Nadan Kozhi Varuthathu on your next holiday in Kerala. That way, you’ll forget about KFC.

Kerala Style Prawn Curry

If you are in Kerala and you are not a vegetarian, enjoying Kerala’s food culture by ordering Kalimia Pollichathu to eat is a treat for you. This traditional Kerala dish is a must-see for all shrimp lovers! Traditional Kerala shrimp curry, unlike salt and turmeric, is religiously sprinkled with pepper and pepper, cooked with coconut milk and Jaggery, and then served with curry leaves. Trying this exotic seafood dish is one of the best things to do in Kerala. Steamed rice and Chapati will make your trip to heaven hot.

This is a typical state dish. Fenugreek, black mustard, fennel seeds, coconut milk, and green chilies are mixed to make shrimp curry from the Malabar region. It also contains a special ingredient called Kudampuli (also known as a brindle berry), which has a sour taste. We also use marinated shrimp, drumsticks, and raw mango to give it a spicy and flavorful flavor.

Erissery or Pumpkin and Lentil Curry

Cooked from raw plantations or sliced yams, Erissery or pumpkin and lentil curry is a popular curry in Kerala. This generally includes a sweet pumpkin that has been boiled in water with salt, dried lentils, grated coconuts, Chillies or pepper, turmeric powder, cumin seeds, and garlic and is served on a bed of rice. In addition, this dish can be cooked without dropping a single drop of oil. We recommend using a cast iron pot and clay cookware.

Palada Payasam – A mouth-watering dessert

A sweet herd of rice cooked in Parada is a delicacy found in almost every home in Kerala during the Onam festival and many other special occasions. There are many variations, but traditional recipes use only basic ingredients such as rice dairy, milk, sugar, and ghee. Rice Ada is readily available at grocery stores in Kerala, India.

Palada and Ada Pradhaman are the most popular desserts to conclude the festival in Kerala. The main component of both Payasam is a rice flour waffle known as Ada. These are readily available in all markets these days. Fresh rice noodles that make Kheers such as Ada, Palada, and Ada Pradhaman. Traditionally, thin rice flour dough is steamed and crushed into flat noodle pieces.

Nadan Beef or Kerala Style Beef

Kerala may be the only place in India where a foodie can binge on beef without coercion or guilt. Nadan beef is one of the most popular dishes in Kerala and is fried or cooked in a rich sauce. It is completely cooked to melt in your mouth before serving with Parotta, Chapati, or rice. Beef lovers here’s another great reason for you to escape to Kerala.

A Kerala-style beef roast is a very popular and deliciously flavorful dish. Keralites’ favorite is Nadan Beef Baratiya Tu which is also known as Ularthiyathu beef. When someone asks me what’s best for beef, I say to them “beef roast”. It makes everyone drool! Each and every Malayali in the surely loves the combination of beef and tapioca.

Thalassery Biryani

Are you also doubtful of binging on Biryani in Kerala? Of course! It’s actually the most exotic Kerala dish. Among the various parts of Kerala, Calicut and Thalassery offer the most attractive types of biryani in Kerala. Enjoy the taste of Chicken 65 or Stir-fried Chicken with a generous platter of Calicut or Cod Series Biryani for the ultimate biryani experience.

Biryani is the most common dish in the Islamic community. The port of Thalassery was the export center of spices, where European, Arabian and Malabar cultures gathered and influenced the cuisine. Thalassery Biryani uses a unique fragrant small grain of thin rice called Kaima. Biryani masala and cooked rice are layered in a bowl. The meat is cooked with masala over low heat and layered with rice before the container lid is closed with a batter. Then hot coal or charcoal is placed on the lid.

Erachi Varutharacha curry with Malabar Parotta

One of the most loved, traditional, and popular dishes in Kerala, Erachi Varutharacha Curry is a must-see if you are not a vegetarian. This dish is from the Christian community in Syria and is full of flavors that enhance the flavor of the meat. You certainly haven’t cooked mutton this way, so it’s a good idea to give it a try. The best way to savor it is the renowned Malabar Parotta mutton curry. Yes, this is exactly this Malabar Parotta, a major specialty of Kerala. Visiting Kerala and not trying Malabar-Parotta is a crime. And not trying some of the popular curries in Kerala dishes would be a bigger crime!

Banana Fritters

Ethakka Appam or Pazham Pori is a juicy banana fritter, a popular teatime snack in Kerala. You are a perfect example of simple tenderness. Ripe bananas were coated with flour and fried in oil. However, you can take it simple but it tastes better when served with a hot cup of tea or coffee. Is it possible that something goes wrong? We do not believe.

Sulaimani Chai – One for the road

Calicut’s food culture has been greatly influenced by its long-standing connection with the Middle East. Sulaimaani is an Indian black tea where another crushed cardamom, grated ginger, tea powder, and Jaggery meet lemon and tea powder. Not only is it refreshing at all times of the day, but it is also a great (non-alcoholic) Digestif after a long meal.

Chatti Pathiri

Vegetarians have many options, but the sweet delicacy Palada Payasam should be tried. Enjoy some of Kerala’s most vegetarian options. Chatti Pathiri is a layered pastry made in the North Malabar and the Malabar region of Kerala. Similar to lasagna in Italy. The difference is that the Keralite version uses flatbread or pancakes made from flour, eggs, water, and oil instead of the cheese platter. The contents are the best part of these sweet Kerala dishes! Chapati is sweet and filled with beaten eggs, nuts, and raisins and seasoned with cardamom.

When you chew these, you are sure to forget your western version of crepe pancakes and pastries! It is arguably one of the best foods in Kerala. This water is made by boiling the heartwood of Suou (Redwood or “Sappanwood” in East India), a multipurpose tree widely used for various medicinal purposes in Kerala. Pathimugam has been hugely used since ancient times and is believed to be a wonderful herbal medicine.

The list of lip-smacking and delicious dishes in Kerala doesn’t end here and there are a lot more dishes that one can savor on their vacation in Kerala. If you are also looking for a holiday destination where you can enjoy tasting mouth-watering delicacies then check out our well customized Kerala tour packages and enjoy your Kerala Tour Itinerary to the utmost level.

Frequently Asked Questions about Kerala Cuisine

What is the traditional food of Kerala?

Ans– All those dishes that contain certain specific spices like ginger, black pepper, clove, and cinnamons are considered as the traditional foods of Kerala.

Which is the most famous fish in Kerala?

Ans– Pearl Spot Karimeen Fish is the most loved fish in Kerala and when it comes to seafood then locals, as well as travelers, love binging on lobster or prawn.

What can we purchase from Kerala?

Ans– Shopping in Kerala is another exciting activity that you can enjoy with your family, friends, and travel companions. Essential oils, Kathakali Mask, Banana chips, Jewelry, coconut, coir products, and sarees are some of the must-buy things in Kerala.

How budget-friendly is Kerala cuisine?

Ans– If you are a foodie and love tasting varied dishes then Kerala is one of the best places where you can enjoy different flavors of food. Also, the best thing about this southern state is that here you get to binge on mouth-watering foods at very affordable and pocket-friendly rates.