Monday, September 21, 2009

Once upon a time……..

kadalinakkare ponore, kaana ponninu ponore
kadalinakkare ponore, kaana ponninu ponore
poy varumbol enthu kondu varum -- kai niraye
poy varumbol enthu kondu varum
oho..ho.. oho..ho.. oho..ho.. oho..oh..

‘poyi verumbol enthu ondaaki therrum.. vayar niraye ?’…… that was the question Pareekutty asked Karuthamma as he was preparing for a fishing expedition…Karuthamma who was standing demurely behind the coconut tree replied…

‘adhehathinnu fish biriyani undaaki thanaal mathiyoo…’


‘yes Karu darling…that sounds good!! ’ …… Pareekutty replied

Karuthamma holding a palm leaf in her hand timidly stepped towards him ….

‘But kochumuthalaali…. kochumuthalaaliyude Atkins diet enthu aavum……..’

She was worried about kochumuthalaali’s health….After all he was gaining weight these days…

Pareekutty held Karuthamma ‘s hands and said….

‘Atleast not this day karale…namakku fish biriyani adichitttu ee kadalinakkare paadi paadi nadakkam…what say….’

‘Oh chetta…how romantic!!’ Karuthamma mumbled turning her face away shyly with her fingers to her chin…..

Not wanting to waste much time… Pareekutty hurried up to his thoni….It was thundering in the backdrop….. Karuthamma glanced at the rough seas and asked her boyfriend….

“Pakshe chetta….look at the clouds...hear the thunders…and the sea is rough…..”

Karuthamma looked quite worried….but Pareekutty walked ahead unperturbed for he knew it was global warming…..As he was about to launch his thoni to the waters he turned back and yelled in a deep baritone voice…..

‘I ll BE BACK….’

Karuthamma blew a flying a kiss as he faded away into the vast Arabian Sea…

As she was on way back to her hut she went to Foodworld nearby and bought about 1 kilo basmati rice….and ghee… It has been long time since she has made fish biriyani and so she had no choice but to visit a nearby internet café…. There she found a blog by Seenachechi who had written down how to make it… She took a print out and ran home before her dad found her. Once at home she turned on the radio…it came to life….and there was music in Radio Mirchi...


“Maanennum Vilikkilla

That song was not a favourite of hers…she changed the station…..

Maanasamaine varoo… Maanasamaine varoo…

The song touched her heart and no sooner since she finished slicing 6 big onion and 8 green chillies, tears welled up in her eyes…But there was no one to comfort her….After all Kadalamma was her only comfort at times…It was after all kadalamma who gave her both Pareekutty and Salmon which she needed for the Biriyani.. After marinating about 700 gms of Salmon with a paste made of 2 tbsp ginger-garlic paste, 4 tsp chilli powder, half teaspoon turmeric, 1tsp pepper, 1 tsp fennel powder, salt and lime juice she rested for sometime…. She picked the nearby Manorama magazine spend reading a story by her favourite author Thakazhi saar for the next 30 min… That’s when she remembered she had to slice the Thakali’s…Wasting no time she sliced 4 tomatoes into thin pieces… But then she was stuck with a big dilemma…But she had no choice…. She immediately set to her parent’s home….


“Mummy…”

“Entha Karuthammye…..”

“Mummy…enikku alpum kashuvandi theraamo…..”

She immediately went back home collecting 50 gms cashewnut….She was happy to avoid meeting her daddy Chembankunju whom she could not ever forgive….As a reminder of his betrayal there still adorned in her kitchen…the dowry he gave it her hubby….. A LG microwave oven… She put 3 cups of rice along with 6 cups of water, 3 cardamoms, 4 cloves, 2-3 pieces of cinnamon, salt, tsp ghee, bay leaves and a pinch of saffron… She set it to 20 min and fried the fish in the meanwhile… In rhythm to sound of fish getting fried in hot oil she started humming her favourite song…

Pennaale pennaale karimeen kannaale kaanaale
Pennaale pennaale karimeen kannaale kaanaale
Kanni thaamara poomole aha..
Kanni thaamara poomole aha..Pennaale pennaale

She stopped singing coz she could hear a familiar voice humming in the back ground….

Puthan valakkare…puthan valakkare…

“Damn it...” she said…. Any moment Pareekutty would be home….


“Palani chetta… innu chakkara aanu..fishing innu povunnu ille…”

Fishing was Palani’s first love...and he was promised fish Biriyani as well when he would be back home…


After frying the onions until brown, karuthamma added 2 tbsp ginger garlic paste to it….And after some time she added 1 tbsp garam Masala, 1 tsp coriander powder, salt and sautéed for sometime.. And finally she added the sliced tomatoes along with coriander leaves and allowed it too cook for a couple of minutes…Once she was sure that the tomatoes were cooked she reduced the flame and added half cup curd to it… And then finally she added the fried fish and allowed it to cook for a couple of minutes…

But meanwhile something was cooking in the deep seas….Pareekutty and Palani were fishing in the same area….It was recipe for a final showdown…. The deep seas and two men fight it out…and both agreed only one man would have the fish Biriyani…

Unaware of it Karuthamma layered the rice and the fish mix on a pan which was coated with ghee…She garnished it with fried cashewnut and coriander leaves….After closing the lid she allowed the whole mix to cook on a low flame for a couple of minutes… She knew the aroma of the Biriyani would go far out into the arabikadal and bring back either of the dudes..

It has been almost 1 hr since she has been waiting… She got worried… Where are they!!!

Then someone knocked the door… She couldn’t bear to know who was it…

“Karuthammyeeeeeee…..” A deep voice echoed……..

She opened the door slowly… Stood in front of her…the man….the man who was her real love…her childhood crush.. The man who deserved the fish Biriyani…

“chettaaaaaaaa……..” karuthamma cried……

The man sniffed the air inside and he knew what was cooking…
karuthammykku fish biriyani ishtamaano…”

“Marikunathu vere…” Karuthamma replied in a shivering voice..
That evening Jayan chettan and Karuthamma had a candlelight dinner at Neendakara….while 2 bodies washed ashore somewhere nearby....


Jayan chettan had a camera which he got after a recent fight with some kollaakaars...so he took some pics too..






50 comments:

Ria Mathew said...

Mathew!! It's 2.57 am in India and when I couldn't hold back my sleep, said good nite to my fiance (over chat)and was planning to log out...but I saw this update on my google reader and I set out to read it!

Now I am wide awake!! LOL! Man, you write so well! Never expected so much when I saw ur comment at Mishmash!

Enikku eppol fish biriyani venam! Enikkuvendi kadalil poyi meen pidichu konduvarille chette! Ooops! I mean chetta! :P :P

Just kidding! :)

mathew said...

@Riaammyee.. ;-D
That comment came so fast!! it was hardly 5 min since i had published the post..;-)

i was afraid this post was a drag..that comment made me cheer up too..thanks a lot.:)

yeah..as per your request..let me go get my yacht...ethu meen venam...oru vamban shraavu mathiyoo....LOL!!! ;-D

Annie said...

The fragarance of a famous story spreaded in a fish biriyani! Real talent! Enjoyed the essence. Learned how leisurely and lovingly one can prepare a fish biriyani. Thank you.

thomas said...

Very innovative food blogging. aa pics il kaanunna biriyani kittiyirunnenkillllllll.........vayar nirakkamaarunnu.

mazhaa said...

*sigh* u hve left me hungry for sum biriyani......dushtan!!!

@ 1 in the morning....

Pramod Abraham said...

LOL Fundo Remix .... Working on any film script by any chance ?

നിലാവ് said...

OMG..!! i am not a fan of fish biriyani...but loved your fish biriyani! and the story+recipe combo is great!

mathew said...

@Annie
thanks a lot...yeah..actually i find making a biriyani much less of a chore than a full meal..atleast a biryani last for two meals..:-)

@Thomacha
nee boat inte valathottu net idu..nee oru koythu vaarum..;-P

@Mazhaa
hehe..atleast i feel gratified..:-P
I have been suffering from this problem surfing many a food blogs... thanks for visiting..

@Pramod
thanks buddy... err..what did you say..film...:-O

@നിലാവ്
glad to know it was enjoyable..well i like almost all kinds of food..:-P

Today in office i am goin to have 'Himmel und Erde'..translated to 'Heaven and earth'..a classic german fare..:-D

Ria Mathew said...

Vamban shravu?!!? LOL!!! :P :P

And btw this post was very innovative :)

Ratish Naroor said...

Loved the recipe and the style .Keep up the great skill :)

s said...

love ur writing style...its.eh different!

Usha said...

mouthwatering!!

n what a story to go along!! ROFL

The Holy Lama said...

Beerankunju aanallo matte blogil, evdeyo biriyaniyum. Innu kol adiche. Mosham illa, kazhivu apaarum thanne:D

Small Talk said...

Two days back I was in Calicut and had Zainatata's fish biryani...it ws to die for.....
I m back after my short vaccation and u blog abt the same....thts too gud a coincidence...
If ever you are in Calicut during the month of Ramzan please try and go to Zainatata's house for yummy Ramzan palaharam...
She makes runs a small eatery only during the holy month of Ramzan (so I was told) and sells Malabar Muslim delicacies....
Everythng gets sold in less than 2 hours....
Authentic food served with lots of love....erachi pathiri and fish biryani were the only things I could gorge on coz rest everythng gt over by then.....
Btw ur write and snaps are good....Gave me the required push to start working after holidays !!!

Abhilash said...

Hi new to your blog...

You write really funny and good...

I liked your cooking version of Chemeen... oh! sorry fish biriyani :)

Keep writing boss...

kochuthresiamma p .j said...

that was real great.how well you write!

can i try out the recipe? or is it an untried figment of your imagination? reads genuine, tho.

the pics - so apetiting.

really great read.

mathew said...

@Ria
:-)

@Ratish
I never knew you read my blog!!! thanks da!!:-D

@S
thank you..and thanks for visiting..

@Usha
thanks a lot..

@The Holy Lama
hehe...thanks your holiness...:-P
Yeah..Beer and Biriyani makes a great combo..hehe..

@Small Talk
eh..why tempt me with such details...the last time i was in calicut was in 2003...so you know how frequent i could get!!:(

thanks for the tip..will tell my friends there to take me there whenever i go there..

@Abhilash
thanks for visiting..:-)
it tastes good too...hehe..

@kochuthresiamma chechi
thanks a lot!!:-)
well..actually i did make it..and the recipe is true..do check out the link from Seena chechi..i followed almost the same recipe..and it turned out good!! though i used salmon..

Seena said...

thanks mathewchaya... :)
nannayittundu ketto.. karuthammem pareekkutteem fishbiryaneem okke koode.. pinne just imagined karuthamma blowing the flying kiss.. :)

xxx said...

hey mathew....

man i always liked ur blog.... but this time your writting skill is amzing ........

was not able to control my laugh ....

too good yaar . you in germany rite... hope can meet you next yr in germany.....:)

Divz said...

cheemeen ill ninnu inspire aayitu chemeen biriyani alley ondakandirinthu!! enthayalum kollam...pakshe eethuley twist vayicha thakazhi uncleinnu heart attack varumallo!!

Tt said...

truly innovative post...u made it sound so easy.....n the twist in the end was real funny...gud work

Dreamer said...

Wow! Absolutely hilarious! Be careful though - if some out of work director or script writer from our Malayalam industry were to see this they may get "inspired" to do a remake of Chemmeen :D The only dilemma would be who they would cast as Jayan Chettan!

Unknown said...

chekks, it was a good one..actually a totally different concept?where did u get the idea from?? anyways was good..and hey I guess you are an expert in making fish biriyani..the recipe too was so accurate and genuine..hehe..anyways kollaam.i liked the concept very much !

Hb said...

I don't understand malayalam but the way u explained the recipe with that story and pictures, good!And that biryani looks hyderabadi-sh, sob I miss all that.

Unknown said...

hehehe...kiddu mone...!!! watte a style an innovation..o ideaS....angane fish biriyaaniyum aayi...chekkaa...oru additional add on nokiyayirunnu....?? nammade beer-ological taste varaan???

Anonymous said...

mathew, a nice trip down the movie memory lane and fish biriyani to boot! enjoyed the post!
-lan

mathew said...

@Seena
thanks for the recipe..it turned out really good!!:-)

@Heera
thanks a lot…and thanks for reading so far…willkommen in Deutschland any day!!
btw would love to see some updates in your blog too…:-)

@Divs
hehe..enthe cheyaanaa chemeen onnum kitilla!!:-P

@Tinu
thanks a lot! :-)

@Dreamer
hahaha…I think a movie like chemeen is best left to itself…I don’t think there is anyone right now who can recreate and give justice to that movie…

@Thankam chechi..
Idea eke evide yadhoru paniyum illathappol kittunathu alle..:-P
Pinee check the recipe I have linked in the post…I used that ….

@ My Experiments with Cooking
thanks a lot for reading this..coz I think its only malayalees who would understand it…it based on a old classic movie called chemeen whose characters are interwoven with the recipe…

@Fridy
thanks a lot!! No beer and fish biriyani was just fine!! :-P

@Ian
thanks a lot..glad to know you enjoyed it!:-)

wanderlust said...

How do you come up with such gems?
Must have read it at least 4 times in the past 15 minutes and I am still trying to control my laughter. The biriyani looks yummm

Anonymous said...

Dear All,thanks for all your concern and am being humbled with your love.

In fact,this is not a sudden decision,been thinking for a while now esp since my sinus have gone worse.Thank you all for supporting me and hope to meet you all at your own respective spaces.Love & have a great time..

J said...

That is one mean meen biryani! Karuthammadem,kochchumuthalaleedem katha ishtamaayi!:)

Jina said...

U wont believe it.But I have never eaten a fish biriyani in my entire life. And apparently, my mom in law is a genius in preparing that.
SO Im goin to use ur Jayan recipe and hope for Jayam in the combat..;)

Reflections said...

Goodness u really let ur imagination take over....some part of the story were really ribtickling...really enjoyed it;-D

Never made fish biriyani yet.....had it once from a restaurant...it was good but somehow cant get myself to mix fish in a biriyani;-P

Dhanya said...

I thought it should be a 'chemmeen' biriyani and not fish biriyani ;)
I have never made it.. may be next time when I get some bakra's :P

Srivalli said...

That was one hilarious post!..very nice read..:)

Unknown said...

Amazing!!!!!!!!!!! no more words to describe it... you rock buddy..

"but Pareekutty walked ahead unperturbed for he knew it was global warming….."

lol.....

shail said...

What a post! A story and a recipe at one go!!! :) My first time here.

harimohan said...

dear mathew
how ever did i miss reading your posts all the time !
this was a real delight ,as tasty as the biriyani itself tks

Anonymous said...

Hello !.
might , perhaps curious to know how one can reach 2000 per day of income .
There is no initial capital needed You may begin earning with as small sum of money as 20-100 dollars.

AimTrust is what you need
The company incorporates an offshore structure with advanced asset management technologies in production and delivery of pipes for oil and gas.

Its head office is in Panama with offices everywhere: In USA, Canada, Cyprus.
Do you want to become an affluent person?
That`s your chance That`s what you wish in the long run!

I feel good, I began to take up real money with the help of this company,
and I invite you to do the same. If it gets down to select a proper partner utilizes your money in a right way - that`s it!.
I earn US$2,000 per day, and what I started with was a funny sum of 500 bucks!
It`s easy to start , just click this link http://ykyguxoz.ibnsites.com/awopitov.html
and lucky you`re! Let`s take this option together to get rid of nastiness of the life

Anonymous said...

Good day !.
You may , probably very interested to know how one can make real money .
There is no initial capital needed You may start earning with as small sum of money as 20-100 dollars.

AimTrust is what you thought of all the time
The company incorporates an offshore structure with advanced asset management technologies in production and delivery of pipes for oil and gas.

It is based in Panama with affiliates everywhere: In USA, Canada, Cyprus.
Do you want to become really rich in short time?
That`s your chance That`s what you desire!

I feel good, I began to take up real money with the help of this company,
and I invite you to do the same. It`s all about how to select a correct partner utilizes your funds in a right way - that`s it!.
I take now up to 2G every day, and my first deposit was 1 grand only!
It`s easy to get involved , just click this link http://inyxetun.kogaryu.com/usisotu.html
and lucky you`re! Let`s take our chance together to feel the smell of real money

Anonymous said...

batham vatva interference celgene bausparkasse epidemiology motivator eliminate articulate inception frontiers
semelokertes marchimundui

kochuthresiamma p .j said...

NO HOMEGROWN RECIPES AFTER INDIA VISIT?

Anonymous said...

Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!

Anonymous said...

Hi!
You may probably be very curious to know how one can make real money on investments.
There is no initial capital needed.
You may commense earning with a money that usually is spent
for daily food, that's 20-100 dollars.
I have been participating in one project for several years,
and I'm ready to let you know my secrets at my blog.

Please visit blog and send me private message to get the info.

P.S. I earn 1000-2000 per daily now.

http://theblogmoney.com

Anonymous said...

Good day, sun shines!
There have were times of hardship when I felt unhappy missing knowledge about opportunities of getting high yields on investments. I was a dump and downright pessimistic person.
I have never imagined that there weren't any need in big initial investment.
Nowadays, I'm happy and lucky , I started take up real money.
It gets down to select a proper companion who utilizes your funds in a right way - that is incorporate it in real business, parts and divides the income with me.

You may get interested, if there are such firms? I have to answer the truth, YES, there are. Please get to know about one of them:
[url=http://theblogmoney.com] Online investment blog[/url]

Anonymous said...

Good day, sun shines!
There have were times of hardship when I didn't know about opportunities of getting high yields on investments. I was a dump and downright pessimistic person.
I have never thought that there weren't any need in large starting capital.
Now, I feel good, I started to get real income.
It's all about how to select a correct partner who uses your money in a right way - that is incorporate it in real deals, and shares the profit with me.

You may get interested, if there are such firms? I have to answer the truth, YES, there are. Please get to know about one of them:
http://theinvestblog.com [url=http://theinvestblog.com]Online Investment Blog[/url]

Anonymous said...

Good day, sun shines!
There have been times of troubles when I felt unhappy missing knowledge about opportunities of getting high yields on investments. I was a dump and downright stupid person.
I have never thought that there weren't any need in large starting capital.
Now, I feel good, I begin to get real income.
It's all about how to choose a proper companion who uses your money in a right way - that is incorporate it in real deals, parts and divides the profit with me.

You can ask, if there are such firms? I'm obliged to answer the truth, YES, there are. Please be informed of one of them:
http://theinvestblog.com [url=http://theinvestblog.com]Online Investment Blog[/url]

Divz said...

hi mathew..no updates!!
fish biriyani thinnu thirnilley?? atho ee postinde ksheenam mariyille??

silverine said...

Looks like you kitchen has closed down. You must be very slim now, not having eaten since Sep 21, 2009 :|

Zo-Ya said...

Awesome Mathew!!love your style!!

Cheers

Ria Mathew said...

Evideya?