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NDTV
10-06-2025
- NDTV
Chettinad Cuisine: Bold Flavours, Rich History, And The Spice Rack That Built A Legacy
South India is a region that constantly balances extremes. Think lush coconut groves and dry inland plains, sacred temple towns alongside sprawling IT parks, mellow stews and curries that pack unapologetic heat. The diversity shows up just as vividly on a plate. South Indian food is not only about idlis and dosas, though no one's denying how great they are. There is a whole other side, spicier, deeper and unapologetically bold. Enter: Chettinad cuisine. While the world has comfortably welcomed soft idlis dunked in sambhar and dosas with chutney, a completely different South Indian food tradition has quietly held its own. Hidden in plain sight, Chettinad cuisine comes from Tamil Nadu's Sivaganga district, where every dish is both a statement and a story. It is the legacy of the Nattukottai Chettiars, a business-minded community whose taste in spices, ingredients, and technique remains unmatched. Also Read: Kalpasi: An Edible Lichen That's A Quintessential Ingredient In Chettinad Cuisine The Origins Of Chettinad Cuisine: Trade, Taste And Tamil Identity To understand Chettinad cuisine, you need to start with the Chettiars. This was not just a wealthy community - it travelled, traded and brought back flavours from across Asia. Between the 18th and early 20th centuries, the Nattukottai Chettiars built a trading network that spanned Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Malaysia and Indonesia. What they brought back was not just profit, but taste. Food writer Ashwin Rajagopalan observes that this was a community that helped shape some of Tamil Nadu's most recognisable business houses. Their most influential period stretched from the 1880s to the 1940s, when they were at the peak of both economic power and cultural confidence. Their homes still stand - mansions built with Burmese teak, Italian marble and Belgian glass. They were lavish but not showy. Just like their food. The Chettiars were also early adopters of flavour. They brought back spices, sauces and cooking techniques from every stop along their trade route. Instead of simply importing these ideas, they adapted them, fusing them with traditional Tamil flavours to create something fresh and lasting. Chettinad cuisine became a reflection of who they were: global in reach, local in soul. Photo Credit: iStock What Sets Chettinad Food Apart? If you have ever had 'Chettinad-style' food in a restaurant in Chennai or Bengaluru and found it painfully spicy, you are not alone. But you are also not getting the real thing. As Ashwin Rajagopalan rightly says, "that's a misrepresentation." Chettinad food is not about setting your tastebuds on fire. It is about giving them a workout with balance, not just heat. The cuisine is complex, layered and built around thoughtful spice blends. The heat is there, but it is one part of a bigger flavour equation. The brilliance of Chettinad food lies in how it blends earthy, tangy and umami notes using everyday ingredients in clever ways. Also Read: 3 Delicious Chettinad Recipes With Star Anise The official Tamil Nadu Tourism site lays out the core building blocks of Chettinad cuisine. Here is what makes it so distinct: Black Pepper: The unchallenged hero of Chettinad kitchens. It often takes the place of red chilli and gives dishes a grounded, lingering warmth. Star Anise, Fennel, Cinnamon, Cloves, Bay Leaf: These are not just spices-they are the background score that sets the tone for most dishes. Used liberally, they create a base that is aromatic and full-bodied. Freshly Stone-Ground Masalas: There is no pre-made masala here. Spices are ground fresh for every dish, often by hand. It is time-consuming, yes, but the payoff is unmatched intensity. Tamarind and Tomatoes: These ingredients do the important job of cutting through the richness of the spices. The tang adds lightness and contrast. Shallots And Garlic: Used in generous amounts, these ingredients offer sweetness, pungency, and that deep base flavour that defines Chettinad gravies. This is not the kind of food that comes together in a hurry. It takes patience, layering, and a sense of rhythm. Also Read: Indian Cooking Tips: How To Make Chettinad Masala At Home Traditional Techniques: How Chettinad Kitchens Still Do It Old School? Cooking in a Chettiar kitchen is not about instant gratification. It is a slow, deliberate process that values precision, preservation, and sustainability. These are some of the traditional techniques that give Chettinad food its unmistakable identity. 1. Slow Cooking On Wood Fires: Known locally as aduppu, these wood-fired stoves help maintain an even temperature and slow-cook the ingredients. This allows the spices to seep in thoroughly and build depth in every dish. 2. Stone Grinding With Ammi Kallu: Forget electric blenders. Chettinad kitchens still use traditional stone grinders. This method preserves the natural oils in the spices and gives the masala a coarse, earthy finish that is impossible to replicate with machines. 3. Cooking In Clay Pots: Man chatti pots are favoured not just for nostalgia, but for how they handle heat. The porous clay distributes warmth evenly and allows slow evaporation, concentrating the flavours without burning anything. 4. Sun-Drying For Preservation: This is an essential part of the prep process. Ingredients like tomatoes, chillies, brinjal, and even meat are sun-dried to preserve them for later use-and to bring out a richer, more intense flavour. Also Read: Calling All Biryani Lovers! Try This Yummy Chettinad Chicken Biryani For A Weekend Treat Photo Credit: Pexels Signature Chettinad Dishes: What You Should Absolutely Try The Tamil Nadu Tourism website lists several iconic dishes that best represent Chettinad cuisine's spirit. Each one is bold, distinctive, and deeply rooted in tradition. 1. Chettinad Chicken Curry: This is a dish that needs no introduction. With chicken simmered in a spicy coconut-based gravy, it is a showcase of pepper, garlic, and precision. Click here for the recipe of Chettinad chicken curry. 2. Kuzhi Paniyaram: These crispy-on-the-outside, soft-inside dumplings are made with fermented rice and urad dal batter. Best served with spicy chutney, they are a perfect example of balance in flavour and texture. 3. Urlai Roast: Baby potatoes are tossed in a spice-heavy masala and slow-roasted until they are crisp and golden. Every bite is equal parts crunch and spice. 4. Vendakkai Mandi: Okra gets a tangy makeover with rice water, tamarind, and shallots. It is a dish that feels both humble and carefully put together. 5. Seedai: A crunchy snack made from rice flour, often seasoned with sesame seeds and cumin. Popular during festive seasons, but honestly great any day of the week. 6. Paal Kozhukattai: These sweet rice flour dumplings in coconut milk are the palate cleanser you did not know you needed. Delicate, mild, and the perfect end to a spice-heavy meal. 7. Athirasam: Chewy, deep-fried sweets made with jaggery and rice flour, flavoured with cardamom. These are often made during Deepavali and other Tamil festivals. Also Read: Potato Chettinad Recipe: Give Your Potatoes A South-Indian Twist With This Recipe Photo Credit: Pexels Chettinad Cuisine Is More Than Just Food Chettinad cuisine is not a trend or a novelty, it is a reflection of a community that mastered trade and taste in equal measure. It is where heritage meets innovation and where every dish feels like it belongs to both the past and the present. So the next time someone says South Indian food is all about dosas, remind them that Chettinad is sitting in the corner, rolling its eyes - and slow-roasting some potatoes while at it. Advertisement For the latest food news, health tips and recipes, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter and YouTube. Tags: Chettinad Cuisine Tamil Food Chettinad Chicken Show full article Comments
Hindustan Times
25-04-2025
- Business
- Hindustan Times
The Chettiars could have rivalled the Marwaris had history played out differently: New book
In his new book Fortune Seekers, economic historian Raman Mahadevan maps the rise of the Chettiars — and why their vast Southeast Asian network didn't last. The Chettiars were reportedly known as the 'bankers of the East'. Exactly how powerful were they in their heyday? They were really big and economically quite influential. Some estimates suggest that the total assets of the Chettiar community, which were valued at around ₹10 crore in the 1880s, had by 1929 grown phenomenally to about ₹200 crore. Keeping in mind that this was a small community — some surveys suggest they numbered just around 1,25,000 in the 1930s — this was a very impressive achievement. Their migration to the Far East picked up in the 1870s, catalysed by the opening of the Suez Canal, which effectively shrank the distance between Asia and global markets. That had a huge impact on the whole process of commercialisation and created business opportunities, which, in a sense, triggered the movement of Chettiar capital to these regions. In Burma, for instance, while Europeans owned the big rice mills, the financing of agricultural production was almost entirely in the hands of the Chettiars. That's where they made their money. Similarly, the global automobile industry required rubber and tin — both of which came from Malaya — and again, the Chettiars financed the production of these commodities. In Ceylon, they funded the non-European coffee, tea, and coconut plantations. The crisis began with the Great Depression and deepened with the Second World War. Counterfactually, you could argue that had these global shocks not occurred, the economic landscape in India might have been very different. If the Chettiars had managed to bring all that capital back to India, they could well have become what the Marwaris were in Bombay and Calcutta. How did they differ from the Marwaris and Banias? One major difference was that the Chettiars went abroad in large numbers. The Marwaris did go too, but far fewer. While many Marwaris were bankers, they were also predominantly traders. My theory is that the transition from trade to manufacturing is easier — their access to market and commercial intelligence provided a certain edge to the trading class and gave them a head start in industrial ventures. In western India, Marwaris and Gujarati Banias were able to move into paper, sugar, and textiles. But the Chettiars' domestic footprint was relatively limited until the 1930s, as much of their capital remained locked overseas. More importantly, as the return on investment through banking in Southeast Asia was significantly higher than in Indian industry, there was no major inclination on their part to invest in industry. The risk the Chettiars took was also much greater as compared to other business communities. All business communities are risk-takers, of course, but the Chettiars, by moving out of South India to Southeast Asia and by learning new languages, operating in remote foreign regions governed by different legal systems, would seem to suggest that they displayed greater risk-bearing qualities. Another distinctly unique system they developed to enable them to make good use of their capital investment was the intra-community credit network — where one Chettiar would finance another. That speaks to a high degree of enterprise and trust. This is clearly suggestive of a system where mutual faith and a high degree of trust was central to their business enterprise. While many Chettiar firms faded post-independence, a few built lasting business houses. What set them apart? The Chettiars began repatriating some of their capital back to India in order to invest during the 1940s, when World War II created highly profitable conditions for business. Apart from textiles, a major area was plantations. Some Chettiars also ventured into Bombay. One such example is Alagappa Chettiar, who invested heavily in insurance companies but lost out due to overtrading. The MCT Group, which founded Indian Overseas Bank, also had investments in Elphinstone Mills. But large-scale domestic investment remained limited. After independence, you see figures like M.A. Chidambaram, after whom the cricket stadium in Chennai is named, making more serious moves. He acquired Automobile Products of India, the makers of Lambretta scooters, and also invested in diesel engine production. Later, he diversified into chemicals. The Murugappa Group is a standout example of Chettiar success. Two factors, I think, set them apart. First, the intrafamilial bonds were exceptionally strong, and the elders in the family ensured that the cohesive spirit was maintained across generations. Most business families begin to fragment by the third or fourth generation — but in their case, it seems clear this was anticipated and addressed early on. Second, they maintained a disciplined focus on core competencies — especially engineering-related sectors like Tube Investments and Carborundum Universal. Only after consolidating in those sectors did they diversify, for instance, with the acquisition of Parry & Co., which was in a different line of business. What can today's small and medium enterprises in India learn from the Chettiar model — especially in how to institutionalise trust, capital, and scale across generations? I think the most important lesson that today's entrepreneurs — small and medium included — can draw is the notion of trust and mutual accommodation, a feature central to the Chettiar model. This would enable entrepreneurs to optimise costs and cut down competition. The export-oriented Tiruppur knitwear industry is a good example of the Chettiar model. Chettinad cuisine is famous for its fiery meat dishes, but the community began as vegetarian. Did their migrations reshape their cuisine? Food isn't my area of expertise, but you could well be right. The Chettiars were — and are — devout Shaivites, and vegetarianism was a natural offshoot of this faith. In fact, the Tamil word for vegetarian food is 'saiva saappadu'. So yes, the long years of exposure to overseas cultures must have played a significant role in the evolution of their cuisine — from an exclusively vegetarian to a more inclusive cuisine. Their use of spices is also quite distinct from what you find in other parts of South India, and even here, it is possible to discern other influences. You've written about efforts to rekindle the Chettiars' entrepreneurial spirit. How far do you think this will go? Many Chettiars in the diaspora have moved into finance and IT, rather than traditional business. This shift worries some of the older generation, who feel there's a disconnect from their industrial legacy. So conferences and community events have been organised to revive that entrepreneurial zeal. But honestly, I think that time is over. The chapter of Chettiar dominance in traditional sectors is closed. ALSO READ: Book commemorates life and legacy of abstractionist Bimal Das Gupta
