The Malabar region including cities of Kozhikode, Kannur, Thalasery etc. has a rich culinary heritage. It is interesting to note that prolonged Arabic influence can also be seen in the Malabar cuisine. Its connection to the Middle Eastern regions dates back to the 7th century when Muslim traders landed in the southern coast of Malabar for the coveted spices and eventually settled down over time. This has led to the inclusion of many Arabic dishes. Recently this connection has seen a new development with the rise of shawarma, mandi, kabsa, kunafa and other Arabic favourites.
In today's episode we are on a tour across Kozhikode to understand the newfound interest of locals in fancy Arabic food. We started with Kuzhimanthi which is one of Malabar's favourite dishes. And to witness the traditional making process of this dish we visited Soofi Mandi, a leading Arabic eatery in the city. It is a delicious Yemeni dish of flavoured rice and meat. It was indeed a fascinating experience to see the pit style cooking. Here we also tried Al Faham which is a simple Arabic style grilled chicken.
From there we reached Kunafa world to try the traditional Middle Eastern dessert that is crunchy on the outside, savoury and gooey inside. Typically made from the fine semolina pastry called kateifi, it has long been a favourite among the locals. Do check out the story of this popular dessert place in the video. We loved the classic kunafa and the assorted mini kunafa platter consisting of some interesting varieties.
The following evening we joined our local host Mazan to explore a few more Arabic spots. The first place that he took us to was Doner Kebab. Doner is the Turkish term for vertical rotisserie grilled shredded meat that is stuffed or served alongside Arabic breads. We opted for the khubz doner wrap which was a soft and succulent roll made with khubz, grilled chicken shreds, pickle and garlic dip. Every bite was super delish.
The second stop for the evening was Tarbourche where we tried a stunning Ezmeili kebab. It was a meaty and tender seekh kebab that was prepared with minced meat, paprika and finely chopped nuts and mozzarella. The flavours were so balance that we couldn't stop at just one bite. It was accompanied by a garlic dip called toum.
The last spot was Garzania Arabic Restaurant which was bustling with diners of all age group. On Mazan's recommendation, here we tried broasted chicken and some Kuzhi mandi. The former one was a lightly flavoured pressure fried chicken. Among these we enjoyed the mandi the most.
This scrumptious tour clearly brings out the domination of Arabic cuisine alongside the equally impactful traditional cuisine.
About the host:
anubhavsapra.com/
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Text by Swetaleena Nayak