Palani Panchāmirtam

India is the gourmet’s delight. Her culinary art developed in the temple kitchen, where expert chefs prepare a diverse spectrum of foods, associated with Gods and noted for their nutritive value. Taste some of them and you’ll never be quite the same again.

Palani Panchāmirtam is the oldest form of jam or fruit mix and preserves very well, even for months. And the saying is that ‘the olden it is, it tastes better’. The secret lies as much in the art of preparing it as in the quality of the fruit that is used as the basic ingredient. It is the small sized viruppāchchi plantains which account for it, the reason being that they have very little water content. Incidentally, Viruppāchchi is the name of a village (in the Palani Hills) where this particular variety of plantain is grown and marketed.

Crushed plantains apart, Panchāmirtam consists of kandasari sugar from Kangeyam area, dates, kismis, sugar candy (kalkandu), cardamom and ghee in proper proportions: plantains 100 numbers; kandasani sugar 10 kgs.; dates 1 kg.; Sugar candy 500 giris.; kismis 500 giris.; ghee 250 giris.; cardamom 25 giris. The plantain is crushed fully. Sugar is then mixed with it. Seedless dates, sugar candy and kismis are added in the third stage. The last items to go into the preparation are cardamom and ghee.

Panchāmirtam, collected after abhishekam, is not only a delicious and nourishing food; but also has astonishing properties which keep it in conditions suitable for consumption over a long period, without refrigeration. You are advised to buy all your requirements from the Devasthānam and to transfer the contents to your own containers for proper preservation. Interested persons may visit the Panchāmirtam making kitchen in the Devasthānam’s choultry. The Devasthānam has now made arrangements to manufacture Panchamirtam by using electric utensils.

MANAPARAI MURUKKU

The softest edible item prepared from rice flour with little bit of additional things, available at Manaparai is world famous one from endless past. Even till today some people living near Manaparai Railway station hereditarily doing the same business with same quality. It costs very less that is Re.1/per item. From poor to rich everybody likes it for its taste.

The same Murukku tried to prepare in other areas couldn’t meet the similar taste. Machine made Murukkus are not at all get similar taste so there is a need of manual preparation. Cottage Industries only doing the manufacturing work so this couldn’t be meet the global market due to lack of major productions. Any how the world famous Murukku can be had from Manaparai alone.

srivilliputhur Pal Kova

Pal Kova or Palkhoa (Pronounced Paal Goa) brings to mind Srivilliputhur to those who have tasted this culinary masterpiece from this tiny place in Southern Tamil Nadu. Situated in Virudhunagar District on the way to Tenkasi, Srivilliputhur is a temple town, famous for its Andal Temple.

But for foodies, its much more famous for the famous Pal Kova. The Pal Kova is a sweet dish made from milk, sugar & ghee. Surprisingly its cheap. If you buy it in Srivilliputhur that is.
The milk from the region is of very high quality & this contributes to the taste.

The Pal Kova is usually slightly yellowish in colour & is semi solid in texture. It is usually sold wrapped in tiny packets. A lot of businesses in Srivilliputhur make their living from selling the Pal Kova. The Pal Kova is so famous across Tamil Nadu, that when Five Star hotels are working on a Tamil Nadu theme, the Pal Kova finds its place among the Tirunelveli halwa, Virudhunagar Kothu Parotta & the Madurai Jigarthanda to name a few.

Of course, it would be cheaper to travel to Srivilliputhur & taste the authentic Pal Kova than to have it from a Five Star Hotel. The Pal Kova is ubiquitous in Srivilliputhur. Be it the bus stand, the market or on the roadside, you are bound to find hawkers selling packets of various sizes. Its prized reasonably from about Rs.2 depending on the quantity. In fact, enterprising hawkers even board trains passing through Srivilliputhur and sell the Pal Kova. The sweet is also available in most towns neighbouring Srivilliputhur.

A characteristic shared by the Pal Kova with the Tirunelveli Halwa is that it melts in the mouth. The texture is slightly grainy but it is splendid nonetheless. However, as with all good things, its fattening and its best taken occasionally.

Tirunelveli Halwa

The time has come to initiate the uninitiated into the world of Tirunelveli Halwa. Tirunelveli is situated in southern Tamil Nadu close to Tuticorin & Kovilpatti and its name has become synonymous with the Halwa you get here.

The halwa has been in Tirunelveli for about 300 years & in that time, its fame has spread far and wide. So much, that anyone passing through Tirunelveli is bound to buy atleast a packet of halwa.

The halwa is brown in colour & is just barely translucent. It has a very sticky texture & is high up in the list of messy food. But the taste more than makes up for it. The halwa is made from wheat & sugar. It is soaked in ghee & looks as well as feels oily. The best part about this halwa is that it melts in your mouth. So it can be enjoyed even by people without teeth. However it is very fattening & too much will put inches around your waist line. It tastes best when it is hot. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t eat it when it has cooled down.

The halwa is available all over Tirunelveli,but a profusion of shops near the Railway station & the Nellaiappar Temple bring fame to the city. The most famous of these is the Iruttukadai (Dark Shop). Another contender is Shanti Sweets. Iruttukadai gets its name from the fact that there are no electric lights in the shop & no sign board. Business in the evenings is carried out in candle-light as it has been so, since the time the shop started.

The popularity of the halwa is evident from the fact that these shops are packed at all times of the day. I guess, people from Tirunelveli never seem to have enough of the Famous Tirunelveli Halwa.

Halwa Shops:

1.Tirunelveli Iruttukadai Halwa

No 1/1-A, Madurai Road,

(Near Old bus Stand),

Tirunelveli Junction,

Tirunelveli-627001

Ph: 0462-2323330

2. Shanti Sweets

3,Central Bus Stand Buildings,

Madurai Road,

Tirunelveli-627001