Try maravalli kilangu and tasty parcels

The streets come alive as the sun begins to set with the oil pan’s sizzling and producing aromas of fried cassava that wet your appetite. Chips and boiled cassava aka manioc are commonly found, but in Kattankudy the preparation is a little different, more exotic, and they sell like hot cakes.

“Maravalli kilangu parcel” the dish popular amongst Hindus is the vegetarian version of the street food,
a serving of large chunks of fried cassava with spicy powder and gravy, maravalli kilangu being the Tamil name for manioc. Amongst the Muslims there is another variation called “tasty parcel”: the same preparation
of cassava and gravy topped with fried babath and beef chunks.

Around 4.30 in the evening we walked into the little shop of Vairamuthu Selvarasa and his wife who led us on a little culinary tour. The preparation, though simple, is time consuming. Here the manioc is chopped in to 2-inch sized chunks, peeled and washed in water. While the oil heats in a large pan the manioc is seasoned with a form of saffron powder and salt and is fried for around 10 minutes or until he’s sure the middle is cooked – that takes experience. The gravy is a simmered down preparation of tomato, curry-leaves, onion, chili-powder, salt tamarind and water while the spicy powder is a mix of tamarind, breadcrumbs, chili powder and
salt. Once the manioc chunks are fried
they are squashed so that they
absorb the curry better. Usually
shopkeepers squash it with
their hands, but Selvarasa 
does this using a
wooden tool of his
own creation.

So once you place
your order, the
manioc is crushed
and placed on a
polythene sheet
and topped with
spicy gravy and
powder. It’s a tangy
succulent bite with
a tinge of crispiness
and a hint of spiciness: delicious indeed. The
dish is so popular that
during the peak season
they sell up to 25 kilograms of manioc per day, but January and February are slow months.

A walk to the city and we found Zubair’s
Tasty Shop, where there is a strong smell of fried beef and a long line of impatient customers. The preparation is the same except he adds a sizeable potion of babath (fried tripe) and fried beef on top of the manioc and then garnishes with spicy gravy and powder. He called it a “tasty parcel” and the name speaks for the dish – its tangy, spicy, soft, starchy, meaty and crispy all in one bite. He also serves the vegetarian version but the meaty delight seems to be more popular in the heart of the Kattankudy town.

So if you ever venture into the East coast travel
to Batticoloa and make your way into one of these street shops crackling with flavour and grab yourself a “maravalli kilangu parcel” or “tasty parcel”. It’s a taste bud-tantalising experience.