Must Eat Foods in Godavari districts

Godavari districts in Andhra Pradesh are considered cash-rich with adequate farmland and agriculture facilities.  These districts, namely the erstwhile East and West, located on either banks of River Godavari, are also known for fresh vegetables and juicy fruits owing to their location in the delta region.

Besides the scenic locales, any traveller would expect to appease his hunger to try something new. And yes, Godavari does offer some exotic variety of food and if you have a sweet tooth, then you are in for a treat.

With paddy being cultivated extensively, many of the snacks are made from rice flour in this region. Having a good income, people here enjoy their life relishing good food and delectable snacks. The ample arable land also supports animal stock due to which a lot of milk-based sweets are also the favourite of people in this region.

Prominent among those are

Putharekulu: Made of wafer-thin rice starch sheets and powdered jaggery/sugar along with dry fruits stuffed in between, the sheets melt in your mouth making you drool for the unique taste. Unlike other sweets, Putharekulu are light on the stomach and keeps one wanting more. Atreyapuram in East Godavari district is known for making the rice starch sheets.

Pala talikalu: These are also made from rice flour. The small finger-like flour cylinders are soaked in sweetened milk to make a simple, yet delicious snack, which are also be offered to God on any festival or auspicious day.

Ariselu/Paakundalu: Based on the shape of the snack, they are known by different names but the basic recipe is similar for both. Made from wet rice flour ground after soaking rice for more than 5-6 hours, the preparation of this snack is a laborious process. After soaking the rice, it has to be air-dried on cloth and then ground to make the flour, which should continue to remain wet while mixing with the jaggery, and it should be ensured that there are no lumps. Afterwards, the dough is pressed into pancakes, fried in hot oil and pressed between ladles to drain out the excess oil. They are then allowed to cool and the ariselu are ready to relish.

If the dough is made into round balls, they are called paakundalu.

Paakam Gaarelu: The doughnuts made from black gram batter taste is compared to the epic Mahabharata, which would help gauge the importance given to this delicacy. Pakam gaarelu are doughnuts fried in oil and then soaked in jaggery syrup to enhance the taste.

Kaja: This is another sweetmeat made from all-purpose flour. They are of two types – Kakinada (Kotaiah or Gottam) kaja and Tapeswaram (Madata) kaja. The kajas are made from maida and then soaked in sugar/jaggery syrup.

The Kakinada kaja is cylindrical in shape and is filled with the sugar syrup. A bite of Gottam kaja would make your mouth and heart sweet to the core. Tapeswaram kaaja is also made from the same flour with sugar syrup filled in between the folds. The special taste and sweet syrup in each bite would make one feel satiated after consuming a couple of kaajas.

Pala Kova: With milk and milk products available in huge amounts, milk-based sweets are also enjoyed in various forms. Pala kova is made by continuously boiling full cream milk in brass skillets so that all the water content gets vapourised and it becomes into a thick dough which is then pressed into patties. It is the ultimate sweet one would like to take home when any tourist visits the twin Godavari districts.

Boondi Laddu: To make this sweet, special skills are needed, both to prepare the jaggery syrup with right consistency and also to get pellet-sized balls from Bengal gram batter. The pellet-sized balls are first prepared and then rolled into bigger round-shaped balls by mixing them with the syrup. The green camphor mixed in right quantity in the sweet elevates the taste to the next level.

Pottikkalu: Idli batter is filled into cups made from jackfruit leaves and then steamed to impart a special taste to the routine idlis. This is consumed as a favourite breakfast/dinner recipe in the Godavari districts.

Chakkalu: These are also made from rice flour. The flour is mixed with water and the addition of curry leaves, jeera and Bengal gram improves the taste. The dough is then made into small-sized balls and pressed to make palm-sized patties which are evenly thick. They are then fried in oil to make a delicious snack.