Kozhi Kaal literally means “chicken leg piece.” But interestingly, it is a pure vegetarian snack made using tapioca, and is a trademark dish from Thalassery in Kannur district. Locally, it is also pronounced as “Koyi Kaal.”
Most Thalassery dishes are deeply traditional, passed down through generations. Many families have their own distinct flavours and secret touches, which were not widely shared in earlier times, especially when social media was not so active. Even in recent times, only a few new dishes have emerged.
Though Thalassery is widely known for its rich non-vegetarian cuisine — the most popular being Thalassery Biryani — it also has some unique vegetarian snacks like Kozhi Kaal. Also read: A Journey to North Kerala to Discover the Distinct Tastes of Thalassery Cuisine.
Here is the recipe for Kozhi Kaal, a perfect 4 o’clock snack.
Ingredients for Kozhi Kaal – Thalassery Special:
1. Tapioca – ½ kg
2. Besan (Kadala Maav) – 100 gm
Maida – 100 gm
Chilli powder – 1 small spoon
Turmeric powder – ½ small spoon
Salt – For taste
Curry leaves – 1 stalk
Garlic – 6 cloves crushed
3. Cooking oil – To fry
How to prepare Kozhi Kaal – Thalassery Special?
1. Cut tapioca into lengthwise thin sticks, similar to French fries. You can soak the pieces in water for 15 minutes to remove the starch. Drain the water.
2. Mix ingredients no: 2 with the tapioca pieces and mix well.
3. Grab three or four pieces of tapioca using your right hand to form one simple bundle (pidi in Malayalam).
4. Fry each one in hot oil and serve with hot oil.
Tips for Kozhikaal:
1. You can bring a variant taste to your kozhikaal by adding masala powder, ginger paste, pepper powder, asafetida powder, etc., as per preferences.
2. Each bundle can be formed by a maximum of 10 tapioca pieces, not more than that.
3. You can also substitute maida with rice powder.
Courtesy: Vanitha Magazine, May 1-14, 2017
Click to read a few more delicious tapioca recipes here. Here is the page link. Click on the images in the gallery to read.
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