Of Thirattu Paal, Pillaiyaar Nonbu and baby showers…
Thirattu Paal is a delicious South Indian sweet that holds a a special place in the hearts of many from the Nagarathar community and an extra special one in mine. The sweet, made by curdling milk (similar to chenna / paneer) and sweetening it with karupatti (palm jaggery, a special jaggery sourced from the palmyra tree), despite being a rather simple recipe, is not made often and is usually only on display during Pillaiyaar Nonbu, one of the most anticipated festivals of the community. The Nonbu, celebrating Lord Ganesha, the remover of obstacles, is a festival that, I believe, has held the community together over the years as we have become more global.
There are varied stories about the origins of Pillaiyaar Nonbu, which occurs in December / January (Tamil month of Mārgazhi) on the 21st day after Thiru Kārthikai (the birthday of Lord Muruga also known as Kārthikeyā), when Sashti (6th day of the fornight) and the Sadayam star occur together. One story, the one we were told as children, tells of the women of the family fasting for 21 days and praying to Pillaiyaar for the well being and safe return of their men folk who had crossed the shores of India to trade in Southeast Asian countries like Burma (Myanmar), Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore. Another more interesting, fairytale like story, of Pillaiyaar helping a devout stepdaughter in a battle against her evil stepmother, is one that I have only recently come across – check out this link to read more. Whichever story you believe, the sentimentality this festival invokes amongst the community is unquestionable.
Every year, the community gathers either as individual families or in larger groups and the eldest men make and distribute the lit up ilais – little Pillaiyaars (represented by little conical shapes) made with rice flour and karupatti (palm jaggery) dough and inserted with a specially made wick. As children, we would vie with each other to see who could eat the ilai in one go, with the wick still aflame – chicken that I was, I don’t think I ever managed to, always blowing out the flame before eating it. While some families, as a matter of pride, celebrate the festival at home with close family in attendance, most take advantage of a community gathering where every family contributes a dish and the elders of the community hand out the ilais. I’m told that in some cities across the world, the gathering can be as many as 5000 people! This year though is going to be very different, with social distancing norms necessitating individual celebrations – so I do hope this recipe will come in handy for those celebrating at home.
While the traditional menu for Pillaiyaar Nonbu is similar to our Diwali menu, two dishes in the Achi’s repertoire are reserved just for this occasion – Karupatti Paniyaram (made with the same rice flour and karupatti dough used for the ilai) and Thirattu Paal. Karupatti is an all-important ingredient in the making of both these items. It is a non-refined sugar made from the sap of the palmyrah tree, officially recognised as the state tree of Tamil Nadu. The sap of the tree in itself is a refreshing drink known as padaneer, but it is usually boiled and reduced to make the dark brown smoky sweet karupatti or fermented into the poor man’s alcohol – toddy. Karupatti in recent years has gained popularity as a healthy substitute to refined cane sugar.
Karupatti, unfortunately, is not readily available outside of South India, and so it is one of the few secret ingredients I have taken to stocking up from back home. With no homeward bound trip looming in the horizon, I am thankful to the kind aunt who helped me replenish my depleted stock of the brown gold! However, for the not so lucky, there are a couple of alternatives. The more popular Malaysian Gula Melaka (or Indonesian Gula Merah) is one of them, and even though it has its origins in the coconut palm rather than the palmyrah, the flavour profile is rather similar albeit a tad sweeter. If your local Asian store does not carry Gula Melaka, as a last resort, use jaggery (vellam / gur). Both Gula Melaka and, to a larger extent, jaggery, are manufactured differently from karupatti and so there will be a significant difference in taste and an additional step in the making of the thirattu paal.
Many years ago, when I was a young student in America holidaying at the then pregnant kitchen master’s (aka my sister’s) home, she was asked to make thirattu paal as her contribution to the communal gathering. Neither she nor I had any clue about the making of it. She of course, pregnant and lacking a sweet tooth, had no interest in it. A panicked call to Ayah gave me the recipe but I discovered, in the ensuing hunt, that nobody in the Indian grocery stores in America had even heard of the all-important ingredient, karupatti. Another panicked called helped me figure out that I could use jaggery (gur / vellam, since gula melaka was as unknown in those days) as a substitute, but as I dropped in the vellam in the boiling milk, if just wouldn’t curdle as Ayah had promised it would. How does one cry over milk that is not split – well, I did! Anyway, another panicked call and a lecture helped me understand that karupatti contains the remnants of slaked lime (which is used to prevent fermentation of the padaneer into toddy) in karupatti ensures instant curdling of the milk. No such luck with vellam (or for that matter gula melaka), and so a few drops of lemon had to come to the rescue. What resulted was dutifully oohed and aahed by the guests who were impressed that a young Achi in the making could actually master a specialty - little did they know of the hysteria that had come before.
That though is not the end of the story. There is an epilogue to it – one that involves the apprentice, for it was him that the kitchen master was expecting at the time of this story. Rather strangely, every week after Pillaiyaar Nonbu that year, the kitchen master’s friend, who had hosted the communal gathering, would call (in the days before mobile phones), asking to talk to me, apparently to get the recipe of the rather delicious thirattu paal that I had made. While that made the pregnant sister suspicious, she had no clue that a baby shower was being planned behind her back under the pretext of a thirattu paal training session... Her tearful face was a sight to see indeed, when she finally walked into the surprise shower and discovered what we had been planning!
With that slice of our history, here is the recipe for Thirattu Paal. Whether you celebrate Pillaiyaar Nonbu or not, this is an interesting and simple recipe to have in your kitty.
Note:
1. Karupatti (palm jaggery) is the secret ingredient for this recipe. However, it is rather difficult to find outside of Tamil Nadu. The best alternative is gula melaka, quite commonly found in Asian grocery stores - the taste profile is quite similar to karupatti. Another option is jaggery (vellam / gur), but the taste will differ quite significantly - use only if you cannot find either of the other options.
2. Gula melaka and jaggery are both much sweeter than karupatti, so you only need about half the quantity to make the thirattu paal.
3. If you use gula melaka or jaggery to make this recipe, you will most likely need to add a few drops of lemon juice to curdle the milk, so have some handy. However, use it sparingly as it adds some unwanted tanginess to the sweet.
4. The consistency of the thirattu paal is up to you. I prefer an semi solid consistency, Ayah's was more liquid. Some people use the thirattu paal to make the Pillaiyaar ilais - if so, reduce the sweet to almost a solid consistency.
5. I have also tried this recipe with skim milk, while it will work, there is definitely a difference in taste. You may also need to add lemon to curdle the milk if you are using skim milk.
6. The recipe makes 1 cup of thirattu paal. You can double the recipe if you'd like to make more. However,if needed, still only add a few drops of lemon juice, no more than a teaspoon - this will be sufficient to curdle the milk even when double in quantity.
7. Once the milk curdles, it takes about 30 minutes to reduce to the required consistency, so it needs some patience.
Ingredients:
4 tablespoons powdered karupatti (Indian palm jaggery)
If karupatti is not available, use 2 tablespoons gula melaka / jaggery (gur / vellam)
2 cups full cream milk
Optional: few drops of lemon juice, no more than 1 teaspoon (see notes above)
Method:
1. Powder the karupatti – you either shave the karupatti block using a knife or use a mortar and pestle to do this.
4 tablespoons powdered karupatti (Indian palm jaggery)
If karupatti is not available, use 2 tablespoons gula melaka / jaggery (gur / vellam)
Optional – The karupatti can be quite gritty, so if you’d like, make a syrup and strain if before adding to the milk. To make the syrup, mix the powdered karupatti with a tablespoon of water in a saucepan, and heat until all the lumps have dissolved. Turn off as soon as the lumps have dissolved, do not overboil elese it will caramelise. Strain and add as you would the powder.
2. In a thick bottomed pan (I use a pressure pan), heat the milk and bring to a boil.
3. When the milk is boiling and just about to overflow, add the karupatti (add 4 tablespoons first and the rest if needed). The milk will curdle (thirandu) at this stage – this is what we need it to do, so don’t be taken aback.
4. If the milk does not curdle (especially if you’re using gula melaka or vellam), add a few drops of lemon juice - stop adding at the point when the milk starts to curdle. Do not add more than 1 teaspoon as the thirattu paal will taste tangy if you do.
5. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook until the liquid part thickens to a spoonable consistency (check video). Keep stirring to avoid burning. Once the consistency is achieved, turn off the flame and set aside. Serve when it gets to room temperature – it will continue to thicken as it cools down.
6. Some people use the thirattu paal to make the pillaiyaars for pillaiyaar nonbu – if so, reduce the mixture even more till you see no liquid in the pan.
Makes: 1 cup of thirattu paal
Apprentice rating: The apprentice did not make this, but it is easy to make.
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