The South Indian delicacies. Wow. Never harsh on the stomach unless you overeat. You may say this applies to anything you eat. So true. But our delicacies are special. No offence: delicacies from other parts of India, mostly North India, I am used to. They are equally good. But being from South India, my mind naturally leans towards our own.

I had a few favorites of mine from South as well as North. Take the ‘Mysore Pakku.’ Very sweet though. You should have seen these in the olden days. Almost the size of a quarter of a brick. A tiny bit of grand exaggeration. But huge compared to modern-day ones. They also used to be crispy. And on touch, every chance they would break and crush into powder.

 When you started eating, you felt a sandy crunchy effect, and then it would melt. This has metamorphosed into soft, a little harder than ‘halwa’ consistency with a lot of ghee. And has taken lots of avatars, like Horlicks Mysore Pakku. Add something to the sweet and name it thus. This does not feel crunchy but straightaway melts.

Jaangiri, a cousin of the crunchier Jilebi of North, dripping with ghee and sugar. Take it hot. Wow. And watch how they are made. My elder son seems to have learned a bit about this process. ‘Paal Gova,’ made of milk, is my great favorite. I used to eat tons of this. Ours were made with jaggery, I think, though one can make it with sugar too. There are so many items with milk as a base, and I still find it difficult to generically differentiate between them. Being a good eater and bad cook, I never learned the processes. That is the ingenuity of mankind. How is it different from milk halwa? Or Doodh Peda? What is the difference between Basundhi and Rabadi? Pricewise, I know the latter is expensive. But so tasty.

Laddu is my favorite too. This sweet is all-pervading, omnipresent. In every part of India, one could get these. Minor differences in preparation though. This is one sweet where my wife, who prepares wonderful ones, gets my unexpected help. Over a period of time, I have learned to roll them into balls with fingers and palms.

Have you ever tasted ‘Kaasi Halwa’? Made of white pumpkin, and I think in the traditional method honey is used. I happened to taste this for the first time in Music Academy during the December Festival, where people gathered not only for music but also for the delicious food served by a famous caterer. The caterers have changed over a period of time.

Let me try to think of others too.

Continued in 298. Bud Bugs - Part 4