Kakka irachi / erachi ularthiyathu - Kerala Clams Roast

Hope all in US had a scrumptious Thanksgiving dinner , enjoyed and indulged in the mad shopping frenzy of Black Friday and relaxed on the weekend ! We had a blissful thanksgiving ... Oh boy , I am a happy successful host ...

The only thing that worries me after this long weekend is the guilt of eating too much , feeling heavy and total crap! I am trying to reset the button with meditation.....Thank god , the lent starts within days , wink ...

 

.......She was there everyday except Sundays , with a wide mouthed aluminium vessel balanced on her hip covered with a thin polythene sheet , and underneath a reserved "kutti" of clams. She brought the smell of oceans with her...

She was in her late 70's , with a heavy body in traditional "chatta and lunki", salt and pepper hair , and tobacco stained teeth...We called her " Kakka Erachi Ammachi .

I never knew her name , didn't bother to ask anyone , until one day my mom mentioned to me about the clams lady's death. I came to know then , her name was "Kunjorotha".

Kunjorotha ... somehow I couldn't fit her into that name ... how could I know a person for so long and not know her name!

She took the first bus from her rural kuttanadan village - famous for freshly caught clams -with a silver colored big " charuvam " full of the same , travelled to changanacherry everyday in the wee hours of the morning , to earn a livelihood.

Our house or I should say our long verandah in the back of our house was her last stop , where she would stay put for a light nap for a while , ate hot food my mom gave her , before she took the afternoon bus back home. On saturdays and off school days she used to tell us stories, old happy stories and sometimes sad , weeping and wiping her tears on the "lunki"..Thus I knew her grandfather " Kachan" and her husband " Thomman" used to work in the paddy fields owned by mom's family in Kuttanad.

Whenever I make some kakka erachi here -which I started to do recently- it reminds me of her laughter and tears , her old stories , and my mom's generosity. I know my mom wasn't just paying her for the clams she brought everyday for us , but for her dinner too, though she never told us. Unknowingly mom was instilling in us some virtues ....

..how food is so tangled in memories ....and how those memories are snuggled somewhere in the cloudy corner of my mind, waiting to be collected by me!

Recipe for Thenga kothu itta Kakka Erachi Ularthiyathu/ Olathiyathu - Kerala style Roasted Clams with Coconut

Serves - 4

Total cooking time - 30 minutes.

Ingredients:-

Clams / Kakka erachi ( cleaned) - 1/2 kg

Vinegar or juice of fresh lemon - 1 to 1.5 tea spoon

Salt 

Bowl 1 - to crush

Garlic - 6-7 cloves

Ginger - an inch piece ( i use a thumb sized piece )
Green chili - 3-4
Fennel seeds - two pinches
Black Peppercorns  - 1/2 tea spoon

Shallots or onion chopped - 1 cup ( use pearl onions n shallots)
Curry leaves - a handful
Coconut cuts ( thenga kothu ) - 1/4 to 1/2 cup
( You can add a tomato too , if you want it to be tangy)
Red chili flakes - 1 tea spoon
Red chili powder - 1 tea spoon
Coriander powder - 1/4 to 1/2 tea spoon( optional)
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tea spoon
Garam masala - 1/2 tea spoon( home made)
Whole black pepper - 1/2 tea spoon
Oil - 2 tablespoon + 1 tablespoon

Method :-

Clean and rinse clams well. Bring to boil 3 cups of water , and  add clams to it . Let it stand on a medium flame for 3 minutes. Drain, rinse in cold water and drain again and keep aside.
Add Vinegar or lime juice and salt and keep aside while we make the masala.
Lightly crush all the ingredients in Bowl 1 in a coffee grinder , food processor or small jar of your mixie.
Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a pan and add chopped shallots and curry leaves. Saute till it is soft for like 6-7 minutes.
Add coconut cuts and fry for a couple of minutes.
Add the crushed mix and saute till the raw smell disappears and it turns to brown.
(Add tomato if you are using it now and saute till the oil separates )
Add red chili flakes , chili powder , turmeric and (coriander if using) and combine well, fry for a minute or two..sprinkle a table spoon of water if needed.
Add the clams , mix well , and cook covered on a medium flame for 10-12 minutes.( add a 1/4 cup water if needed)
Crush the black peppercorns.
Uncover the pan, add garam masala , crushed black peppercorns , some more curry leaves  and saute .
Drizzle a tablespoon of oil , saute till it turns dry and brown.
Serve warm.

Happy Cooking !

Sarah