Lusious and Mouth watering authentic south indian food of Madurai
I was awestruck by the variety of food we get to eat in Madurai,I was seriously not expecting that. Madurai has so much variety of food and that too at an economical price. Be it Madurai’s idli,snacks,or filter coffee you name it and you get it. Being a southindian food lover i have hunted for the best places for south Indian food in Madurai & believe me these places won’t disappoint you at all !!
Tamil Nadu is blessed with many regional cuisines. Chettinad, Kongu nadu, Cholamadalam and Madurai falls in Pandiya Nadu region therefore most of the dishes like idiyappam,Uttapam, paniyaram are from Pandiya Nadu region.
So let’s come with me and try the healthiest yet yummiest food of Madurai. I am starting this delicious food journey with Meenakshi temple prasadam.
MEENAKSHI TEMPLE PRASADUM
We were staying in the JC Residency Hotel in Madurai. (If you want hotel reviews do let me know in the comment section). The Meenakshi temple was around 5 kms from our hotel. I saw the edge of the first huge tower from the distance while I was sitting in the car. We were completely awestruck to see the architecture of Meenakshi temple, the temple was huge with four gates in each of four directions and a very high ornate tower surmounting each gate.
The temple remains open at 4.00 p.m. and remains open till 7.00 p.m. We reached around 5.00 pm, and there was a long queue, after 2 hrs we did the darshan of goddess Parvati.
Don’t forget to take the most authentic laddus (prasad) home. I am vegetarian and love spicy food but not a big fan of sweets. But these ladoos have awakened my taste buds for sweets.The authentic ladoos made out of ghee, the taste of cardamom was melting in my mouth. I have never tasted such delicious ladoos in my life. And ofcourse i packed them for home too.
KICK START YOUR DAY WITH PARUTHI PAL
I heard of this health drink many times before but never had it. While visiting the temple in the morning some distance away from the temple, I found one guy selling Paruthi Pal. You will find this drink mostly in push carts available in almost every street. and you will get this drink either in the early morning or late at night. This is because it’s a quick health drink to go to work. Madurai is aptly called the city which never sleeps.
At 7 am the vendor already sold half of his drink. Paruthi paal means cotton and milk. It is made by extracting milk from cotton seeds by soaking the seeds overnight and then cooking along with jaggery. It is then seasoned with a hint of dry ginger and elaichi and a handful of coconut shards. So this is the healthy milkshake of Tamil Nadu.
If you don’t want to taste it from push carts then you should visit Sri Saastha Paruthi Paal in TPK Road or Ganesh Paruthi Paal at Koodal nagar. But i am telling you, you can enjoy this authentic taste from vendors only. Even localities like to have Paruthi Paal from push carts rather than fancy restaurants.
Tamilians love their filter coffee either with breakfast or even lunch. So for some mornings just go for it Filter kaapi. The coffee is available in all the restaurants and hotels but try it from the famous Visalam coffee shop in Chinna Chokkikulam. It is rightly said that
“You can’t buy happiness but you can buy coffee, and that’s pretty close”
BEST RESTAURANTS OF MADURAI
MURUGAN IDLI KADAI
Are your taste buds awakened from the appetizing filter coffee, now hop to the famous Murugan Idli . Idli is my favorite breakfast to have and I was more than happy to eat it from the famous ones. Madurai idli is also known as Madurai malli poo idli because idli in Madurai is considered to be soft and plump like the malli poo (jasmine flowers). So I had ghee podi idli and butter podi masala dosa. So here I witness the taste of authentic south Indian food. (It is said that south indian food is best enjoyed by hands but if you can’t eat with your hands then must carry a spoon). The variety of chutneys they serve with it just enhances the taste of those idlis.
Ghee Podi Masala idli
After having this delicious breakfast, I started exploring around the market near Murugan idli and Thennanguruthu is the place i found to snack on. A unique street food which is very high in nutritious value is Thennanguruthu or coconut stem. This is one of its kind dishes definitely worth trying out.
HOTEL SREE SABAREES
Now your appetite is building up and the clock strikes lunch time. The famous food of Madurai is of course the vegetarian thali. The best variety filled platter can be enjoyed totally at Hotel Sree Sabarees only. It is served in the traditional way on a banana leaf.The platter usually consists of three vegetables,green leafy vegetable, papad, bottle gourd,aka appalam and many curries.Relish the delicious meal of Sree Sabarees like a real foodie !!
They also serve a variety of dosa, uttapam, and idlis and the taste is just delicious and especially the variety of chutneys they serve.
Traditional south Indian Thali
MADURAI FAMOUS BURMA IDIYAPPAM
Another delicacy of Madurai which is very famous is Idiyappam made up of rice flour, water and salt. In most parts of Tamil Nadu Idiyappam is steamed after making sevai. It is also served with chutneys & sambar.You can get it for only Rs.8 so just enjoy this authentic idiyappam and let me know whether you like it or not !!
Yummy Iddiyapam
So fill your tummy with these authentic south Indian meals and thank me later. Trust me this will not only fill your stomach but satisfy your soul. Let me know which one is your favorite ?Are you a South Indian food lover like me ?
Stay tuned for more such food blogs and much more !!.
