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July 03, 2005

The timeless magic of thachi mammam (curd rice)!

It’s high time I put this post up. There are certain non-believers-who-shall-not-be-named and their understudies who ought to read this post and change their dogmatic assertions that go against my theory, the veracity of which has been established several times.

My theory states: All shall eat thayir sadam and all that do not realize or want to realize the panacean effects of thayir sadam shall be made to do so and shall rot in a thayir-sadam-less hell :-)

Imagine - A marriage hall, elai sapadu, splashes of glimmering pattu jarigai on sarees and the glint of jewellery, the good-natured hustle of long lines of relatives and friends towards, and the fragrance wafting from, the dining hall – the delicious aroma of vengaya sambhar, punctuated by touches of urulai kizhangu curry and kaara rasam, creamy avial inviting us with lemony kootu and crispy apalams and just when you think you can indulge your senses no more and feast no more, along marches the stainless steel bucket of thayir sadam carrying with it a smell so delectable your palate begs you for an encore, after which you can smack your lips in pleasure and slowly roll out of the dining hall.

Thayir sadam is a fussy girl – she wants it all – not only does she demand to taste almost sinfully heavenly, she insists on looking good enough to eat! Complexion like a fair damsel, purple grapes for eyes curiously looking at you, itsy bitsy green chillies adding a shocking taste to her conversation and a tangy flavour - her witty sense of humour and one similarity you cannot miss – both are characteristically unpredictable!

Rain or shine, any time is good enough for thayir sadam for me. You know how you (atleast some of you and me) cannot dream of having bread instead of rice for dinner or tea instead of coffee in the mornings? Well, hand me a plate of thayir sadam and oorgai any time and I promise to eat it with relish, for what I revel in is not just the thayir sadam but the feeling of home it carries with it.

21 comments:

expertdabbler said...

whoa,

he does not like curd rice?
some people even disike heaven is it?

i absolutey agree with you.
a food for all seasons. when the tummy is good, when its revolting, when u wanna sleep, when u are sick.

And i think i am the first to comment on a blockbuster of a post.

Anonymous said...

I can do anything for a Thayir sadham and vatha kozhambu Combo! :)

Ramya, Kalyana Saapadu eppo? :)

-Vasu

expertdabbler said...

che oru 10 comments in favor of curd rice edhir parthaen.
i second vasu, eppo?:)

Anonymous said...

ran out of the yoghurt supply today....and here i am ..reading this post and adding to my woes...anyways...
Thachi mammu rocks !!

Shiva said...

Amarkalam..
I have friends who eat all the burgers and chalupas they want, but in the end always come back home to have a round of thayir saadham.. a combo of thayir saadham with avakkai is just way too much to resist.

The Doodler said...

Thachi mammam is my fave each day! If I have nothing at home, i'd rather have nice curd rice with pickles rather than go anywhere outside!

IBH said...

whoa!!!! coincidence is a sure thing!!! just yesterday we were discussing abt the goodness of a thachi mammam! look at the cobos:

Thachi mamma + Potato fry
Thachi Mamma + picle
Thachi Mamma + vatha kozhambu
Thachi mamma + poricha appalam
can anything else beat it? NOPE!

*drool*.....give me anything gourmet but at the end of it give me a small plate of thachi mamma + potato fry am good to go!!!!grr! made me nostalgic of my mom's seasoned thayir sadam....kept in the refrigirator....and eating it in the hot afternoon in madras!! :)

labdab said...

Hi, count my vote for "thayir saadham". I visited your blog for the first time today. I read couple of your stories (Quest for a Brahmin Boy, மனம் ஒரு குரங்கு ). Liked them both.
Keep writing...

dinesh said...

For once, I'll take your side of the argument to K's side. Thachu mammam illaadha oru vaazhkaya ? Cha nenaichu paakkave kashtama irukke..And PK took what I wanted to say. So versatile, Thacuh mammam's like an SPB of the food world :)

Anonymous said...

ewwwwww .... curd rice, especially the one which RS has (buttermilk + rice with some pickle) get that in front of my nose and I get goose pimples through out. Blame it on my genetic make up :). I once tolerated some kind of curd rice which is fried and had grapes, chillies, coriander leaves etc. :)

So no curd rice for me, dal rice here I come :)

Bus, see you in "thayir-sadam-less" heaven.

To each their heaven.

Anonymous said...

Curd rice with/without pickle...I can have it anyday, anytime, any amount...even when my tummy is full. Challenge anyone? :)

KP.

Krish said...

My earliest post was on thachchi mammam. Here it is: http://chennaicentral.blogspot.com/2005_01_09_chennaicentral_archive.html

:-)

Agnibarathi said...

Hey, looks like people have forgotten thayir satham mavadu!!! I know a lot of you have mentioned pickle, but mavadu is a different class by itself...

Anonymous said...

Lovely post, made me so totally nostalgic about the simple pleasures of thayir saadam....:)

Thanks!!

Prabhu said...

sathyamaa,
thachi mammu is just the way to end a course of meal!
athulaiyum garnishings oda irunthaa innum soooper!

RS said...

Firstly, thanks for all the support, non-believers and understudies should decisions based on these useful inputs :)

P~K: blockbuster? idellam too much :)

Vasu: Koodiya seekram? Septemberla madras varannu sollave illa ;) ?

Shiva, subha, ibh, subu: nandri for supporting thachi mum :)

labdab: thanks, keep visiting!

ramji: :)

dinesh: trust you to get music in!

baby k (non-believer): few more posts like this and u shall be a non-believer no more! Paavam, unnoda understudy kooda unna support pannala :)

kp: challenge you? no way!

thennavan: read your post - kalakkals!

agnibarathi: my fav: thayir sadam and narthanga pachadi that my mom makes!

nandu: welcome here, you are not my cousin nandu by any chance, are you? :)

prabhu: unga veetla sapta madiri! yum!

Random Access said...

Too good...thayir sadam with manga thokku...or mavadu, is surely heaven on earth. After all, you do get the feeling of drowsiness and the ensuing deep slumber will surely get u to the gates of heaven... For those who think beers and whiskey give them a high, this is Mt. Everest!

Random Access
The search has just begun !!!

BZ said...

Hi RS,
First time here.. love the way u write :))

And love thayir saadham too. :))

Zeppelin said...

RS,

thachi mammuva kokkaa !! kalakita...

have u tried the following combos ?

- thachi mammu + mullangi sambar (not made with sambar podi, but arachu vittadhu)
- thachi mammu which has tiny bits of carrots, green chillies, coriander leaves.... mmmmmm...
- thachi mammu + naarthangai
- thachi mammu + gonghura chutney
- thachi mammu + thakkali thokku...

well, thats as much as i can think about right now.... :)

sidetrack - in my school and college we used to call guys who ate thayir saadham regularly as "Thairu"...something like "ey thairu, dey thairu.." and so on...

Also brahmin guys were labelled "thairu pasanga".... hehee (no offense meant to anyone, just thought it was fun to share..)

RS said...

To Random access: indeed!

To Saranya: Thanks :)

To phil: nee kalakita po! evolo combinations?! A similar joke in anniyan too, "naan thayir sadam sapadravan, enna vutudungo!"

Mylapore said...

Thachi mammam and maavadu great combination. I am opening a restaurant in California next month. Drop by if you can. The restaurant is called MYLAPORE. The food is as close to your mom's cooking probably.

You can expect Pidi Kozakkattai, Arisi Uppuma, Thalaga Kozambu (7 kari kootu), Milagu Kozambu, Sundakkai Vathal Kozambu, Paruppurundai Morekozambhu, Maracheeni Appalam, Maagali Oorugai, Sodhi, Sandavai, Kadappa, fresh brewed south indian coffee, chutney ground every hour with fresh coconut, home made milagai podi with Nallennai, Dosa happy hour between 5.00 p.m and 6.00 p.m every weekday and much more.

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