What strange, wrinkly creature is this? May I introduce kodampuli, an extra special gift brought back from Kerala by a very sweet, thoughtful friend. She knows I love a mystery ingredient!
I have been reliably informed that these smoked, sun-dried fruits are quite specific to south Indian cuisine, and used only in fish curries. They don't have much aisle appeal - slightly mummified in appearance, and almost black. I can imagine the smell would put many people off too - heavily smoked, with an intense sour, almost meaty fragrance.
I'm not so savvy about Indian cooking, probably because I've mostly lived in areas of London which have large African-Caribbean communities, so the cuisine is off my daily radar. But I do love a well spiced dish, so these will be tested this weekend in an Anglicised version of the pomfret coconut curry recipe which also came back with my friend. If the results are good, the recipe will follow...
Hmm...fingers crossed it tastes alright!!!
ReplyDeleteI do like the idea of 'mummified Mystery fruit', perhaps even as a new name for them to give more aisle appeal.
ReplyDeleteCarl: you must be in marketing? I can see the advertising now...if only Boris Karloff was still around
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