Mushrooming food blogs on Malayali cuisine reveal a thriving network in cyberspace that goes beyond food, finds Esther Elias
Honey Sarah Naveen was newlywed and new to the kitchen when she moved to
the United States in 2009. Her first cooking experiments were built on
recipes inherited from her mother and grandmother. “They eyeballed
ingredients. A little coriander here, some chilli there. I ended up with
beef curry that had more coriander than chilli!” she says. After
several successful tries, Honey began quantifying recipe ingredients and
uploading them on her blog named Vazhayila. Soon memories of her
childhood in Kerala appended the recipes, photographs were added and the
number of blog followers rose. Today, Vazhayila is among the many
top-notch Kerala cuisine blogs that average several lakh hits each
month.
People prefer blogs over cookbooks because there’s a personal connection
with the author, says Nashira Usef, who hails from Kochi and runs her
blog Plateful from Doha. “I began the blog because people often think
all there is to Indian cooking is butter chicken masala, and I wanted to
introduce them to the rich cuisine of Kerala,” she says. Her posts walk
readers through recipes with detailed tips, possible disasters and her
own experience of putting the dish together. “I realised soon that
people were looking for simple, every-day recipes that they could
replicate. Basic thorans have received great response,” says Ria Mathew
of Ria’s Collection. Her most popular post has been a 12-layered Chatti
Pathiri, nicknamed the Malayali lasagne for its minced chicken stuffing
soaked in coconut milk, a Malabar special.
There are entire blogs devoted to particular traditions of Kerala
cooking such as Syrian Christian recipes, north-Malabar cuisine, Tamil
Nadu-influenced Malayali food, etc. For instance, Nimmy Paul’s blog,
Indian Kerala Food, focuses primarily on Syrian Christian cooking styles
and is targeted at those alien to Kerala’s ingredients. “In my cooking
classes, I do a series of recipes with one ingredient. For example, with
coconut, there’s a thoran with grated coconut, avial with ground
coconut and fish moily with coconut milk,” says Nimmy. Her husband V.J.
Paul photographs her sessions and updates the blog.
Most food bloggers say the biggest attraction on their blogs have been
their photographs of in-progress and finished cooking, often embellished
with ingredients as props and shot in favourable lighting. Many
bloggers have evolved into self-taught food stylists and photographers,
besides blog design and coding experts themselves. They also have active
Facebook pages on which they promote their latest work. “Creating a
post takes several days. I shoot the ingredients at their freshest, then
cook and make notes along the way, photograph during the day to avail
of natural light and finally write the accompanying text which has an
introduction to the dish and an anecdote,” says Rose M. of Magpie
Recipes.
A quick glance at the comment sections on these Malayali food blogs will
tell you of their immense popularity. Readers are primarily from the
United States, UAE, Europe and India, since many Malayalis have migrated
to these areas, says Honey. “In my recipes too, I ensure I use
ingredients that will be easily available across the globe,” she says.
Reader responses ask for the best ingredient and kitchen appliance
brands, as well as talk of having tried out the recipes themselves,
besides narrating their goof-ups. “I’ve had people who are entirely new
to cooking, mail in and ask for detailed step-by step photographs of my
cooking,” says Tina who runs Kaipunyam. “Many have sent me photographs
of their version of my recipes, asking me what went wrong, or whether
their food looks like mine did.”
What the comments don’t reveal is how well-connected the food blogging
community is off-line as well, says Ria. “Like Julia Child who says,
‘People who love to eat are always the best people.’, I’ve made many
amazing friends online from whom I have learnt much. It's also great to
meet people, who have a common passion for food, in real life as well,”
says Rose. Adds Ria, “Followers on my blog have known me from when I was
a bachelorette, through my wedding and to my baby’s first birthday,
often sending me gifts on special occasions even!”
Many times, the spin-offs have been monetary as well. Several bloggers
earn such heavy traffic that advertisers have approached them for online
space. Ria says she frequently does monthly giveaways where she sends
readers across the globe sponsored goods at the end of online contests.
Others have considered turning their blog lives into cookery books at
the request of publishers. Although, the greatest pleasure, says Sarah,
is creative satisfaction. “I began this blog to relive my days in
Kerala. When readers say my work takes them down the memory lane too,
that’s when I’m happiest.”
Birds of a feather
Besides their individual blogs, Kerala food bloggers congregate on
common platforms such as The Kerala Kitchen. Begun by Ria Mathew and
Rose M., the club hosts monthly bloggers’ events where all participants
cook the same dish or share recipes on a particular cuisine. The online
community which is also present on Facebook has become a onestop forum
for bloggers to find and exchange Kerala recipes, as well as for readers
to upload photos, ask questions and discuss food with like-minded
people, says Rose.B
Source: http://tinyurl.com/kzcxjnc
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