The culinary skills revealed at the tenth edition of the cookery contest at Anantapur on Sunday were indeed ‘Ananta’, i.e., unending and unlimited. ‘Ragi Sangati’, which is endemic to Rayalaseema, continued to hold sway and cast its spell on the expert chefs.
The event conducted by The Hindu , in association with AP Tourism, at KTR Convention Hall under the theme ‘Our State – Our Taste’ to identify the signature dish of Andhra Pradesh brought out the best of dishes from the hinterland. Saddha roti, Nugula podi, Vankaya Pachipulusu, Thellavaya (garlic) karam are some of the traditional recipes that bagged laurels. Korrannam, the staple food prepared with foxtail millet, is another ‘Seema special’ dish served on a platter, with a combination of lemon rasam, garlic rasam, pepper rasam, pappu rasam, tomato rasam, Ulavacharu and Alasanda rasam.
Karnataka influence
A tinge of jaggery made its presence felt in most dishes, indicating the influence of the neighbouring Karnataka.
‘Oligalu’ were omnipresent in the desserts section, as more than half-a-dozen participants came up with mouth-watering variants. Similarly, ‘Java Godhuma Payasam’, a sweet porridge made of a traditionally grown wheat variety, caught the attention of many, followed by ‘Neti Kudumulu’ and ‘Paramannam.’
Joint Collector T.K. Ramamani, who inaugurated the event by lighting a lamp, called for protection and propagation of the native food varieties. She expressed hope that an ‘Anantapurian recipe’ would certainly be declared the signature dish. Regional Director, Tourism, G. Gopal was among those present.
Internationally-acclaimed expert chef K. Damodaran, who has a Guinness record in his kitty for a cooking marathon, appreciated the authenticity and admitted to have learnt 10 new delicacies from Anantapur. State Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition (SIHM Tirupati) Principal V. Giribabu hailed the cuisines for their rich texture, colour, flavour, aroma and eye appeal. Indian Culinary Institute (Tirupati) master trainer M. Tirulogachander called for emergence of women as expert chefs in the ever-burgeoning hospitality industry.
Winners
M. Bharathi won the first prize for ‘Natukodi Pulusu with Ragi Mudda’, M. Hemalatha bagged the second prize for ‘Oligalu’, while B. Krishnaveni Yadav got the third prize for ‘Guthi Vankaya Kura with Ragi Sangati’, in the non-vegetarian, sweet and vegetarian categories respectively.
The series of events is powered by Premier Cookware and Appliances and Gopuram food products. HDFC Bank is the exclusive banking partner, TV5 the television partner, Red FM the radio partner and White Thoughts and Branding acted as the creative and digital partner.
