Where succulent Indian flavours are enveloped by rich chocolate

A CHOCOLATE OVERLOAD: The fifth edition of the festival has tried to infuse chocolate into popular foods. Payasam truffle on display at the Annual Chocolate Festival, in Puducherry. Photo: G. Krishnaswamy

The outer shell is pure chocolate- just like with every other truffle. But the filling is surprisingly unusual- roasted vermicelli, almonds and a hint of cardamom, reveal themselves, one after the other. If they read like the typical ingredients of a sweet endnote to a Tamil festival, there’s nothing to be surprised— for this is the payasam truffle , one of the signature specials at the Annual Chocolate Festival in Puducherry.

“The payasam truffle was born from an attempt to fuse a traditional Indian dessert with a conventionally western one,” says Srinath Balachandran of Zuka, the chocolate boutique on Mission Street, which holds the chocolate festival annually. With no sugar mixed in the payasam and no-sugar chocolate from Belgium sourced to make the shell, the truffle also projects itself as a calorie-friendly option.

Mouth-watering concoctions

The chocolate festival hits the town in December — a time when chocolate in all its forms, be it molten liquid or boxed hearts, is more welcome than ever. The five-day event attempts to come up with innovations every season. “How many variations can you come up with chocolate? The festival is a challenge for our team of chocolatiers to answer the question and keep chocolate lovers guessing,” says Mr. Srinath. The team has put in more than 18 hours over the last week to craft variations that differ from the usual.

Chocolate fusion

The fifth edition of the festival has tried to infuse chocolate into popular foods like the burger and the sizzler, making it the most important ingredient of the dish. A king chocolate burger not only sports carved shavings of chocolate, but the meat or vegetable patty inside is substituted with a chocolate cake studded with dry fruits. Traditional meat sizzlers are replaced with chocolate fudge, chocolate mousse, cake and ice-cream. The ‘cup-and-saucer brownie sizzler’ served in a cup moulded from chocolate caves on the table to mix with the brownie, enveloping it in melting chocolate on all sides.

The Hollywood Cake, layered with seven flavours including vanilla, peanut butter, pralines, caramel, toffee and milk chocolate mousse makes up for a missing centrepiece which is usually a sculpture.

Chocolate in everything

From chocolate bottles filled with caramel to sunshine lollipops conjured from white chocolate, there’s chocolate in every thing.

The festival is on till December 22 between 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. everyday.