Delicacies from South India

'Most people do not realise that cooking is not only a mother's job, it's an art', says Santhi Balaraman author of Dakshin Bhog

Copyright 2007 Puja Goyal



The market is flooded with cookery books and television serials. So, why would we need another writer to tell us what we need to eat?

It is because we don't always meet someone like Santhi Balaraman. The demure yet vibrant woman speaks of her passion for cooking with such jest that it would entice anyone to cook. Santhi has been cooking for almost thirty years and draws her experience from the most intimate form of South Indian cooking. While most chefs would learn from cooking schools and hotel management institutes, Santhi learnt cooking from the roots of tradition.

Santhi has created a space for South Indian cooking in history; through her dedicated effort. She says, "There are better techniques available for cooking now, but earlier slow cooking was the essence of taste."

Santhi Balaraman, who is a well-known cookery personality both in visual & print media, is truly blessed in this respect. Her training in the art of cooking started years before she wrote her first recipe or hosted her first show. What she has is a rich heritage handed down to her from three generations; something most cookery show hosts cannot boast about. She elaborates, "People shrink away from south Indian cooking; what they don't realize is that it is simple to cook."

She now hosts & produces a popular cookery show continuously for six years on SUN T.V now and has published cookbooks both in Tamil & in English. She holds live cookery shows & quizzes & also advices on food & nutrition. She also speaks regularly in A.I.R FM radio, on this subject.

While her books written in Tamil cover all cuisines, her maiden English debut "Dakshin Bhog" is dedicated only to South Indian Cuisine. Dakshin Bhog, as the name suggests, is an authentic book on traditional south Indian vegetarian food. Many of the recipes are from her great grandmother passed on by her grandmother. She has also given a few of her mother in law’s recipes & her mother’s recipes.

"Dakshin Bhog" is special because it is one of the first books that feature recipes that would have otherwise been forgotten. Santhi explains, "You know, I went shopping one day and this girl came running to me and said that she had liked what I cooked on TV last evening. She forgot the name of the dish, but had tried it at home… What I had cooked was a traditional Tamilian dish; it's called "Masiyan"; which is nothing but mashed green leaves." Most don’t even know that there is a recipe called "Masiyan".

"I would also like to clarify that Traditional is not necessarily orthodox" says Santhi. "Most people do not realize that cooking is not only a mother's job; it's an art. Families that cook together stay together" believes Santhi.

Before leaving, Santhi made it a point to emphasize that she started her career very late (about ten years ago) due to her personal commitments like family. What we would like to add is that it's never to late to start; and most importantly the wealth of knowledge she received while attending to her commitments is not something we can boast of as we continue to live the fast pace of life.