
Why colocasia leaves are must-try this monsoon
This is something that has stayed with me and is the main criterion when I cook these large elephant ear leaves as they are commonly called. Kesavu or Kesavina elle as they are known in Kannada is a regional ingredient which is abundant during the monsoons. A highly versatile green whose leaves and shoots are used in a multitude of dishes, colocasia aka taro leaves are a specialty in the coastal states of Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat.
'Consuming these leaves during the rainy season is traditionally supposed to aid digestion and protect the body from cold. They are also prepared with other seasonal delicacies such as bamboo shoot. Since the Western Ghats are rain-fed, these leaves thrive almost everywhere, making them easily available,' says regional cuisine enthusiast Shruthi Hegde, programme director at an NGO in Hyderabad.
Vast repertoire
A much sought after green, colocasia leaves find their way into a wide variety of dishes including crispy fritters, chutney, curries, tangy side dishes, sambar, savoury pancakes and the ubiquitous pathrode aka colocasia pinwheels or taro rolls. The latter is arguably the most popular dish made from these leaves, with each region and even families having their own variations. While some add rice as the base for the ground batter others use split chickpeas or chickpea flour.
'Irrespective of what dish you make, the key in cooking kesavu well is to add a generous amount of tamarind extract, giving it a bold flavour. This also prevents any itching sensation in the throat that may arise,' adds Sarojini.
Apart from tamarind, hog plums pair well with the leaves, and this seasonal souring agent imparts a piquant touch. Preparations such as chutney and tangy sauces call for a generous tempering of garlic whose pungent, nutty taste when roasted, lends a unique flavour to these dishes.
Colocasia leaves are also widely used on festive occasions such as Ganesh Chaturthi and Ananta Chaturdashi. 'In the Havyaka community we make a gravy called karakali. Well-cooked leaves are ground and boiled with tamarind juice and salt. A quick tempering of mustard seeds, garlic and urad is added before it is served with hot rice and coconut oil,' adds Shruthi.
Colocasia leaf chutney is a slightly more elaborate dish in terms of preparation. The leaves are roughly chopped and boiled with tamarind extract, then ground with coconut and an array of roasted ingredients such as coriander and cumin seeds, urad dal and red chillies. A tempering of mustard seeds, garlic and red chillies are the final touch.
One dish, many forms
The base for most colocasia dishes is a batter prepared from rice, tamarind, red chillies, coriander and cumin seeds, all of which are soaked in water for at least four to five hours. This mixture is ground with coconut after which salt, turmeric and jaggery is added.
This batter is spread over the leaves which are then rolled and steamed after which they are cut into slices and tempered. While this is the way colocasia rolls are prepared, the batter is also used for other preparations.
'Add finely chopped leaves into the batter, shape them spherically and deep fry them as fritters. Just make sure that the batter is thick. Alternatively, if the batter has turned runny, you can spread the mixture on a pan like a savoury pancake — this is called chetti. Both dishes taste best when cooked in coconut oil,' adds Sarojini.
Another popular method is to steam the entire mixture. Prepare a tempering of mustard seeds, red chillies, urad dal, curry leaves, freshly grated coconut and add the steamed mixture by crumbling it. With a pinch of sugar, the shredded pathrode curry ready.
Edible shoot
Many people do not realise the shoot is edible too and pairs well with lentils. Removing the outer layer of the stem reveals the inner soft, porous tissue which needs to be finely chopped.
'Well diced shoots of colocasia are cooked with tamarind paste, jaggery and green chillies. Add a bit of rice flour for thickness and top this curry with a tempering of mustard seeds, red chillies and garlic,' says Latha Rao from Kundapur.
The same recipe can be tweaked by adding rasam powder to avoid garlic, giving the dish a more diverse flavour profile. The chopped stems can be cooked with toor dal and prepared like regular sambar.
'You can cook the chopped stems in a ground paste of coconut, roasted urad, dal and red chillies which results in a thick gravy. A raw curd-based gravy is another preparation. Cook the chopped stems till soft and then mix it with a ground paste of coconut, green chillies and a dash of raw mustard. Add curd and pour a tempering of mustard seeds, urad and channa dal, red chillies and curry leaves over the gravy,' says Vijayalaksmi Rao, who hails from the Karavalli region of Karnataka, but now resides in Bengaluru.
Contemporary twist
This monsoon green is quite versatile and chef Shriya Shetty has reimagined colocasia leaf rolls as pathrode lasagna. 'We were doing a Paris X Mangalore inspired pop-up meal in Mumbai during the monsoon season and I wanted to showcase different textures of the colocasia leaves; the way it tastes when made into a curry and when deep fried. Lasagna is a layered dish and pathrode fit the bill as the perfect inspiration,' says Shriya.
Shriya, co-founder of BuCo, an artisanal bakery and café in Mangalore, bakes pathrode in a bechamel sauce of coconut milk, ghee, millets and spices, for the lasagna.

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

The Hindu
3 days ago
- The Hindu
Guided tour of Cubbon Park from July 27, check ticket price and how to register
The Horticulture Department opened the online portal to book tickets for the guided walking tour of Cubbon Park in Bengaluru, which will be held every weekend starting July 27. The initiative, called 'Cubbon Walks', is a partnership between the department, The Naturalist School, and BangaloreWALKS. The tour will last 90 minutes, and will be held from 7.30 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. The tickets for the tour are priced at ₹200 for adults and ₹50 for children between the ages of 10 - 17 years. Those under the age of 10, when accompanied by adults, can go on the walk for free. Private entities offering similar tours were charging anywhere between ₹800 and ₹1,500 per person. The guided walk covers the variety of flora and fauna in the lung space, with presentation of interesting facts and stories by trained naturalists. There will be separate walks for Kannada and English groups. Each group will consist of a maximum of 30 participants. Those interested in registering for the walk can visit or send an email to horticulturecubbon@ The department plans to host such walks even in Lalbagh Botanical Garden after the Independence Day flower show.


Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
Mumbai to Goa with your car, minus the traffic? India's first ferry train set to launch before Ganesh Chaturthi
Konkan Railway Corporation Limited is launching India's first car ferry train service between Kolad and Verna, just in time for Ganesh Chaturthi. This innovative service allows travelers to transport their cars by train, reducing travel time to 12 hours compared to the current 20-22 hour road journey. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads A faster, safer way to travel How it works Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Departure time: 5 PM from Kolad Arrival time: 5 AM at Verna Reporting time: 2 PM at Kolad station for loading and formalities 3AC Coach: Rs 935 per person Second Seating: Rs 190 per person Maximum of 3 passengers per car: 2 in 3AC and 1 in SLR coach Car transport cost: Rs 7,875 (one way) Eco-friendly and stress-free In a first-of-its-kind move, the Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL) is set to launch India's first car ferry train service just in time for the Ganesh Chaturthi rush. According to a report by Times Now, this new service will allow travellers to transport their private cars by train between Kolad in Maharashtra and Verna in Goa, while they ride along in connected passenger service is expected to be a game-changer for people travelling to Goa, especially during holidays and festivals. At present, the road journey from Mumbai or Pune to Goa often takes 20 to 22 hours due to heavy traffic and winding ghat roads. The new ferry train, however, will cover the distance in just 12 hours, making the trip quicker, safer, and more officials told Daijiworld Media Network that the service will greatly reduce highway congestion, especially during Ganeshotsav, when thousands of families travel to used to carry trucks, this ferry train model will now be used for private cars. Each train will have 20 specially designed wagons, and each wagon can carry two cars, making space for 40 cars in total per the train will only run if at least 16 vehicles are must not stay inside their vehicles during the journey. Instead, they will ride in nearby coaches:Apart from reducing travel time and road stress, the car ferry service also offers a green travel alternative by cutting down fuel usage and carbon emissions. It also opens doors for carpooling and safer family travel during peak festive first-ever car ferry train in India is expected to transform the way people travel to Goa, blending the comfort of rail travel with the convenience of having your personal vehicle at your from agencies


The Hindu
5 days ago
- The Hindu
Why colocasia leaves are must-try this monsoon
'Always look for leaves which have a deep purple almost blackish hue, these usually do not leave you with an itching sensation in the throat,' said my mother-in-law, Sarojini Upadhya when I first picked colocasia leaves for a dish. This is something that has stayed with me and is the main criterion when I cook these large elephant ear leaves as they are commonly called. Kesavu or Kesavina elle as they are known in Kannada is a regional ingredient which is abundant during the monsoons. A highly versatile green whose leaves and shoots are used in a multitude of dishes, colocasia aka taro leaves are a specialty in the coastal states of Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat. 'Consuming these leaves during the rainy season is traditionally supposed to aid digestion and protect the body from cold. They are also prepared with other seasonal delicacies such as bamboo shoot. Since the Western Ghats are rain-fed, these leaves thrive almost everywhere, making them easily available,' says regional cuisine enthusiast Shruthi Hegde, programme director at an NGO in Hyderabad. Vast repertoire A much sought after green, colocasia leaves find their way into a wide variety of dishes including crispy fritters, chutney, curries, tangy side dishes, sambar, savoury pancakes and the ubiquitous pathrode aka colocasia pinwheels or taro rolls. The latter is arguably the most popular dish made from these leaves, with each region and even families having their own variations. While some add rice as the base for the ground batter others use split chickpeas or chickpea flour. 'Irrespective of what dish you make, the key in cooking kesavu well is to add a generous amount of tamarind extract, giving it a bold flavour. This also prevents any itching sensation in the throat that may arise,' adds Sarojini. Apart from tamarind, hog plums pair well with the leaves, and this seasonal souring agent imparts a piquant touch. Preparations such as chutney and tangy sauces call for a generous tempering of garlic whose pungent, nutty taste when roasted, lends a unique flavour to these dishes. Colocasia leaves are also widely used on festive occasions such as Ganesh Chaturthi and Ananta Chaturdashi. 'In the Havyaka community we make a gravy called karakali. Well-cooked leaves are ground and boiled with tamarind juice and salt. A quick tempering of mustard seeds, garlic and urad is added before it is served with hot rice and coconut oil,' adds Shruthi. Colocasia leaf chutney is a slightly more elaborate dish in terms of preparation. The leaves are roughly chopped and boiled with tamarind extract, then ground with coconut and an array of roasted ingredients such as coriander and cumin seeds, urad dal and red chillies. A tempering of mustard seeds, garlic and red chillies are the final touch. One dish, many forms The base for most colocasia dishes is a batter prepared from rice, tamarind, red chillies, coriander and cumin seeds, all of which are soaked in water for at least four to five hours. This mixture is ground with coconut after which salt, turmeric and jaggery is added. This batter is spread over the leaves which are then rolled and steamed after which they are cut into slices and tempered. While this is the way colocasia rolls are prepared, the batter is also used for other preparations. 'Add finely chopped leaves into the batter, shape them spherically and deep fry them as fritters. Just make sure that the batter is thick. Alternatively, if the batter has turned runny, you can spread the mixture on a pan like a savoury pancake — this is called chetti. Both dishes taste best when cooked in coconut oil,' adds Sarojini. Another popular method is to steam the entire mixture. Prepare a tempering of mustard seeds, red chillies, urad dal, curry leaves, freshly grated coconut and add the steamed mixture by crumbling it. With a pinch of sugar, the shredded pathrode curry ready. Edible shoot Many people do not realise the shoot is edible too and pairs well with lentils. Removing the outer layer of the stem reveals the inner soft, porous tissue which needs to be finely chopped. 'Well diced shoots of colocasia are cooked with tamarind paste, jaggery and green chillies. Add a bit of rice flour for thickness and top this curry with a tempering of mustard seeds, red chillies and garlic,' says Latha Rao from Kundapur. The same recipe can be tweaked by adding rasam powder to avoid garlic, giving the dish a more diverse flavour profile. The chopped stems can be cooked with toor dal and prepared like regular sambar. 'You can cook the chopped stems in a ground paste of coconut, roasted urad, dal and red chillies which results in a thick gravy. A raw curd-based gravy is another preparation. Cook the chopped stems till soft and then mix it with a ground paste of coconut, green chillies and a dash of raw mustard. Add curd and pour a tempering of mustard seeds, urad and channa dal, red chillies and curry leaves over the gravy,' says Vijayalaksmi Rao, who hails from the Karavalli region of Karnataka, but now resides in Bengaluru. Contemporary twist This monsoon green is quite versatile and chef Shriya Shetty has reimagined colocasia leaf rolls as pathrode lasagna. 'We were doing a Paris X Mangalore inspired pop-up meal in Mumbai during the monsoon season and I wanted to showcase different textures of the colocasia leaves; the way it tastes when made into a curry and when deep fried. Lasagna is a layered dish and pathrode fit the bill as the perfect inspiration,' says Shriya. Shriya, co-founder of BuCo, an artisanal bakery and café in Mangalore, bakes pathrode in a bechamel sauce of coconut milk, ghee, millets and spices, for the lasagna.