It is easy to see that Madurai benefits from its broad and rich cultural history by taking a stroll along any of the city’s streets. The fragrances of delectable regional dishes cooked with the same culinary style and skill that have been used for many generations together fill the streets from the kitchens. These tastes are also native to the Chettinad region.
The minced mutton meatballs’ provenance is in the nearby city of Thanjavur. The Marathas, who ruled over a sizable portion of this region for roughly 150 years between the 17th and the 19th century, are inextricably linked to the culinary prowess of the Chola dynasty of Thanjavur. The Saraswathi Mahal library, one of Asia’s oldest libraries, holds documented accounts of recipes among many other rare historical manuscripts. This is perhaps the first attempt at recipe preservation in any region of India
There are numerous urban tales about Kola Urundai’s beginnings in and around the city. Some claim that the dish has essentially evolved from a kebab or shunti (Marathi) into a regional cuisine. Each variation of the dish adds distinctive flavours to its taste by slightly altering the ingredient or preparation process. One of the regional specialties, Kayir Katti Kola Urundai, is a dish that the Nattukotai Chettiars have adapted to their own tastes and presentation. Kayir Katti translates as being bound by a string. They use banana leaf strings to hold the meatball together to prevent it from disintegrating.
Some authentic Chettinad Chefs, who practiced before the mutton version became famous, assert that the original kola urundai was made with raw banana or plantain.
The laborious grinding down of mutton until it gets soft but still preserving the proper texture to make it crispier is noteworthy and unquestionably one of the most crucial steps in the production of Kola Urundai. It’s crucial to get the textures of this procedure just right since that’s what gives these delicious meatballs their crispier exterior that you can bite into and their soft interior that melts in your mouth. The aromas and spices are ensured to blend together perfectly by the perfectly ground mutton mince,
Both are a tantalising appetiser and a satisfying main dish, Kola Urundai stands its ground. The Chettinad version’s textures are slightly different from those of the Kayir Katti Kola Urundai. The strings keep them together even though they are crumby on the outside. The secret to making the second one have a crispier outside is to fry them before they break down in the frying pan. In addition to the two fried variants, there is also the Kola Urundai Kuzhambu, which steams the meatballs before placing them in a kuzhambu (gravy).
We at The Wedding Biryani ensure authenticity and rusticism at every bite from the Kola Urundai’s flavour with spices picked and primed from the state’s own.
