Chettinad Palace Wiki
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Chettinad Palace, Chettinad Overview Located in the Sivaganga district of Tamil Nadu, the majestic architecture of Chettinad Palace is a beautiful example of the indigenous Chettinad architecture. Adorned with embellishments from all over the world, this mighty edifice dates back to the year 1912. Hotels in India » Monuments of India » Chettinad Palace Chettinad Palace The 110-year-old Chettinad Palace is an outstanding specimen of the Chettinad architecture. The oldest surviving building of this style, the Chettinad Palace was built by Dr Annamali Chettiyar, founder of the Indian Bank and the Annamalai University in Chidambaram.
For Marinate
·Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
For Seasoning
·Sesame Oil / Gingelly Oil / Nallennnai - 1 to 2 tblspn
·Small Onions / Shallots - 13 to 15 sliced thinly
·Ginger paste - 1 tblspn (grated or mashed)
·Sea Salt / Kal uppu - to taste
·Coriander leaves / Cilantro - for garnishing
·Coconut - 1/4 cup grated
·Dry Red Chilli - 5
·Cumin Seeds / Seeragam - 1 tsp
·Elachi / Cardamom / Elakkai - 2
·Star Anise / NatchathiraPoo - 1
·Jaathi Pathri - 1
Instructions
1.Take chicken in a bowl and wash well in water with little amountof turmeric to remove chicken smell from it. Then, marinate chicken with 1/2tsp turmeric powder and half a lemon juice for 30 minutes.
2.For making chettinad masala, dry roast corianderseeds,pepper,star anise,cardamom,cinnamon,fennel seeds, cumin seeds,black stoneflower, cloves and jaathipathri, in a low flame. Once it gets nicely roasted,add red chilli and roast it for few seconds until it turns crispy. Make sure itshould not get burn.
3.Add grated coconut and mix well for few seconds.
4.After roasted everything, add this to the blender or mixie jarand grind it as fine powder.
5.Now, heat a kadai with 1 or 2 tblspn of sesame/gingelly oil. Adda bay leaf , sliced small onions, curry leaves with little salt to speed up theonion cooking time and saute till it turns light golden color.
6.Add Ginger,garlic paste and saute it until the raw smell goesoff.
7.Add chopped tomato and cook for 2 minutes. Then, add marinatedchicken and mix well.
8.Let it cook for 15 minutes. Do not need to add water. Chickenwill cook on its own water. Then, add powdered spices.Mix well.
9.If you want, add some water now and boil it for 2 to 3 minutes.Add required salt and cover the kadai with a lid.Keep the flame in low foranother 20 minutes.
11.Serve Chettinadchicken curry hot with Rice, chappathi, Idli/Dosa, Parotta and even Naan's.
Chettinad Palace Chennai Wiki
Chettinad Palace Wikipedia
Theorigin of the Nagaraththar or the successful Trading Community of Chettiars,also called as the Nattukottai Chettiars begins in the 13th century when theNattu Kottai Chettiars migrated from the Kaveripoompattinam presumably after amassive and devastating flood . The new settlement became the Land of Chettiarswith 96 villages spreading over 1000 Sq.miles. Currently it has shrunk to 56villages in Sivagangi and 20 villages in Pudukottai Districts totaling 76villages. By virtue of their business activities, in the 19th Century, theytravelled extensively and settled in the nearby countries of Sri Lanka[Ceylon],Java, Sumatra Islands, Singapore, Myanmar[Burma], Cambodia , Vietnam[Saigon]and Malaysia. They grew wealthy and became a powerful community in India.Abundance of money made the Nagarathar to concentrate in the activities ofReligion, Education and Finance. Nagarathar’s were the one who had dedicatedthe Indian Overseas Bank, Indian Bank, Bank of Madura and also the United IndiaInsurance as private banking and Insurance establishments to the country. Largenumber of this community’s population is settled in West Asia, Australia,Europe and the United States too. Chettinad is known for its unique art andarchitecture, Nagarathar temples and Aromatic and tasty local cuisine.
TOURISTS ATTRACTIONS : Chettinad is famous for itstourist attractions -the traditional palaces and mansions that will help one tounderstand the simple, yet classy life of the wealthy Chettiar community. Someof the interesting tourist attractions in Chettinad are the museums-the KambanMani Mandapam and the Kaviarsar Kannadhasan Mani Mandapam, both built in honorof late poet-laureates. The latter has a museum with an amazing collection ofartefacts -traditional jewellery, clothing, huge copper vats and grain bins.Visit to Devakottai , where the streets of Devakottai afford one the pleasureof walking through a typical Chettiar lane lined with old mansions, the mostfamous being Periya Minor's Veedu. The Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple inDevakottai is famous for the 108 statues of Vinayakar.
Chettinad Houses : The Chettinad region ismost popular and adored for its 18th century mansions, unique and ornamentedpalatial houses , with wide courtyards and spacious rooms embellished withmarble and teak. Beautiful front court yard with wide and lengthy corridors onall four sides lined with ornamental pillars and antiques are a part of theChettinad Houses. These palatial houses are found in the villages of Kaanadukathan,Aathangudi, Kandanur, Kad-iyapatti. Many of these mansions were builtusing a type of limestone known as karai hence they are alsocalled as Karai[limestone] veedu. Local legend narratesthat the mansion walls were polished with a paste made out of egg whites togive them a smooth and shiny texture.
Kaanadukathan, is oneof the best destinations to see the Chettinad Architecture. The streets ofthis town with houses built on a palatial scale are almost deserted. Each oneof these houses are located on a large plot of land that spreads over1.5 to 10 acres and has many as 1,000-1,500 windows consuming around 1500 tonsof timber as wood work. Annamalai Chettiar’s Chettinad Palace built in 1912[almost 113 years ago], is the best of its kind located in chettinad.Theconstructionmaterial, decorative items, and furnishings from East Asia and Europe ; Marblefrom Italy; Chandeliers and Teak from Myanmar; Crockery from Indonesia; Crystaland Wall-to-wall Mirrors from Europe find their presence in thesepalaces.
Since the maintenance ofsuch Palaces costs lakhs of rupees a year, it is very sad to note that, of late, these antiquity master pieces are disappearing and are being demolished,built as smaller, compact and easily maintainable bungalows or houses.
CHETTINAD CUSINE :: CHETTINAD cuisine is very aromatic, Spicy and Richin strength. Non Vegetarian food tops their Menu that includes Chicken,Fish, Prawn, Lobster, Crab, and Lamb, but they are cautious enough toavoidBeef and Pork. Varieties of naturally dried Meat and SaltedVegetables that suits their dry climate, normally finds its place intheir daily Menu.Their food will find variety of Spices in theform of fresh ground Masalas necessarily wth a boiled egg.Theyhave many Vegetarian Delicacies too in their cuisine. Chettinad Chickenand Lamb is the most favoured dishes from the Chettinad Kitchen. Allspicy accompaniment dishes are taken almost along with rice based dishes.Idiyappam,Paniyaram, Vellai Paniyaram, Karupatti Paniyaram, Paal Paniyaram, KuzhiPaniyaram and Masala Paniyaram, Kozhukattai, Khandarappam, Sweet and MasalaSeeyam [sooyan], Kavuni Arisi and Athirasam are some of the longlist of Vegetarian delicacies of the Chettinad Region.
CHETTINAD CUSINE :: CHETTINAD cuisine is very aromatic, Spicy and Richin strength. Non Vegetarian food tops their Menu that includes Chicken,Fish, Prawn, Lobster, Crab, and Lamb, but they are cautious enough toavoidBeef and Pork. Varieties of naturally dried Meat and SaltedVegetables that suits their dry climate, normally finds its place intheir daily Menu.Their food will find variety of Spices in theform of fresh ground Masalas necessarily wth a boiled egg.Theyhave many Vegetarian Delicacies too in their cuisine. Chettinad Chickenand Lamb is the most favoured dishes from the Chettinad Kitchen. Allspicy accompaniment dishes are taken almost along with rice based dishes.Idiyappam,Paniyaram, Vellai Paniyaram, Karupatti Paniyaram, Paal Paniyaram, KuzhiPaniyaram and Masala Paniyaram, Kozhukattai, Khandarappam, Sweet and MasalaSeeyam [sooyan], Kavuni Arisi and Athirasam are some of the longlist of Vegetarian delicacies of the Chettinad Region.
Arts and Crafts : Thearts of Chettinad occupy a distinct position in South Indian folklore. Woodcarving, silver embellishment, woven saris, palm-leaf baskets, gold jewelry,hand made tiles, architectural styles, egg plastering are among their morevisible contributions to the wide-ranging repertoire of Indian arts andcrafts. Kandaangisarees or Chettinad Sarees, withuse of beautiful colour combinations and pattern with bold checks and stripes,are the brand equity of the Chettinad region. Unique Chettinad baskets withunique and intricate patterns made with palm leaves and the patterns are asfine as the embroidery.Chettinad Weddings, normally conducted in theirhouses, equally emphasize the life style of the community. The week – longwedding celebration of the yester years, have been trimmed to a couple of daysto suit the convenience. The hospitality, the jewels for bride andbridegroom, the food varieties are the special attraction of theoccasion. The Nagarathars have the custom of tying the kazhuthu [neck]Uru [piece] [kazhuththu uru] commonly called as Mangal Sutraor the Thali, which is made of gold and covered with diamond. The pendant inthe Thali /Mangalsutrarepresents the Clan/Family sub sects.
How To Reach Chettinadu The nearest Airport Madurai 90 kms from Chettinad connects to different parts of the State. By Rail Karaikudi is the main railway station, which connects the State Capital Chennai and other major cities in TamilNadu and onwards to other parts of India. By Road Karaikudi is well connected by the national highways 45 and 210 with Madurai, Trichy, Tanjore and Chennai. |