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Odiyal kool
ஒடியல் கூழ் (odiyal kool): Jaffna's thick, fiery seafood broth of crab, prawns and fish thickened with palmyra-root flour
On a rainy weekend in Jaffna, extended families gather around one enormous pot of kool, a thick, peppery seafood broth that is ladled out and drunk from cups folded from jackfruit leaves. Its body comes from odiyal flour, ground from sun-dried palmyra sprouts, which gives a slightly earthy, nutty flavour and a silky, porridge-like texture, and into it go crab, prawns, chunks of fish, long beans, jackfruit seeds and a sharp hit of tamarind and chilli. It is a meal on its own, eaten hot and slurped, with nothing more than a spoon and plenty of napkins. People often go wrong by adding the flour too early or without soaking it, so it clumps and tastes bitter; it should be soaked, drained and stirred in near the end. Chef's tip: soak the odiyal flour for a few hours, pour off the brown water and repeat once, which removes most of its bitterness.
- Total time
- 90 min
- Difficulty
- hard
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the seafood
- 1 ¾ lb live or freshly cooked crabscleaned and cut into quarters, claws cracked
- 9 oz raw prawnspeeled and deveined
- 10 ½ oz firm white fish (seer or similar)cut into chunks
- 5 ½ oz small squid (optional)cleaned and cut into rings
For the broth
- 3 ½ oz odiyal (palmyra-root) floursoaked in water 2–3 hours, water changed once
- 1 ¾ oz raw short-grain ricerinsed
- 8 ¼ cups water
- 1 oz tamarind pulpsoaked in 150 ml hot water, strained
- 3 ½ oz long beanscut into 3 cm pieces
- 12 jackfruit seeds (optional)peeled and halved
- 1 handful moringa (drumstick) leaves (optional)
- 2 tsp salt
For the chilli paste
- 10 dried red chilliessoaked 15 minutes
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 1 /2 tsp ground turmeric
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Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Check the crabs: discard any that were dead before cooking or smell unpleasant. Rinse the pieces under cold water.
2 minStep 2: Grind 10 dried red chillies, 6 cloves garlic, 1 tsp black peppercorns and 1 /2 tsp ground turmeric with a splash of water to a smooth red paste.
3 minStep 3: Put 1 ¾ oz raw short-grain rice and 8 ¼ cups water in a large pot, bring to the boil over a high heat, then simmer for 15 minutes until the rice is soft.
15 minStep 4: Add the chilli paste, 3 ½ oz long beans, 12 jackfruit seeds and 2 tsp salt and simmer for 10 minutes until the beans and seeds are nearly tender.
10 minStep 5: Add 1 ¾ lb live or freshly cooked crabs and cook for 8 minutes at a steady simmer, until the shells turn red-orange.
8 minStep 6: Add 10 ½ oz firm white fish (seer or similar), 9 oz raw prawns and 5 ½ oz small squid and simmer for 4–5 minutes until the prawns are pink and opaque and the fish flakes easily.
5 minStep 7: Squeeze the soaked 3 ½ oz odiyal (palmyra-root) flour dry, mix it with a cup of the hot broth to a smooth slurry and whisk it into the pot.
2 minStep 8: Stir constantly over a medium heat for 5–6 minutes until the kool thickens to a pouring-porridge consistency and turns glossy.
6 minStep 9: Stir in 1 oz tamarind pulp and 1 handful moringa (drumstick) leaves, simmer 1 minute more and taste for salt and sourness. Serve straight away in deep bowls.
1 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 340 kcal
- Protein
- 32 g
- Carbs
- 30 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Fibre
- 5 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does odiyal kool take?
- About 90 minutes in total: 30 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- What can I use instead of raw short-grain rice?
- Any long-grain rice, same amount.
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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