A pinch of Tamil touch

Chennai doesnt just eat food from elsewhere it rewrites it in its own script. Walk through the city and youll see it everywhere: the North Indian green-chutney sandwich getting a new avatar with the introduction of our murukku , making them murukku sandwiches. Their chaat stalls bending to the local tongue as kara boondhi sneaks in, and suddenly, a Delhi snack has taken a ride on the Marina breeze. Even the metallic rhythm of kothu parotta on hot iron an adaptation of Sri Lankas kothu roti made Tamil with salna and swagger that the city knows how to remix. Chennai, and Tamil Nadu by extension, dont copy. The state edits, layers, and folds the unfamiliar until it feels like a taste thats always lived here; never erasing the memory of where a dish came from, but teaching it to speak the language of curry leaves and coastal winds, until it belongs to the land as much as its people do. Ahead of Madras Day, lets celebrate the way this capital city, along with many of the states towns and villages, works its alchemy and turns every dish into something unmistakably Tamil. Shriram Rajendran, chef and founder of Scoop Dawg Tamil Nadu has always had this incredible ability to take global food trends and make them its own. As someone who creates desserts and ice creams, I see that play out every day, whether its through our love for strong flavours, or the way we instinctively lean into familiar tastes while exploring the new. I often add local flavours intentionally filter coffee, jaggery, tropical fruits like mango or jackfruit, because they instantly connect with people here. For example, our Filter Kaapi Tiramisu ice cream took a global classic and gave it a Tamil soul. It became an instant hit because it carried the comfort of something familiar, but in a completely new form. Whats exciting is that people here are increasingly open to experimentation. The younger crowd, especially, embraces fusion with enthusiasm, they want bold, playful desserts that surprise them. Older generations still lean towards familiarity, but even theyre curious once they trust the balance isnt lost. The balance comes from respecting authenticity while layering a Tamil flavour twist. I dont simply add jaggery to a mousse for the sake of it I ask, Does it elevate the dish? If it feels forced, it doesnt work. There are definitely times when customers themselves ask for a localised version Can you do this with jaggery instead of sugar? or Can you make an ice cream with filter coffee? Those requests guide us too. Challenges exist in introducing something too global without any Tamil touch can feel alienating. But with the right storytelling and tasting experiences, people usually come around. If I had to sum it up in one line: Tamil Nadus food culture adapts global trends by infusing them with comfort, familiarity, and just the right amount of boldness. Gokul Kumar Mohit, chef Food has always evolved through history, and Tamil Nadu is no exception. Tamil people have long been adventurous when it comes to adapting foreign dishes-spicing them up with ingredients from our own pantry and blending them with local flavors to create combinations that feel both familiar and exciting. Some of these adaptations have become so ingrained that they are now considered part of Tamil food culture itself. Take Chicken 65 with Chinese fried rice. Fast-food vendors discovered that the crispy, spicy 65 added far more punch than the usual boiled chicken. It was also practical most joints already served biryani with 65, and fried rice was only an auxiliary dish. Keeping one versatile chicken preparation that worked for both made sense, and in the process, people discovered that fried rice and Chicken 65 were a match made in MSG heaven. Similarly, Japan chicken was originally created to please Japanese expats who set up factories in Erode. Accustomed to lighter, less spice-heavy food, they needed something that bridged their palate with our flavours. What began as an experiment is now an Erode staple, made iconic by Amman Mess. The Chettiars, too, brought back culinary influences from their trade routes in Malaysia and South East Asia. Ingredients like karuppu kavuni arisi (black rice) and techniques like cooking with coconut milk-previously uncommon in our sour curries-were folded into Chettinad cuisine and eventually spread across Tamil cooking. In recent years, chefs, restaurants, and content creators have sparked a fresh wave of adaptations like Aathi from Cookd reimagining meen kuzhambu as pasta, Double Dashis paya ramen, Chef Gokus creative mashups like kimchi with curd rice or Kuttanallur parotta shawarma , and his drive to use native forgotten ingredients and popularise it with international food and techniques with his pan India pop-ups taking back native Tamil ingredients and stories back to homes. I dont call it fusion foods, instead its adaptation food. They work because they connect global ideas to something already rooted in Tamil culture. Meen kuzhambu pasta isnt far from a seafood bisque pasta. Paya ramen draws parallels with tonkatsu ramen. Kimchi with curd rice mirrors our curd-and-pickle tradition. Even shawarma stuffed into parotta finds echoes in Middle Eastern flatbread pairings. Not every trend survives. But the ones that do become timeless, just like biryani. No other state can boast the sheer variety of biryanis that Tamil Nadu does: Thalapakatti style, Ambur, Vaniyambadi, Kongu vellai biryani, Chettinad style, Rawther, wedding-style biryanis, and even Chicken 65 biryani. Historian-chef Shri Balas revival of Perun Soru , a Chera-era biryani served with an array of condiments, further proves how deeply adaptation runs in our culture. And today, thanks to TV shows like Cook With Comali and the rise of YouTube and Instagram, more home cooks are experimenting with local ingredients, travel-inspired flavors, and creative reinterpretations. Some dishes may fade with the trend cycle, but the truly beloved ones-those that strike the perfect balance of novelty and familiarity-will stand the test of time. Tejaswini Chandar, a graduate Ive noticed how something like pizza or momo tastes totally different here. I think it really comes down to the whole debate between authenticity and replicas. You cant really recreate something 100% authentically when youre not in its original place. The ingredients, the water, even the way people cook it all changes things. We can notice this even in different regions in India. The spicy sambar in Tamil Nadu is completely different from the sweet sambar you get in Bangalore. And the iconic butter chicken in Delhi is nothing like the one youd find in a restaurant in Mumbai. While we have excellent versions of these dishes available in other regions, you cant quite call them authentic if theyre not from their origin. Ultimately, while the authenticity of a dish is integral, so is its adaptation. Sometimes, we might even find ourselves preferring the local version over the original. Id honestly prefer my local spin on international cuisines over authentic versions of international cuisine. Why? Because the Indian flavours are richer and punchier they hit right on the tongue. Westernised flavours are comparatively more subtle and mild in nature, so for someone like me whos loved and used to strong flavours, Id find ways to make it more Indian to my liking. I think this is why so many of us who love Chinese food in India might not enjoy the authentic version abroad. I, for one, love it all: from chindian chowmein and Schezwan noodles to masala pasta and tandoori paneer pizza. I absolutely think Tamil Nadu has a way of absorbing every food trend into its culture. And honestly, its not just about Tamil Nadu its a characteristic of Indian culture as a whole. We have an amazing ability to take a food concept, completely make it our own, and in some cases, even revive practices that have been part of our history for decades. A great example is the success story of samosa. Its origins are actually in Central Asia, but weve completely absorbed and transformed it. What was once a simple pastry is now basically an Indian snack, with countless versions from spicy potato fillings to onion or meat. Its a perfect illustration of a foreign concept becoming a fundamental part of our culture. But heres the interesting part. While we absorb new trends, were also bringing age-old practices back into the mainstream. For instance, the whole global focus on a plant-based diet and sustainable eating has always been a part of our heritage. Dishes like ragi dosa and millet adai are living proof that this isnt some new trend its just a rediscovery of our traditional way of life. I think this ability to adapt, absorb, and revive food is what makes the Indian culinary landscape so dynamic and rich. The reaction of international visitors perfectly highlights the dramatic difference in our culinary philosophies. A lot of international dishes, especially from the West, are all about letting one or two high-quality ingredients shine, which makes their flavours subtle and pure. A pasta in Italy, for example, is simple its about the fresh tomatoes, basil, or olive oil. In contrast, the Indian culinary philosophy is built on the art of layering a complex blend of spices to create a rich, powerful flavour profile. So, an Italian visitor who experiences a masala pasta is often stunned by both the sheer level of spice and the preparation method. To them, its not even their food anymore; its a completely new dish built on a different idea of flavor. Rakesh Raghunathan, chef, food historian, and MasterChef India (Tamil) judge One example that I can think of immediately is Atho the Burmese noodles. It is essentially a salad, which is still served in parts of North Madras. The original is actually a light oil-tossed and topped with fried garlic. But in Chennai, its adapted with some tamarind and green chilli paste. There is some crunchy gram to add that additional texture. It kind of blends itself into a tangy and tongue-tingling sort of snack. Then I have also seen how kothu parotta is made and served with a spicy gravy like a chilli chicken or chilli paneer gravy topped and served. I think there are more types of adaptations. That is the accurate word to use because chefs and street vendors are not deliberately fusing two food items or cuisines. They are in fact only tweaking with local spices and available ingredients. Of course, there is the love for anything tangy in the south. We usually like the tangy element in our food. If you ask me what is the cuisine thats actually from Chennai, its usually stereotyped as idli, vada , dosa, filter coffee, and so on, but truly the cuisine that originated here is the Anglo-Indian cuisine. But here we are talking more about adaptations of foods. It is interesting how an entire cuisine was born here too. A Samyuktha, blogger, Madras Food Kadhaigal, and advocate, Madras High Court I have mainly seen the fusion between Chettinad and Italian cuisines. The Chettinad cuisine is high on non-vegetarian dishes. Making it accessible to the vegetarian population, these days, you have a mixture of spices, including black pepper, curry leaves, and coriander seeds. These are then used to cook Chettinad-style masala pasta, Chettinad Maggi, and Chettinad curry pizza. From the Burmese land, we have adapted and popularised Atho . And a lot of desserts like filter kaapi softie, filter coffee affagato, kavuni arusi pudding...have also come. These are out-and-out traditional Tamil dishes or ingredients. Adding to the list are fast food joints serving pasta dosai , Mexican bread dosai , pizza dosai , and all those 99 dosai type stalls. They derive their inspiration from international dishes.