Meen Pathiri/ Steamed Fish Pancakes

One of my favorites from Malabar cuisine is meen pathiri i.e. rice pancakes stuffed with fish and steamed..is that an accurate description of such a balances of flavors? or is fish pie a better title? Trying to explain traditional cuisine to those who haven't tasted needs a stretch of imagination in terms of the language and ingredients.
This is another of those traditional Malabar recipes that is getting endangered and should be on a protected list..They were (and maybe still) are so commonplace in our houses but you might be more familiar with it through the travel cookery shows in Kerala where they are deemed exotic and laborious.


Pathiri is a term used loosely in Malabar region of Kerala to mean roti/chappathi/ or flatbread. The prefix of the word" pathiri" decides what kind it is..godumbu pathiri is made of godambu,i.e.wheat, ari pathiri is made of rice flour, erachi pathiri, has erachi /meat stuffed in it, meen pathiri has meen,/fish stuffed in it and so on.
This fish pathiri is made with Kng fish/Aikora or with Mackarel/ Aila or even with Sardines/ Mathi. When pressed for time, I have made this with canned tuna, canned sardines and it tastes passably good.

Broccoli Rabe and Spinach w/ Garlic Chips

 A Very Happy New Year to Everyone Here. 

The vacation days disappeared into a jumble of photos and memories with multiple sets of family members visiting us and we visiting some of them. Lots of fun trips, talking, catching up, adjusting our mental images of how old the kids have grown and eating and more eating.....no wonder all the diets start in January along with fresh resolutions.
New year is a time you stop to see what you really achieved in the previous year and then just like the year, we reset the demands on ourselves.check out .this timely article ..it really hits it on the nail.

While the other personal resolutions are already  up and running as am I,  my food resolutions are not so anchored. At the most , I can resolve to eat more veggies and fruits and less sugar, and less of white foods. Not that this is going to deter me from eating anything but it may help in forcing me to check the worthiness of each junk food consumed.