Pollachi – a bustling town in the state of Tamil Nadu, might be unassuming to the layman’s eye; however, is one of the buzzing spots for food tourism. Known to have one of the largest jaggery markets in Asia, along with being the place that hosts the largest cattle market amongst all five southern states, it is truly one of the underrated and undiscovered spots for sourcing some of the most authentic produce.
Surrounded by lush palm trees and coconut trees, the town produces high quality palm jaggery and coconut jaggery, which is exported all across the globe. What also makes this jaggery varieties special is their unique caramel notes which are complex and almost resemble dark chocolate, in some ways. Due to its proximity to the Western ghats, the pleasant climate allows for a balanced reception of heat and sunlight, needed for the production of palm fruits.
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Known to be offered as an immersive tourist experience, where curious visitors get to witness the process of making karuppati and coconut jaggery, samples of freshly made jaggery are also offered to complete the tour. The organic and premium quality jaggery is used in a variety of preparations like karuppati kaapi – or coffee sweetened with palm jaggery, sweet dishes as well as processed further to make a powdered variant. This jaggery is also available in plenty for visitors to take back home and use in a wide array of recipes.
Known to be a town with plenty of temples that are visited by people from all over, sweet pongal made with coconut or palm jaggery is often served to the devotees as remnants of the offerings given to the deities. This stop-off point in Coimbatore district, is in fact, one of the many food hubs in the Kongunadu belt – which is known for its rich culinary heritage. A contemporary to the other largest jaggery market located in Muzzafarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, the collective jaggery production makes up for a significant part of making India the largest jaggery producer in the world.