Puttu — Steam Cylinder Rice Cake with Coconut Layers (പുട്ട്)

Kerala; puttu is the morning meal of Kerala's Hindu, Christian, and Muslim communities equally; its daily ubiquity across religious communities makes it a rare unifying food in a diverse state

Puttu (പുട്ട്) is the quintessential Kerala breakfast: coarse rice flour and grated coconut layered alternately inside a bamboo or metal cylinder (puttu kudam, പുട്ടുകടം) and steamed from below until the rice flour is cooked and coheres to a crumbly, slightly moist cylinder. When pushed out of the mould onto the plate, the cross-section shows distinct white rice layers alternating with grated coconut — the coconut's fat permeates the rice flour during steaming, and each bite carries both textures and flavours simultaneously. Puttu requires a specific rice flour (puttu podi, coarse-ground parboiled rice) — fine rice flour produces a gummy, dense result.

Served with kadala curry (black chickpea), banana (pazhampori — fried banana, or plain raw banana), and coconut milk. The crumbly rice cylinder dipped in the thick kadala curry is the definitive Kerala breakfast combination.