171 Warriors and Children of Nature with Accamma Nanjappa

I think the best way to introduce to you today’s guest, Accamma Nanjappa, is to read an excerpt of her recipe submission.

She says, “It must be noted that the Kodavas or the people of Coorg are not just warriors, but are also children of nature. Hence all our major festivals are celebrations of nature. And what is a celebration without food?”

Today Accamma takes us far, far away into the high hills and deep forests of Kodagu, where the Kodava people still observe ancient traditions around the cycle of sowing, planting, and harvesting. In addition to educating me on the language and history of the Kodavas, Accamma shares very personal memories of celebratory nights spent on her family’s plantation marking the harvest of first rice, then coffee, mandarins, and black pepper.

As for Accamma’s Storied Recipe, this is the first time a guest ever gave me a recipe that began with the instructions, “Make the flour”! However, as Accamma walked me through the process of making Thambuttu, which, in her words is like gluten-free, unbaked thick banana (covered with ghee, nutty unhulled sesame seeds, and fresh coconut shavings), I grew much more confident - and, of course, learned a lot too. I mean, did you know you could turn rice into a flour in just 20 minutes? I didn’t!

Two more quick notes:

Accamma and I began communicating about a year ago, when I released an episode with Kaveri Ponnapa titled, “Vanishing Things: Monsoons, Mushrooms, and Culture.” You’ll definitely want to listen to this one as well - find the link in the show notes!
Accamma owns BeanSong Coffee, a coffee company that ships WORLDWIDE. Some of her coffee beans are grown on the very plantation she was raised on; others come from the birthplace of coffee in India. I had so much to learn about the Coorg people AND the coffee business, I’ve actually split our conversation into two episodes. So you can look forward to hearing more from Accamma in the next one -

But more on that later - for now, Welcome Accamma and thank you all for being here!

Highlights

Why I was intimidated by Thambutti (“Make your own flour)
Details about the 3 festivals of the Kodava people - worship of tools & weapons, worship of the spring, worship of the harvest
What the thunder and lighting signified….
Why July and August were deemed inausipicious
The very ancient history of the Coorg people, going back to the Greeks and Alexander
Women warriors? And who were the warring against?
Beginning boarding school at 4.5 years old
Other foods at the Puthari festival
Coorg larders - and how to protect their food from cats!
The large family homes that last for generations with rooms for each clan

Listen to Accamma Now

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Images from the Puthari Celebrations in Coorg

Images from BeanSong Coffee

Accamma's Storied Recipe: Thambuttu

Thambuttu: Festive No Bake Banana Dessert from Coorg (India)

Find Accamma and Bean Song Coffee

Visit the BeanSong Website

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