CHENNAI: Taj Coromandel will host a two-day showcase on September 25 and 26, bringing together food traditions from the Koya and Karbi communities through the cooking of four tribal home chefs and community practitioners. At the heart of the event are Kranthi Kiran and Peesam Dulaiah from the Koya community (Andhra Pradesh) and Jorlin Taropi and Anima Rongpipi from the Karbi community (Assam), who will present dishes rooted in their communities' food practices.

For farmer and home chef Kranthi Kiran, Koya cooking is closely connected to the ingredients available in the region. “Jowar is one of our main ingredients. We use less masala, along with green chilli and red chilli powder,” he says. Among the dishes he will showcase is bilva pulp cooked with prawns. “We take the pulp from the bilva fruit and mix it with prawns. It is an indigenous dish from our community,” adds Kranthi.

Jowar rice gatka, traditionally known as Jonna Gatka, is also a staple. Other dishes include mutton curry prepared in the indigenous style, pachi pulusu, an unheated tamarind soup, and pulagam, a rice-and-lentil dish similar to dry khichdi, traditionally made with raw rice and split black-eyed beans. “We use Mahua flowers in our cooking. We make laddus, biscuits and kheer with the flowers,” says Kranthi. Chikkudu pappu, made with broad bean dal, is another preparation from the Koya kitchen.

Food is also closely connected to the community’s agricultural traditions. “We celebrate agricultural milestones through festivals and that is when we harvest,” the home chef tells DT Next.

From the Karbi community, home chef Jorlin Taropi brings dishes and ingredients from Assam. She has been running the Kardi Community Kitchen in Kormandu for the past four years. “Kangmoi, a traditional dish from our community, will be one of the highlights. The menu will also feature pork and chicken preparations, salad, bamboo shoot mutton curry, sticky rice and sticky rice roti. We eat a lot of black sesame and we use roselle leaves in our cooking.

It is called gongura in South India and Hanserong in Karbi,” she says. The showcase is being held to mark Taj’s recognition as the World’s Strongest Luxury Hotel Brand 2026 and India’s Strongest Brand Across Sectors 2026. For participation details, contact 044 6600 2827.