Marie´s Blog

India is known to have its own unique flavor in terms of food and drinks. Different region has its own local drinks and food. Going to Indian restaurants does not mean you have already tasted the real Indian food and drinks. Try to go local and you will appreciate the liquor.

One of the local liquor that India has is they call Toddy. It is a very inexpensive liquor local Indian people always have this in every parties. Toddy is extracted out of palm tree. Its also used to make a lot of dishes after it has fermented like palappam,watappam and so many more types of appams as what my Indian friend, Aarjun said. But both before and after fermentation, its delicious, sweet and natural.

At the outskirts of Mawlamyaing, there are a lot of toddy palm trees. Htan-Ye or toddy palm juice is same also collected from the sap of the toddy palm tree. It is consumed freshly as a sweet juice and more popularly, as an alcoholic beverage when it ferments naturally.

Toddy in Dhivehi is called Raa. Their toddy is believed to be an alcoholic beverage created from the sap of various species of palm tree. It is generally drunk fairly soon after creation, since it has a short shelf life. However, it may be refrigerated to extend its life.

How toddy can be collected?

The toddy is collected by a tapper. Typically the sap is collected from the cut flower of the tree. A container called Raa Badhi, This Raa Badhi is made of two coconut shells, and it’s fastened to the flower stump to collect the sap. The initial white liquid that is collected tends to be very sweet and is not alcoholic. In some areas, the entire palm tree is felled and the crown exposed to collect the sap.