Onam fair to conclude on Saturday

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: If ever you have thought that the jackfruit is just about fruit flakes, you ought to be terribly sorry about your misconception. The ongoing Onam market organised by Vanitha Vedi near the Secretariat has a woman from Pattom with her edible jackfruit item specially processed from the inedible portions of the same fruit. She calls it ‘Jackfruit jelly’, a brown syrupy, viscous fluid made out of the jackfruit peel and the thin white thread on the outer part of the fruit flake."It also has some medicinal values. We often ignore these parts and use them to feed the cows. But traditional medical practitioners have long discovered the medicinal value of these parts,’’ says Latha, who also goes eloquent about her another product made from ‘Bilimbi’ (Pulinchikka).Latha says that her Bilimbi wine is a relishing drink. "Usually, you never bother plucking a bilimbi. But just see how tasty this drink is when you get the fruit and process it,’’ she explains.The Onam fair also has a long array of pickles of all varieties, squashes and jams. It even sports a collection of jackfruit ‘pappad’. The jackfruit flakes are steamed, boiled and then shaped into circles. They are then dried in the sun and the sellers say, "Please try these pappads once with your cup of tea. You will never look for other snacks. It is economical and easy to make.’’Half and fully ripe, healthy looking bananas, big, rotund yams and other agricultural products fresh from the farms of Soman and Lalitha from Neyyattinkara are also for sale at the fair. Though the price is same as in the market, the couple says that their yield is worth the price. A customer soon compliments the couple. "At least these bananas are home-grown and we can be assured that these are free of pesticides.’’Various handicraft products, jewellery items and flower vases are also on display at the fair. The two-day fair will conclude on Saturday.