A trip back from Kerala is never complete without packing the all-time favourite snack – banana chips. So during my recent trip to Palakkad, in the northeastern part of Kerala, a visit to the town obviously meant stopping by a local shop to buy the annoyingly addictive chips to take home to friends and family. This is when a friend who has been frequenting Palakkad (and by now is well aware of interesting things to do in Palakkad) suggested we stop at KBC – Karthika Banana Chips, a wholesale shop.
Humble looking yet peppy with the vibrant shade of blue paint on the wall, KBC is known for its flavourful snacks that include banana chips, jackfruit chips and jaggery coated ripe banana treats. The chips are available in different flavours – plain salted, spicy and masala coated, and the owner is kind enough to let you try all the varieties before buying what you fancy. He even lets you head to the back of the shop to see firsthand how the chips are prepared in this enormous kadhai enclosed in a mud furnace, ‘chola’ as commonly known.
As soon as we enter the shop, we get down to a rather enjoyable ‘chips tasting’ session. And what follows is a flavour riot, where each kind is different.
Plain salted banana chips
Ripe banana chips
Jackfruit chips
Masala banana chips
Jaggery coated ripe banana chips
The hot selling item
The happiness shows
And the best part is that you can indulge as much without splurging. 1 kilo of banana chips would probably cost INR 200. I picked up 1.5 kilo banana chips and 1 kilo jackfruit chips, my two favourites, for just INR 470.
Where: Opp Gowder Theatre, Vadakkanthara Road, Palakkad
