Chukku malli kaapi is a classic South Indian digestive elixir prepared using dried ginger & other spices, herbs and palm jaggery. Siddha and Ayurveda recommend to take fresh ginger in an empty stomach in the morning & dried ginger later in the night for the improved digestion. So we usually take fresh ginger juice or ginger jam (lehium) before breakfast & dried ginger classic elixir after dinner. Besides, we can serve the same elixir as a home remedy for common cough, cold & sore throat after infusing it with appropriate medicinal herbs & spices.

Chukku malli kaapi for infants:
Traditionally this elixir has been even fed to the babies every fortnight as it prevents regurgitation of milk. I remember my grandmother forcibly feeding chukku kashayam to my cousins when they were babies using an age-old infant feeding spoon, paladai. Paaladi also known as sangu (meaning conch shell), and got this name for the shape similar to a conch shell. Paladai is useful to feed bitter or spicy medicinal potion to infants as babies can not bear its sharp peppery or bitter flavor. When the potion is fed with sangu, the babies would gulp the liquid down instantly and they can’t spit this out. But for toddlers or kids we can use a spoon instead.

Chukku malli kaapi for adults:
My grandma used to say “virundhum marunthum moondru naal”, meaning whether you are enjoying a feast or taking a medicine, it should be limited to 3 days only. So we take this medicinal usually for 3 consecutive days or until we can notice a significant improvement. But there are people who are addicted to this elixir. They can not fall asleep if they don’t drink chukku kaapi.

When I got married I was surprised to see the relatives & friends of my parents-in-law turning up without notice and was amazed by mother-in-law’s hospitality. She used to keep serving food to all of us every 2-3 hours till 9 pm (of course she had a cook to assist with). Everyday her last preparation in the kitchen would be a spiced elixir, and she served it with milk specially to her grandchildren. We were all playing cards or carrom with renewed energy while sipping chukku-malli kaapi late in the night. This recipe reminds me of those beautiful moments when we rendezvoused with my extended family.
Recipe for chukku-malli kaapi :
Time taken: 15-20 min
Yields : 500 ml
Serving: 100 to 150 ml for adults, 15 ml for infants

Ingredients:
- Dried ginger – 1″ piece
- Coriander seeds – 1 tsp
- Peppercorns – ½ tsp
- Cumin seeds – ½ tsp
- Turmeric powder – ¼ tsp
- Palm jaggery (or palm sugar) – as required
- Water – 1 Litre

How to prepare chukku malli kaapi:
- Grind dried ginger, coriander & pepper into a coarse powder.
- Toast cumin seeds in a hot pan until the aroma is released.
- Add spice powder, roasted cumin, turmeric powder & water into a sauce pan and bring it to a boil.
- Add palm jaggery while boiling.
- When jaggery is dissolved into the solution, simmer until it is reduced to half.
- Remove from heat and pour through a fine mesh.
- Serve warm with or without milk.

Tips & Tweaks:
- Chukku malli kaapi for digestion: We can prepare chukku malli kaapi by adding betel leaves (paan leaves) while boiling the elixir and take this for improved digestion mainly after a heavy meal in the night. But adding too many leaves (or a finely chopped leaf) leads to strong unpleasant flavor, so one whole betel leaf is sufficient for every litre of water (not decoction).

- Chukku malli kaapi for treating common cold: We can add a few tulsi (holy basil leaves) and/or thoothuvalai (Solanum trilobatum) leaves.


- You may replace palm jaggery with any available sweetener, if you are using honey, you can mix honey before serving when lukewarm.
- Pepper & turmeric is a remarkable pair that it is not advisable to leave either of them.
- It is not recommended to prepare chukku malli kaapi powder in large quantities and store them for later use. We can prepare this powder such that it can be used within 3 or 5 consecutive days but you can refrigerate the elixir up to 1 week.
Traditional recipes are the best and our elders knew the best what and how and when to feed the family. Excellent traditional recipe, will try out since it winters now in my part of the world.
Thank you.
Love Chukku-malli kaapi elixir !
Shared on my facebook page. http://www.ParsiCuisine.com
I’m so glad. Thanks so much.
Thanks for stopping by !
Excellent <3 <3
Thank you !
Thanks for sharing, Megala. I try something like this when we get a cold.
If you taste this once, you can’t stop making it the next day! ? Thank you!
Yes it is the perfect recipe for cold winter mornings! Your picture of the hot cuppa is very tempting ?
wow this is lovely! Thanx for sharing!
You are welcome, Mallika !
Hi Megala, tried this recipe and it tastes delicious. Thank you !
I’m elated to hear this, I hope you would like to try my grandma’s ginger jam recipe also : https://megalaskitchen.com/2017/01/06/ginger-jam/
Very interesting
Your recipe sounds so yummy! I’m drooling now?
Thanks very much !
nice post…
Thanks for passing by !
you are welcome…:-)
Ooh this sounds so interesting! x I’ve never tried a drink like this before (: Thanks for sharing!
Glad that you liked it ! Thank you !!
Perfect Winter Drink! Thank you!
Thanks for stopping by !
So perfectly soothing! I’ve been having trouble sleeping lately so this recipe couldn’t come at a better time. I’ll give it a try tonight.
Thanks very much !
Great post.. ? needs for seasonal change
Thanks, and thanks for stopping by !
Wonderful post Megala…Such an easy and awesome drink so much nutritional value..Thank you for sharing it !!
Thanks a lot !
\\\i love this post. Well done <3 really interesting and I might try your carrot chutney x
Ahh! Thanks so much !
Very helpful in health issues. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you !
I never heard of it, but I drink this kind of herbal tea regularly. Now I know the name 😀
Thanks !
Wonderful post Megala. Love the way you narrated your experience. Much helpful recipe for this winter.
Thanks 🙂
My mom has always told me about this esp that its good for digestion but never tried this! Gonna try it someday, thanks for sharing this 🙂
Great to hear this, thank you !
Very interesting, and sounds delicious and healthy, have to try it!?
Thanks, Ursula !
perfect for this time of the year! loved the tea cup as well!
Thanks 🙂
Nice pics!!Thanks for sharing!
Most welcome !
Perfect recipe during the chilly winter .Thanks for the share dear Megala 🙂
You are welcome ! If you try it please let me know how you like it !! 🙂
So eager to try this!
Thank you ! 🙂
This is an excellent share. I love sukku podi and they are so healthy and great for our digestive system. Loved the story and nice to know about your MIL who is super active and loves to cook. More power to her. I guess the younger generation with low energy levels and sheer laziness have a lot to learn from elders like her.
Yes ! Thanks so much for reading my posts !!
nice share and we call this kashaya
Yes, we all call this with different names. Thank you!
Thank you Meghala for sharing this! Your post took me back home ? and reminded me to make this healthilicious drink!!! Perfect to enjoy these freezing days!!
By the way beautiful cup and saucer!! ?
I’m delighted to hear these, thank you so much ! 🙂
Hi just read your recipe which sounds good…but I am assuming it is the peppercorns you grind not the cumin ( as your first line quotes) as the next line states roast the cumin. Could I use fresh ginger if I finely chop as it is strained at the end or is dried ginger stronger?
Yes, you are right, it was typed by mistake, cumin seeds have to be roasted and pepper to be powdered. This elixir is meant to be taken only in the night, in that case fresh ginger can not be used here. Fresh ginger can be used only in the morning & dried ginger only in the night. Thanks for reading and leaving your valuable feedback!
Thank you for your response Megala…we all make typos don’t we….I didn’t know you couldn’t take fresh ginger at night..so thank you 🙂
Fantastic timely recipe for this winter. Love the way you presented it ma’am.
Thanks so much !
Welcome ma’am. Your posts are always a good treat
So nice of you !
So very interesting !!!
Glad that you enjoyed it ! Thank you !!
Love the cup n saucer ?
Classic, isn’t it ?! 🙂
Royal ?
Very interesting recipe! Sounds so healthy and flavorfull!
Yes, it really is ! Thank you !
Thanks for sharing this recipe
My pleasure !
Excellent age old Elixir…we use to call it Kashayam…a perfect natural medicine for cold and cough….✔✔
Absolutely ! Thank you !!
Superb
Thanks !
Very useful share. I was there in Kerala few times and what I noticed. The drinking water was of light pink coloured and was always luke warm. They never drink cold fridge water for what we Delhites are used too. I guess it was also digestive thing mixed in the water.
Yes, it is infused with cumin seeds and really has soothing properties. They don’t prefer to drink plain water !
Thanks for the information.
Thanks so much for stopping by !
Very very interesting how wonderful our indian spices .so useful for our health superb n thank u .even i remembered my grandmother
Yes, these spices are our real treasures and we need to pass on their importance to younger generation ! Thanks for reading my posts !!
This is an interesting recipe. Truly these ayurvedic remedies are the best!
Of course ! Thanks a lot !!
Very interesting recipe. It’s really new to me. I will surely try this.
Thank you !
Enjoyed this post Megala. Our elders sure knew many natural ways to keep our system functioning well. Hats off to them!!
Glad to hear this, thanks so much !