At Restaurant Swaad, we are keen to take you through a culinary journey through South of India, a glorious treat of exotic foods spiced with cinnamon, tamarind and pepper, or fragrant with coconut and curry leaves.
We are constantly endeavouring to recreate South Indian delicacies with minor and careful adaptations to best suit the European palate. As we always say, our flavours can cause unexpected happiness, sudden cravings, and even making you fall in love with South Indian food all over again.
In our initial six years presence in Porto, we only wanted to serve healthy and tasty food. But we ended up serving comfort, nostalgia, and a sense of home (“comida casera” as we call in Portugal) And we always promise that we’ll continue to do what we do best, that is, serving amazing taste, spice, and a little extra love on the side. Hence, we turn routines into rituals and meals into moments you’ll always come back for. Looking forward for your esteemed presence at Swaad. Team Restaurante Swaad.
South Indian/Kerala Cuisine
Named as one of the ten paradises in the world by National Geographic Traveler, Kerala is one of the prominent tourist destinations of India, and its cuisine still retains many elements of the ancient culture that flourished many years ago: steamed dumplings with coconut, jaggery (raw sugar) and cardamom in a rice wrapper; food served in banana leaves, or the ubiquitous spice blend kari podi, or curry powder, are all indigenous to this region.
There are, however, a few unifying elements of southern cooking, like the use of rice as a staple, as well as certain varieties of squashes and greens, coconut, jaggery, peanuts and sesame seeds. Herbs and spices are a potent underpinning, including curry leaves (balmy herb), tamarind (sour pod), sour lime and spices such as mustard, ginger, turmeric, coriander, fenugreek, black pepper and the incendiary red Guntur chilies.
Vegetarian dishes, which originated in the courts of kings, are collectively known as South Indian Vegetarian. Throughout the south, dishes like sambar, kotto and koyamboo (spicy vegetable and lentil stews), kari or thovaran (warm vegetable salads), rasam (soup) and pachadi (yogurt salad) are popular.
South Indian vegetarian cooking also includes preparations like idli (steamed dumplings), dosa (lacy crepes) and vada (lentil fritters), all made with sourdough batter of rice and/or bean. These light vegetarian protein foods, called tiffin, are popular snacks served with a chutney and a lentil sauce.
