Iluppaipoo samba is a distinctly greenish-toned Tamil Nadu rice familiar to Siddha medicine practitioners, and used for the treatment of bone/joint issues and some paralytic disorders. The name of the rice indicates that it is aromatic: when hydrated, it smells distinctly like Madhuca or mahua [iluppai in Tamil] flowers. This rice came into some prominence thanks to the efforts of Nel Jayaraman and others involved in the organic farming movement in Tamil Nadu. It has been important in demonstrating what Fukuoka-inspired “do nothing” approaches to farming can achieve. It is also just a jasmine-like wonderful table rice, with different but equally pleasurable characteristics raw or parboiled.
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Description
THE CULTURAL & ECOLOGICAL LIFE OF THIS RICE
The name of this rice is a first clue to understanding: it has the scents of iluppai or mahua flowers [Madhuca Longfolia since it is Madhuca Indica that grows in regions north of Tamil Nadu]. This scent is strongest, however, only when the rice is hydrated–washed or soaked and readied for cooking. The grain in semi-polished form has distinct greenish tones.
K. Ramiah, Agriculture officer and former director of the Central Rice Research Institute, Cuttack, records the presence of “a few known as scented rices forming a group by themselves. These scented rices emit a peculiar aroma, very similar to that associated with the flower of the tree, Bassia longifolia. The scent is highly esteemed by people in Northern India who cook the scented rice with meat. These are also called ‘ pulao ’ rices” — suggesting that rices similar to Iluppaipoo samba were grown in the Northern regions as well. But he does not give their names, so it is impossible to track these (1953: 169).
The Tamil Nadu Iluppai poo samba variety neither asks nor needs much input, but takes what it needs from existing paddy soil. We learned from the organic farmer Udayakumar and old videos by Nel Jayaraman of techniques of medicating paddy fields by creating small medicinal water tanks and mixing in those various leaves (such as erukkam/arka/Calatropis, peechangu/peekalathi/Indian privet/Clerodendron inerme, neem etc.), cow dung, country sugar/jaggery–and allowing the overflow from these areas to effectively “treat” the growing fields. Iluppaipoo samba has been an important grain in the heritage rice revival movement in Tamil Nadu; entire fields have been now grown from small handfuls of seeds.
NUTRITIONAL AND MEDICINAL PROPERTIES
- CIKS (2019) reports that “The Kanji is said to be helpful for Pakshavatha (a kind of paralysis that effects one side / part of the limbs)”–a notion corroborated in experience by some farmers [See this video interview with farmer Paneerselvam in Villupuram district, in Tamil]
- Most Tamil Nadu farmers will tell you that this rice addresses joint pains and is used by Siddha medicinal practitioners for this purpose. Kanji from this rice is used to feed convalescents [Nel Jayaraman speaking about iluppaipoo samba]
- Those suffering from ailments might want to consume this rice in multiple meals for specific therapeutic effects. Others could consume it less frequently.
CULINARY USES
- To preserve or enhance the aromas of this rice, it is best to (1) consume this rice only in semi-polished and raw form and (2) roast it ever so lightly in a scant few drops of ghee before cooking. The ghee will dissolve the volatiles in the rice bran and transfer them to the cooked rice.
- Raw iluppaipoo samba has the feel of a jasmine (or scented floral) rice in aroma and texture.
- Parboiled iluppaipoo samba has no remarkable fragrance, but cooks beautifully into a soft table-rice.
WHO GROWS THIS RICE & WHERE CAN I BUY?
The best (most fragrant and with the best cooking quality) iluppaipoo samba we have found has been from Udayakumar in Mayiladudurai. The raw iluppaopoo samba he grows gives any jasmine rice a run for its money, and his parboiled rice, though not as classically aromatic, is about as perfect a table rice as one can ever get. He is unlikely to sell in quantities less than 25kgs, though, if he has the rice growing this year.
- Udayakumar [small farmer near Mayiladudurai who follows the ‘do nothing’ approach of Fukuoka’s One Straw Revolution] +91 8110994758
- Other Possible Sources
SOURCES & FURTHER READING
- Nel Jayaraman speaking about the restoration of iluppaipoo samba
- Udaya Kumar and others speaking about Iluppaipoo samba cultivation and organic farming methods in 2013 [in Tamil]: Video 1, Video 2
- CIKS, Traditional Rice Varieties of Tamil Nadu, 2019
- Watch Big Short Films’ Thirunel, a short film on folk rices which covers using iluppaipoo samba to make idiappams or steamed rice noodles.
- Ramiah, K. 1953. Rice Breeding and Genetics. New Delhi: ICAR
Additional information
| Region of Origin | South |
|---|---|
| Grain Shape | medium |
| Grain Colour | Green |
| Fragrance | Strong aroma |
