Every community has a distinct history and character. The port city of Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu is well known for its macaroons. There is a unique reason why Thoothukudi is still well-known for its macaroons, despite the fact that this treat was brought to the city by Portuguese sailors and is now produced in numerous locations.

Macaroons are traditionally made with almonds, sugar, and eggs. But it was difficult to import almonds and use them in recipes at the time. Consequently, cashew nuts, which are widely farmed in the Therikad region close to Thoothukudi, were utilized as an alternative.

Cashew nuts are still utilized in Thoothukudi macaroons nowadays because of this. Bakers in the neighboring Kayalpattinam region now make macaroons using a variety of nuts in addition to the classic almond-based recipes from the past. Even though macaroons only require a few ingredients, making them is a complicated procedure.

When asked where these macaroons came from, a Kayalpattinam shopkeeper explained, “Originally a Portuguese delicacy, Thoothukudi macaroons are usually offered after meals. In Thoothukudi, macaroons were initially brought by two traders who traveled to India by sea. Almonds were included in its original recipe, but because they had to be imported, macaroons became pricey. Local bakers started utilizing cashew nuts, which were abundant in the Therikad area, to make them more reasonably priced. Thus, Thoothukudi macaroons were created. Today, macaroons produced elsewhere frequently utilize the same recipe as Thoothukudi.

“We are now running this business as the third generation,” he said, referring to their family-run bakery. In the days of our father and grandpa, macaroons came in bigger portions. We eventually created the “baby macaroon” so that people could eat them in a single bite. We still use the same recipe to manufacture many kinds of macaroons today, including walnut, hazelnut, pistachio, and almond ones.