KothuFest 2018 – A celebration of Kothu Roti in the heart of Toronto

The iconic Kothu Roti was given the spotlight in the heart of Toronto on Sunday 28th July at KothuFest 2018.

Now in its third year, Kothufest is an independent food festival organised by members of the Tamil & Sri Lankan communities in Canada.

Making the shift from Scarborough to downtown Toronto’s Yonge–Dundas Square, the organisers CGAL showcased the popular dish & its culture to the wider Canadian community.

Kothu / Koththu translates to chop in the Tamil language. Rumored to have originated from Batticoloa on the east coast of Sri Lanka, home to Tamil speaking communities, the popular street-food has now become the signature dish of the island.

Known as Kothu Roti in Sri Lanka & Kothu Parotta in South India, it is made using Roti (Parotta) mixed with fried egg, chili peppers, onions, curry gravy, spices and/or meat (chicken, goat, mutton (sheep) & seafood). All chopped together rhythmical on a flat hot plate with metal blades.

Almost anything can be koththu-ed!

String Hopper (Idiyappam) Kothu, Dolphin Kothu made from Paratha (different from Parotta), chessy-kothu and even a carb-free kothu are now available!

Just to be clear, Dolphin Kothu does not use Dolphin meat!

KothuFest featured various Kothu vendors and live performances from emerging Tamil independent artists from across Canada including Yanchan Music, UK’s very own Raj Forever, LoveSeyon, Roveena Music, and many more! Headlining the festival was Canadian hip hop artists Shan Vincent De Paul ft. Navz.

Kitchen Guerilla’s sister company Ksira Gelato was officially launched at the festival, serving classic Sri Lankan/Tamil flavours such as Watalappam, Rose Sherbet, Mango and Nelli Crush gelato.

Visitors were kept engaged with various activities including a KothuRoti Eating Competition and a Teach Me How to Kuthu Dance workshop.

To find out more about Kothufest, please visit www.kothufest.com