KOZHIKODE: Sajan Gopalan was first introduced to a ‘sahakarana (collective) kitchen’ when he was visiting some friends in Kozhikode. “They had stopped cooking breakfast at their residence, and were instead sourcing the food from a sahakarana kitchen at Chevarambalam, in the suburbs of Kozhikode town,” said Sajan. “I even visited this unique kitchen, functioning under the Chevarambalam Women’s Cooperative Society,” the Thiruvananthapuram resident added.
In Kerala, the concept was first introduced in Ponnani by some working couples, when they realised that cooking was a time-consuming task that was eating into their busy schedules. They decided to centralise the activity, by identifying a piece of land with the facilities to prepare the food. The sahakarana kitchen gained traction among other office-going couples in Malappuram, and was introduced in Kozhikode a few months ago.
It also ensures a steady income to local people, mostly women, who are assigned the task of cooking and delivering homely food to their employers regularly.
At the Chevarambalam kitchen, food is prepared for 11 families by Bhagya, Rubina and Jashna. Two other employees help them deliver the food. “We decide the menu a day in advance. For breakfast, it’s mostly idli, puttu, pathiri, chapati, appam, uppuma or poori, while lunch consists of rice, and vegetable, chicken or fish dishes,” says Bhagya, who has been part of the kitchen since its inception.
“The menu is prepared and the food is cooked under the direct supervision of the families. As the cost is shared by them, it turns out to be cheaper than food sourced from restaurants. By 8am, we deliver both breakfast and lunch to every house,” she added.
“This results is a huge reduction in organic and inorganic waste generated from houses. Our collective itself has its own refuse bin. We have added a vermi-composting unit to the kitchen,” say Sasi K P, whose family is one of the organisers of the collective kitchen in Chevarambalam.
“More importantly, the concept can be beneficial for a society that is rapidly ageing. A collective kitchen can be of great help to elderly couples and individuals, by ensuring them a social life,” he added.
Besides saving on time and cost, a sahakarana kitchen has its health benefits with close supervision going into selecting the ingredients and the cooking methods employed. In a way, it also outsources the burden of selecting menus.
The concept is taking root in many places. It was first replicated in Balussery and Kannur before making its way to Chevarambalam, Ulliyeri, Kottur, Iyyad, Cherukulathoor, in Kozhikode; Vallikunnu, in Malappuram; and even Kunnamkulam and Thrissur. It’s just a matter of time before collective kitchens gather more steam and spread to other parts of the state.
Cooking up storm