Sharkara Upperi: Kerala's Jaggery-Coated Answer to the Sweet Tooth
If regular Kerala banana chips are the savory side of the Nendran banana, sharkara upperi is its sweet counterpart - and in a lot of Kerala households, it's the one that disappears from the tin first. Where plain banana chips are fried and salted, sharkara upperi takes the same raw Nendran banana further, coating the fried pieces in a rich jaggery syrup along with ginger, cardamom, and a touch of cumin.
How It's Made
The process starts the same way plain banana chips do: raw, unripe Nendran bananas are peeled, cut into pieces, and deep-fried in coconut oil until golden and crisp. The difference comes after frying. A jaggery syrup is prepared separately, cooked down to a specific thick consistency, and the fried banana pieces are folded into it while it's still hot, along with dry ginger powder and cardamom. As the syrup cools, it hardens into a thin, glossy coating around each piece, giving sharkara upperi its distinctive sticky-crisp texture.
Why the Spice Matters as Much as the Sugar
What surprises people trying it for the first time is that despite being a sweet snack, sharkara upperi isn't meant to taste purely sugary - the dry ginger and cardamom give it a warm, slightly spiced undertone that balances the jaggery. This is part of why it's traditionally served at the end of a Kerala sadya (feast) rather than as an everyday sweet - the combination of sugar and spice makes it feel more like a savory-sweet finishing note than a straightforward dessert.
What Real Jaggery Should Taste Like
Jaggery itself matters as much as the technique here. Real jaggery, made by boiling down sugarcane juice without refining it further, carries a deep, almost caramel-like flavor and retains natural minerals that refined sugar doesn't. A sharkara upperi made with proper jaggery has a rounder, less sharply sweet taste than one made with a jaggery-sugar blend. If a batch tastes flatly sweet without any caramel depth, it's worth questioning what sweetener was actually used - the same quality logic that applies when checking whether Nendran banana chips are genuinely fried in coconut oil.
Why It Costs a Bit More Than Plain Chips
Because the process involves two separate stages - frying the banana, then coating it in syrup - sharkara upperi takes noticeably more time and skill to make well than plain banana chips. Getting the syrup to the right consistency is the trickiest part: too thin, and it stays sticky instead of setting; too thick, and it hardens into clumps rather than an even coating. If you already enjoy Kerala banana chips, sharkara upperi is worth trying as the same banana and oil combination from a completely different angle. It travels well for the same reason regular banana chips do, staying crisp for around a month, making it a good addition to a Kerala snacks gifting box.
FAQ
1. What is sharkara upperi made of?
Raw Nendran bananas fried in coconut oil, coated in jaggery syrup with dry ginger and cardamom.
2. Is sharkara upperi very sweet?
It has natural sweetness from jaggery balanced by warm spice, rather than being overwhelmingly sugary.
3. How long does sharkara upperi stay fresh?
Around 30 days from preparation when stored in an airtight container.
