I heard this story from my Ammamma when I was a kid. When she would narrate it, my mouth would start watering as she would start describing how the wife made the Dibba roti...I guess my passion for cooking started somewhere back then. Actually, I remember the very first time I started learning how to cook - I was around 8-9 years old and she made me sit down once and taught me how to cut spinach!! And she then praised me on my work...and that's when I started feeling confident about my cooking capabilities :) It's amazing how small things in one's childhood can lead to life-long passions and such.

The story of the greedy man and dibba roti

Once there was a poor brahmin who lived with his wife in a small village. They were having a hard time trying to make ends meet, so one day the wife told her husband, "Maybe you should look for work in a city, earn some money and then come back home". The husband agreed and started to prepare for his journey. In those days, they were no motor vehicles or cycles and the only mode of transport available was one's own legs. So, the wife felt sorry for her husband who would have to walk for days to reach the city. She loved him alot and so she set out to make a Dibba roti for him as a meal for him for all the days he would be travelling. (I forget what flour you are supposed to use - I think it might be minnapappu and a few other things). So she added some turmeric, some salt, some chilli powder, some dhania and jeera and some hing and mixed it in water. It was already smelling delicious by then. She then took some oil in a oan and added this paste to make a thick pancake/dosa kinda thing and fried it until it was done. She then wrapped this in a banana leaf and also put in some onion chutney, some coconut chutney, some sambar and some mango pickle as sides.

The brahmin set out and he walked for hours together, throughout the day and finally it was night and he was tired. He then found a huge tree to take rest under. But he did not know that behind the tree, there was a gang of dacoits who were also resting under the tree with their loot. As soon as the brahmin opened his dinner, a beautiful aroma spread everywhere and the dacoits wondered where this fragrance was coming from. They then found the brahmin, who was actually a little scared when he saw these people. But he then realised that they were just hungry, so he offered to share his food with them. The dacoits were delighted with this simple, yet delicious meal. They finshed all the food he ahd and in return they shared their booty with him as a token of gratitude for his generosity. The brahmin was happy and returned home immediately and told his wife about this good news and then she was happy too and soon their days of poverty got over.

Their neighbours were another brahmin couple who were surprised at the over-night prosperity of the couple. The neighbour's wife asked the brahmin's wife about the secret of their wealth and the ignorant brahmin's wife shared the whole story with her. The neighbour's wife then told her husband about it and overcome with greed, they decided to do the same thing. The neighbor's wife cooked dibba roti for her husband, but unfortunately, she was dreaming about all the riches that were soon to come and she added three times the amount of chilli powder. She then packed this dinner for her husband and he set out to the same forest and sat under the smae tree and waited for the dacoits to arrive. As soon as he saw them, he greeted them and offered to share his meal with them. The famished dacoits agreed only to have their tongues and throats burned by the spicy food. They then got very angry with the neighbour and beat him up properly before sending him home.

Moral of the story: 1.) Never be greedy
2.) What works for one person cannot work for another.