Tracing the roots of ‘paal bun’, a delicacy at Gopalpatti near Dindigul

Vistors to Gopalpatti now join the queue for soft paal buns, a local tea shop delicacy

“Master, oru tea!”: This command forms the background score at RMS Sweets Marimuthu Tea Stall, located at Gopalpatti. The small-town, 47 kilometres from Madurai, is popular for tamarind, fragrant senthooram mangoes, and a unique, fluffy sweet treat — paal buns.

We elbow our way into the crowded shop one evening — past a gaggle of schoolboys ordering vadas, farmers biting into murukku and khaki-clad bus drivers sipping tea — and arrive at the glass counter, where the buns await.

The shop, which has been around for almost three decades, has been making paal buns for 24 years now. It is among the town’s most popular haunts for the delicacy. “Maida, curd, cooking soda, and sugar,” lists M Shubash, the owner, explaining how the snack is made. “We knead the dough at around 10 am and let it ferment for half-an-hour. Then, we roll small sections, fry them in hot oil, and drop them into sugar syrup.”