Chennai: The lanes of Muslim settlements in the city are bustling with activity, with restaurants seeing twice their usual sales on Id-ul-Fitr. If crunchy samosas and rumani semiya stalls got crowded at Zameen Pallavaram, dumkarot halwa sales saw a good spike at Triplicane.

A stroll on the aroma-filled Triplicane roads can introduce you to various Iftar recipes. Dum karot halwa, a sweet made of wheat flour, kala jamun and jigarthanda were sold like hotcakes on Id day. “Triplicane is the landmark for dum karot halwa. It is also sent to foreign countries,” said Moulana Shamsudeen Qusami, Chief Imam of Mukka Masjid. “A slight variation can be witnessed on Urdu Muslim and Tamil Muslim cuisines. Recipes like Vathalappam, Thakkadi are preferred by Tamil Muslims, whereas Urdu Muslims lovehaleem, dum karot halwa and haleem,” Qusami said.

Sales of dum karot halwa have increased compared to last year, said a sweet shop owner at Triplicane. “Thanks to the food walks organised by food lovers this year, a lot of people came to know about the recipes. We had a lot of non-Muslims today, who came to Triplicane just to buy the halwa,” he said. Though not easily found in restaurants, another traditional dish – Thakkadi - is largely cooked in North Chennai, with Mannadi of Parry’s being popular for it. “Cooked with mutton stock and coconut milk, it is predominant South Tamil Nadu dish,” said Aliyah Mohammed, a Parry’s resident.