Buying spices in Kochi: Mattancherry, Jew Town and Broadway

By the Cochimart Kitchen Desk · Published 21 October 2026

Why Kochi is a spice town

Kochi grew up on the spice trade. For centuries pepper from the Malabar Coast, the stretch of western India that is now Kerala, was among the most traded spices in the world, and Kochi's harbour was one of the places it left from. Pepper was valuable enough to be called "black gold". That history is still visible in two parts of the city: Mattancherry on the old western side, and Broadway in Ernakulam on the mainland.

This guide is for anyone who wants to buy spices in Kochi well: residents stocking a kitchen, Malayalis home from the Gulf and filling a suitcase, and visitors who want something better than a gift pack. It covers where the trade happens, how to judge what you are looking at, and the Malayalam words that make a conversation at a stall easier. It does not rate individual traders. Ask around, compare a few stalls, and trust your nose.

Mattancherry and the Jew Town spice street

Mattancherry lies about nine kilometres south-west of the Ernakulam city centre, next to Fort Kochi. Its Jew Town area, named after the Paradesi Jewish community whose synagogue still stands there, has kept its place as a centre of the spice trade even though the old port business has shrunk. Kerala Tourism describes warehouses lining the street, with ginger, cloves, cardamom, turmeric and pepper stored inside, trucks and pushcarts moving loads in and out, and workers drying, sorting and packing spices.

For a shopper, that mix matters. Some buildings are wholesale godowns (warehouses) that deal in sacks, while others sell to walk-in customers in smaller amounts. Many visitors come to see the area as much as to shop, so expect counters aimed at tourists alongside the trade. Neither is wrong, but it helps to know which one you are standing in.

• Go early. Mornings are cooler and you can watch spices being sorted before the tourist crowd builds.
• Ask to see the stock. A good trader will happily open a sack or a jar and let you smell it.
• Buy small first. Take a little of something new, try it at home, and come back for more.

Broadway and Ernakulam Market

Broadway is one of the oldest shopping streets in Ernakulam. It runs for about two kilometres between Marine Drive and MG Road, and most of the city's wholesale dealers have long been based there. The narrow lanes hold around a thousand shops selling everything from copper pots to clothes, and the area includes a wholesale spice market known locally for good quality spices and condiments. Broadway also runs into Ernakulam Market, where wholesale grocery trade continues.

Broadway is where many people in Kochi actually buy their household spices, so it is a good place to see what ordinary kitchen stock looks like. It is busiest before the big festivals of Vishu, Onam and Christmas. If you want time to talk to traders, avoid the festival weeks.

How to judge spices at the stall

You do not need a laboratory. Your eyes, nose and fingers do most of the work. These checks apply wherever you buy.

Black pepper (kurumulaku)

Good black pepper is dark, evenly coloured, dry and hard. Look for very little dust, stalks or light, hollow berries mixed in. Crush one corn between your fingers: it should smell sharp and clean straight away. The bite of pepper comes from a compound called piperine. If the smell is faint or musty, move on. Kerala's best-known pepper carries a registered Geographical Indication (GI) as Malabar Pepper, a legal name tied to its region.

Green cardamom (elakkaya)

Small green cardamom should be plump, closed and a fresh green, not pale or yellowed. Split a pod: the seeds inside should be dark and slightly sticky, with a strong, sweet smell. Alleppey Green Cardamom is the GI-registered name for Kerala's cardamom.

Cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon

• Cloves (grampoo): look for whole buds with their round heads attached. Press one with a fingernail; a good clove releases a little oil.
• Nutmeg (jathikka): whole nutmegs should feel heavy for their size. Light ones, or ones with small holes, may be old or damaged by insects.
• Cinnamon (karuvapatta): the bark should smell sweet and warm when you break a piece. Ask which kind you are buying, because thicker cassia bark is often sold under the same name.

Turmeric (manjal) and dry ginger (chukku)

Whole dried turmeric fingers should be hard and break cleanly to show deep orange inside. Dry ginger should be pale, firm and strongly aromatic. Powders are harder to judge. If you buy ground turmeric or chilli, choose a sealed pack from a trader who grinds often, rather than an open heap that has been sitting in the air.

Words that help at a spice stall

Most traders in Kochi speak some English, but a few Malayalam words show you know what you want. Our full spice names list has thirty items with regional alternatives.

Two useful phrases: puthiya stock aano? ("is this new stock?") and kurachu mathi ("just a little is enough").

Getting your spices home in good shape

Spices lose aroma to air, light, heat and damp, and Kochi is humid for much of the year. A few habits keep them fresh:

• Choose whole spices over powders. Grinding exposes far more surface to the air.
• Ask for double bags or a sealed pack, especially for cardamom, which loses its smell quickly once the pods dry out.
• Keep spices out of hot cars and direct sun on the way home.
• At home, move them into clean, dry, airtight jars. Our guide on how to store spices explains why, with tips for the monsoon.

If you are flying out, pack spices in sealed bags inside your checked luggage and check the food import rules of the country you are flying to before you go, since some countries restrict seeds or plant material.

Plan the rest of the shopping

A spice run is often part of a bigger market trip. Use the bilingual grocery list maker to write one list in English and Malayalam, check the Kerala season calendar for the fruit and vegetables that are fresh this month, and read our guide to choosing fresh fish if your route passes a fish market. More practical guides are on the guides page.

Sources and useful links

• Kerala Tourism: The Spice Market, Mattancherry
• Kerala Tourism: Kochi, Ernakulam and Mattancherry
• Spices Board India: spice catalogue and GI-registered spices (Malabar Pepper, Alleppey Green Cardamom)
• Wikipedia: Broadway, Kochi
• Wikipedia: Mattancherry

Frequently asked questions