The village of Atreyapuram in the coastal district of East Godavari is an important location on the food map of Andhra Pradesh. Its traditional sweet Pootharekulu is extremely popular in the two Telugu states and is gaining recognition nationally due to its signature looks and taste. The name of the sweet literally means “coating of sheet”. The sweet is wrapped by a wafer-thin rice starch resembling paper and is stuffed with sugar as well as dry fruits and nuts. The traditional sweet has a history of a few centuries. It is said that a village lady first prepared the sweet by adding sugar and ghee to leftover rice starch.
