Maharashtrian cuisine
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Maharashtrian (or Marathi) cuisine is cuisine of the Marathi-speaking people, those from the state of Maharashtra in India. Maharashtrian cuisine covers a wide range from being extremely mild to very spicy dishes. Although gaining popularity in India, it remains a mystery to most westerners. Wheat, rice, jowar, vegetables, lentils and fruit form important components of Maharashtrian diet. Popular dishes include puran poli and aamras.
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[edit] Staple dishes
The staple dishes of Maharashtrian cuisine are based on bread and rice:
- Poli or chapati - unleavened bread made of wheat flour, more common in urban areas.
- Bhakri - bread made of all kinds of flours, mainly jowar and bajra, form part of daily food in rural areas.
- Rice - is eaten throughout Maharashtra and is a large part of the daily meal, although Maharashtrians are not totally dependent on rice alone. Normally meals contain some form of bread, some bhaji (vegetables) and some rice with dal.
The bhaji is typically a vegetarian dish made from a vegetable, with some masala essentially consisting of onion, garlic and mustard. A particular variant of bhaji is the rassa. Vegetarians prepare rassa out of potatoes and or caulifower with tomatoes or fresh coconut kernel and plenty of water to produce a more fluid behaviour than bhaji. Dishes are usually cooked with groundnut oil. The one masala that gives Maharashtrian cuisine its authentic flavor is the goda masala or kalaa masala.
Non-vegetarian dishes are mainly popular with the predominant Maratha - warrior community and those really are very popular amongst a lot of people. They are normally chicken or mutton dishes. The taambda rassa (red curry) and pandhra rassa (white curry) of Kolhapuri chicken and mutton dishes from the southern city of Kolhapur and the varhadi rassa or (varhadi chicken curry) from the Vidarbha region are especially well known throughout the Marathi speaking world.
[edit] Appetizers
There are a lot of snack and side dishes in Maharashtrian cuisine, although these days south Indian delicacies like dosa, idli and medu-vada have taken over along with a lot of popular Punjabi dishes, especially in urban areas.
Some quintessentially Maharashtrian dishes are:
- Chiwada: Also known as bombay mix very famous overseas
- Pohay: pohay or pohe is a snack made from a type of rice flake called puffed-rice. Normally chopped chillies, onions, potatoes and green peas are added to it. It is most likely served with tea and is probably the most likely dish that a Maharashtrian will offer his guest. Here is a link to make this recipe. Maharashtrian Pohe RecipeDuring arranged marriages in Maharashtra, kanda-pohay or onion-pohay is the most likely dish over which the boy's and girl's families meet. Its so common that sometimes arranged marriage itself is referred colloquially as "kanda-pohay". There are many variations of the poha snack besides kanda pohe- you can have batata pohe (where diced potatoes are used instead of onion shreds); dadpe pohe, in which are added shredded coconut and lots of green chillies and lemon juice to give it a tangy taste; and kachche pohe, wherein the pohas are applied minimal embellishments of oil, red chili powder, salt and unsauteed onion shreds.
- Upma or sanja or upeet:This snack is similar to the south Indian upma, but which is essentially porridge made of coarse wheat flour perked up with spices.
- suralichyaa paat-wadyaa: These are rolls of besan flour stuffed with a garnishing of coconut kernel, coriander leaves and masala which are subsequently fried in oil. The rolls need to have critical levels of mechanical strength and also flexibility for their processing.
- Vada pav: is the most popular Maharashtrian dish consisting of a fried mashed potato (vada) mixture eaten between two pieces of bread (pav).
- Matar-usal- pav:Its another simple dish made from green peas in a curry made of onion, green chillies and sometimes garlic. Its eaten with a western style leavened bun or pav.
- Misal- pav:Quintessentially from Pune. This is made from a mix of lentils, topped with batata-bahji, pohay, sabudana khichadi, chivda. Also some times eaten with yogurt. Bread is a must.
- Pav bhaji:
- Sabudanyachi Khichadi
- Thalpeet: Its made of various flours and is the South-Indian Dosa version in marathi.
- Zunka-Bhakar: Made up basan and Bhakri.
- Kothimbir vadi: Pattice made using Coriander and flour.
- Khichadi: Made up rice and dal with mustard seeds and onions to add flavor.
[edit] Vegetable and lentil preparations
- Batatyachi Bhaji (Potato preparations)
- Bharli Vangi (Stuffed Aubergines)
- Dalimbya (Beans)
- Farasbichi Bhaji (French beans)
- Palkachi Takatli Bhaji (Spinach cooked in buttermilk)
- Kelphulachi/Fansachi Bhaji (Jackfruit preparation)
- Walache Birdha
[edit] Meat preparations
- Taambda rassa (Red curry)
- Pandhra rassa (White curry)
- Varhadi rassa
[edit] Soups and consommes
Unlike western eating habits where soups are consumed before the main course is eaten, soups are consumed along with the main course. Some popular soups are:
- Sol - kadhi
- Tomato saar
- Kokam Saar
- Varan
- Aamti
- Kadhi
[edit] Pickles and condiments
- Ambyacha lonche (mango pickle)
- Limbacha lonche (lemon pickle)
- Awlyacha lonche (amla pickle)
- Mohoricha lonche (mustard pickle)
- Dangar
- Papad
- Thecha
[edit] Sweetmeats
- Puran poli: is one of the most popular sweet item in the Maharashtrian cuisine. It is made from jaggery (molasses or gur), yellow gram (chana) dal, plain flour, cardamom powder and ghee (clarified butter.
- Modak: is a Maharashtrian sweet typically steamed (ukdiche modak). Modak is almost exclusively prepared during the Ganesha festival around August, when it is often given as an offering to lord Ganesha, the elephant-headed God, as it is reportedly His favorite sweet. For more info, visit http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cookbook:Modak there are mainly two types of modak
one is called as ukadiche modak n the other are modak stuffed with saran( a sweat mixture mainly prepared fron coconut)
- Karanji: is a deep fried dumpling with a filling of grated coconut sweetened with jaggery and flavoured with powdered cardamom seeds. It is also known as kanola.
- Kheer: is prepared by cooking shevaya (rice or semolina vermicelli) in milk. The preparation is sweetened with jaggery or sugar, flavoured with powdered cardamom seeds and finally garnished with chopped nuts.
- Anarsa
- Chirota
- Jalebi: Called Jilbi in Maharashtra.
- Shrikhand: An improvised version with mango pulp is known as amrakhand.
- Shankarpali
- Basundi: Sweetened dense milk dessert.
- Gulachi poli is similar to puran poli but this does not include chana daal. It is made up of grated jaggery, cardamom powder and nutmeg powder.
- Aamrus: Pulp/Thick Juice made of mangoes, with little bit sugar if needed and milk at times.
