Hidden Food Secrets From the land of Peshwas...

Much has been written, researched, marketed and said about different and diverse cuisines from our country - be it Gujarati, Rajasthani, Hyderabadi, North Indian/ Punjabi, South Indian, Bengali, but there is little said on Maharashtrian food, vis-a-vis its culture, traditions and tourism. Ask somebody about specialities of Maharashtrian food and one will probably start with a Vada Pav or a Pav Bhaji from Mumbai (then Bombay) and not know what to say beyond that. 

One can't pinpoint with certainty on why such lack of enthusiasm towards popularising Maharashtrian food - it is rather complex - blame it on the political neglect, general complacent attitude of the people from the region (I'm not pointing fingers here considering I am a part of this region), the lack of self-marketing or self PR as one would call it. An interesting piece written by a famous Marathi journalist/ editor points out and I quote, 'that in spite of political parties rendering a strong sentiment of the "Marathi Manoos", there is hardly anything done towards popularising Marathi theatre, art galleries, restaurant chains, and the likes and almost no Marathi wedding carries the quintessential Marathi menu which is extremely delicious and varied!'

A sketch of what a typical Marathi meal in a Thali would look like

Maharashtrian Cuisine is elegant, delicious, wholesome and extremely healthy and in my posts in the future, I would love to share a few recipes from this sumptuous yet simple, delicious yet healthy and wholesome cuisine! Before I start doling out recipes, here's some interesting facts and tidbits about the Marathi cuisine. Hope you enjoy reading them and are intrigued to try out some of the recipes:

• Cuisine from this large state can be broadly divided into two types -  (1) the large coastal region along the coast of the Arabian Sea comprising of  the Konkani cuisine, a combination of the Malvani, Saraswat, Goan cuisines and (2) the interior Maharashtra and Vidarbha Region with its famous Varadi cuisine, which has its distinct taste, style of preparations and ingredients. As opposed to fresh coconut used in Konkani recipes, the ones in interior Maharashtra and Vidarbha use the dry (copra) coconut powder, gram flour and distinct spices such as pepper, cloves, cardamom, dry coriander, cinnamon, bay leaves and the likes.

• In Maharashtra, when you say a prayer before your meal, you always say "Anna he poornabrahma", which means "Food is equivalent to God" and most times, this typical thali is placed as an offering to the Almighty before it is eaten.

• Less of tamarind and more of Kokum (a purple berry substitute to tamarind, high in medicinal value) is used to flavour curries, vegetables and dals.

• One of the oldest cookbooks in the country were printed (and continue to be reprinted with newer editions/ recipes) in Maharashtra - a famous 'go-to' book is 'Ruchira', first written and published by the then 60-year old  Kamalabai Olge and around 150000 copies of this book were sold within the first 20 years of its publication. 

• Did you know that there is a specific order of serving sweet, savouries, vegetables, curries, rice, rotis, salads in a typical Maharashtrian thali or meal and a person who does not follow this is considered poorly trained or inhospitable! For instance, it is inauspicious to serve rice, roti or subzi in a plate first:  



The right way to serve a Marathi meal on a thali (or leaf)

• You always start by serving salt - imagine the position of salt at 12 'o clock, you start serving some items towards its left such as a lemon wedge, a chutney (usually with green chillies, coriander and coconut), salad/ raita followed by an assortment of bhajjis

• Sweets are always served at the base of the plate on the left side 

• Towards the right of the salt is where the main course is served - a curry-based vegetable, followed by dry vegetables, rotis, rice and papad (served in the centre).

• Plain rice(served off centre on the right of the plate) is never served in a haphazard heap - always in a mould, topped with plain dal and signed off with ghee. You usually start eating this meal with with rice, followed by other items. 

Phew!! Complex, confusing and perplexing, right?! Having said that, I can vouch for the fact that this is one of the most or rather the only wholesome meal I have had - nutritious, tasty, simple, resonating the down to earth yet royal Maharashtrian culture! 

If I start writing down the kind of recipes included in a typical thali,  this will become a loooong, never-ending post. I promise to share some simple, healthy yet tasty recipes in the coming days. Watch out this space for more and let me know if you'd be interested in putting up this sumptuous spread!