25 September

Maharashtra is a land of unique local flavours. And still it is mainly known for its Vada Pavs, poha, pav bhaji and modaks. I know because I also belong from a different state by birth. People only know food items that are shown in the Bollywood movies but the traditional flavors of this land unfortunately is very limited to the locals.  Thus even after spending more than 15 years in Maharashtra, I started understanding and exploring the signature regional cuisines of Maharashtra from only a couple of years ago. Mumbai being a melting pot of various cultures, I hardly came across a place claiming to serve authentic Maharashtrian Thali. I am talking about 12 years ago, it might also be that even if such a place exists in Mumbai I was unaware of. After spending a reasonable amount of time in Pune and due to some local friends and a few team lunch outs, I got exposed to the traditional fares which are uncommon to an outsider to the state. Now I really feel bad that I started exploring the beautiful cuisines of this place so late. Nonetheless, its better late than never!

Maharashtra is divided into 5 main regions : Konkan, Paschim Maharashtra also known as Desh - (Pune Division), Khandesh - (Nashik Division), Marathwada - (Aurangabad Division) and Vidarbha - (Nagpur and Amravati divisions).The coastline of Maharashtra is usually called the Konkan and boasts its own Konkani cuisine, which is a harmonized combination of Malvani, Gaud Saraswat Brahmin, and Goan cuisines. Besides the coastal Maharashtra cuisine, the interior of Maharashtra or the Vidarbha area has its own distinctive cuisine known as the Varadi cuisine.

The cuisine of each of these 5 regions are diverse and yet similar in many ways. From the coastal delicacies of the Kokan where fish curry and rice is a staple to the specialties of Deccan plateau and the fiery fare from heat of Vidharbha in the east, Maharashtrian food is truly unique. Quoting a food article, the North-Western region of Maharashtra which covers areas like Jalgaon, Malegaon and Nasik is known for its extremely spicy curries. This cuisine is called the Khandeshi cuisine which is the hottest cuisine of Maharashtra. Peanut oil, dry coconut and the Lavangi Mirch are the highlights of this cuisine. The curries are identifiable because of the red spicy oil that floats atop and is called 'Tawang or Tarri'.

There is a Maharashtrian Restaurant a little away from my place, where for the first time I got introduced to an amazing dish from Khadenshi cuisine - Kala Mutton. The burst of flavors and how succulent the mutton pieces were literally blew my mind! It was like nothing I had had before. Every inch of the mutton had a infusion of rich flavors from the whole spices, slowly cooked over the wood fire for hours. A bite of the piping hot bhakhris dipped in Kala mutton gravy with a slice of raw onions is something you need to try once in your life to know how heavenly it tastes.

From then on every time I visited the place, that was the dish for me by default. I am so much smitten with this particular dish that I had to try making this at home. I just had to! The main element of the dish of course is the Kala Masala. When you look at the ingredient list you might feel overwhelmed but that is the key behind all the beautiful flavors this curry has. It is definitely a labor of love! I can proudly say, that the mutton made with this kala masala tasted super amazing and everyone at home really loved it. Check out the recipe for the masala below. I will be posting the Kala Masala Mutton Curry recipe soon. Just as a side note, I did try making this with Chicken as well, it did taste amazing but no where near to the one that you get with Mutton. So if you want to try this out for the very first time, make a Mutton curry with it.

Checkout other accompaniment recipes on my blog:

• Bengali Tomato Chutney
• Pickled Onions - Sirke Wala Peyaz
• Lebanese Toum - Garlic Sauce
• Hirva Mirchi Thecha

5 July 

With the onset of rains, the craving for having fritters and steaming hot tea comes naturally. Across the length an dbreadth of India some of the monsoon snacks remain same with subtle regional flavour differences - onion pakoda/kanda bhajji, mirchi vada, palak pakoda/pale bhajji, dal vada (lentil fritters), corn on the cob, dimer chop/ egg cutlet etc. are few of the common snacking items you will get almost everywhere in our country.

Just like Bengal which has its own array of famous street side food, similarly Maharashtra has some signature snacks which are iconic to this region. While vada pav, misal pav or pav bhaji are some of the names most people might be aware of. There are a few traditional snacks like, sabudana vada, aluvadi, thalipeet or kothimbir vadi which give you a taste of a typical and authentic Maharashtrian household and these dishes are worth craving for. 

This post is about a delicious snack known as Kothimbir vadi. In Marathi 'kothimbir' or 'kothmir' means coriander leaves. The word ‘vadi’ means cubes or slices or wedges. So Kothimbir vadis are basically steamed coriander and gram flour cake cubes that are later fried or can be even had as is. Dont misjudge the dish if you didn't have a good experience at a restaurant eating a kothimbir vadi which was heavy on besan and with slight traces of coriander leaves. The ones made at home taste heavenly because they are loaded with fresh coriander leaves and spices. This is one recipe which is made best at home. I know because our office canteen used to serve this as an evening snacks and I never really liked them much. But then once, one of my neighbors made a batch of kothimbir vadis and gave me to taste. They were absolutely heavenly. I kept craving for them even after they were finished. 

For ages coriander has been considered as one of the chief garnishing element in Indian cuisine. If some dish is lacking bold flavors then just add a sprinkle of chopped coriander leaves and even the biggest flaws get hidden. Also, chaats are incomplete without a dash of the spicy hot coriander chutney. There will hardly be a household which does not keep a consistent stack of fresh coriander in their pantry.

Me and a few of my friends in Instagram will be hosting a monthly collaboration on Instagram on grains , herbs and spices. Every month a group of Instagrammers will be posting recipes with the 3 core ingredients of the month from each of these categories. This month it is rice, bay leaf and coriander. I chose to make a dish from coriander. Plating and taking a enticing photo of rice has never been my area of expertise, hence I wanted to make something which I could make to look good! That is when Kothimbir Vadi came to my rescue. I had been meaning to make this recipe from a long time and this was a perfect opportunity.

This recipe is even gluten free. You take away the hing (asafetida) and this is an absolute gluten free recipe. To make it even more healthy, skip frying it all together. So the next time you have excess Coriander leaves in the refrigerator, don't just think of making a chutney. Try this easy Maharashtrian Snack recipe  and I am sure you would enjoy it with your evening tea. 

Checkout other snacks recipes on my blog:

• Kachki Macher Bora - Fried Anchovy Fritters
• Kumro Ful Bhaja - Fried Pumpkin flower fritters
• Besan Ka chila

Ingredients :

• Mixing Bowl
• Deep Kadai 
• Trivet
• Steaming tray
• Skillet

Procedure (steaming):

1.  In a mixing bowl, add the chopped coriander leaves, besan, chopped green chilli, red chilli powder, lemon juice, sesame seeds, turmeric, coriander powder, cumin powder, ginger garlic paste, hing, garam masala powder and salt as per taste. Combine everything together with hand.  Squeeze the coriander leaves with hands, they will release some water into the mixture. 

Tip 1: Sift the Chickpea Flour for a lump free dough.

Tip 2: Wash the coriander leaves well and drain them completely before chopping.

Tip 3: If you want a gluten free version skip the hing. 

Note: The quantity of coriander leaves should always be double the amount of chickpea flour used.

2. Now add the water and knead everything together. It will become a sticky soft dough.

Note: Add the water only when the mixture is damp

3. Now grease a tray with oil. Grease your hands also with oil and add the batter into the tray. Flat it out with the help of your fingers.

Ready for steaming

4. Boil water in a steamer or a deep bottom pan. Place a trivet in center and once the water comes to a rolling boil, place the tray with the batter. Cover and steam for about 10-15 minutes on medium flame.

5. Insert a knife or a toothpick, if it comes out clean take the tray off the heat. Let it cool down.

6. To remove the steamed cake, with a butter knife loosen the edges and cut it into thick squares. You can store it in an airtight box in the refrigerator for 48 hours if you don't plan to consume immediately.

Frying the Vadi:

Shallow Fry : Take a skillet and add oil. Once hot add the Vadis in a single layer and fry each side till golden brown in color.

Deep Fry : You can also deep fry the vadis for a more crispy texture.

Can Kothimbir Vadi be air fried?

Yes, you can. Preheat the Air Fryer for 5 mins at 200 Degrees C. Place the cut vadis inside the airfryer basket and spray / brush some oil.

Garnish the hot vadis with some grated fresh coconut. Serve it for snacks with tomato sauce and steaming chai (tea).