Maharashtra Cuisine
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Bhajji
Homemade potato bhaji recipe
Ingredients
1kg potatoes Four to five curry leaves
A few mustard seeds
1 tsp turmeric powder Salt to taste 1 tbsp oil
A bundle of chopped coriander
4 onions 3 tomatoes A tsp of ginger garlic paste
1 tsp red chilli powder
Method
Chop the potatoes into small cubes and place them in water and sprinkle some salt and keep aside. Chop the onions, tomatoes and coriander and set aside. Pour oil in a pan, add mustard seeds and wait till they pop, then add curry leaves and fry for some time before adding onions. Fry the onions and tomatoes till cooked and then add some ginger garlic paste and stir. Then add the potatoes and turmeric, red chilli powder and salt to taste. Cover the utensil and keep on a high flame. Keep checking to ensure it does not get burned. When the potatoes are fully cooked, add the chopped coriander as a garnish. Stir for a while and then serve it hot with bread or rotis. You can also use this as a filling to make a potato bhaji roll or a sandwich. It can be had as part of a meal or as a quick snack while on the go.
Sai Bhaji
Anita Dongre's sai bhaji
Ingredients
Spinach: 2 medium bunches, Khatta leaves: 1/2 medium bunch, Oil: 4 tbsp, Cumin seeds: 1/2 tsp, Onion (finely chopped ): 2, Ginger (finely chopped): 1-inch piece, Green chilli (finely chopped): 3 to 4, Brinjal (small, cut into 1-inch cubes): 2, Split bengal gram (chana dal) soaked: 4 tbsp, Tomatoes (large, roughly chopped): 2, Turmeric powder: 1/4 tsp, Red chilli powder: 1 tsp, Salt: to taste
Method
Cut the spinach and half the khatta leaves into fine shreds. Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add the cumin seeds, onions, ginger and green chillies and saute till golden brown. Add some water. Add the spinach, whole khatta leaves, shredded khatta leaves, brinjal, potato cubes, soaked chana dal, tomatoes, turmeric powder, chilli powder and salt. Stir in two cups of water.Seal the cooker with the lid and cook on high heat till the pressure is released once. Once cooked, remove the potato cubes with a slotted spoon and blend the remaining mixture with ahand blender. Add the potato cubes. Serve hot.
Poha
Recipe: Healthy breakfast poha
Ingredients
2 Cups poha
1 Potato, small cubes
2 Green chillies, sliced
A jandful of peanuts
1 tsp lemon juice
2-3 tsp sugar
Salt to taste
1 tbsp oil
2 tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp turmeric powder
Curry leaves
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Method
Wash poha and rinse well. Drain all the water and keep aside for 15 minutes. Heat oil in a pan. Add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add curry leaves, peanuts and green chillies. Take care not to burn the peanuts. After the peanuts are fried, add the small cubes of potato. Allow the potato to cook well.Then add the poha. Mix well and add the turmeric powder. Once it gets mixed well, add sugar, salt, lemon juice. The poha shouldn't be too dry. Garnish with coriander leaves. In some Gujarati households, they also garnish it with pomegranate seeds.
Healthy poha phirni recipe
Ingredients
1 cup poha
2 cups skimmed milk
1/4th cup powdered sugar free
1 tbsp cornflour
2-3 tbsp Kesar Badam drink mix
A pinch of saffron
8-10 chopped almonds
Method
1. Roast the poha till crispy but not letting it turn brown. Once it has cooled, grind it to a coarse paste. 2. Heat the milk, sugar free and the badam drink mix and once it begins to boil add to it the poha while stirring continuously.
3. Add the saffron strands and chopped almonds, reserving a few for garnish. Now add the cornflour, which has been dissolved in little cold milk.
4. Simmer it for 2-3 minutes, till it thickens a little. Do not let it harden and add some more milk if you feel that it is a little too thick.
5. Once you have the right consistency (mine was thick but would fall of the spoon easily), turn off the gas and let it cool a little before refrigerating. Serve chilled garnished with some saffron and chopped almonds. You can make it healthier by reducing the sugar and adding fruits on top instead.
Healthy snack recipe: Oats and poha chivda
Ingredients
1 cup poha (thin beaten rice) 1 cup chivda 2-3 tbsp roasted peanuts 2-3 tbsp daliya dal 4-5 green chillies slit in half 5-6 curry leaves (chopped) 1 tsp asafoetida 1 1/2 tbsp coriander powder 1 1/2 tbsp cumin powder 1 tbsp caster sugar Salt to taste 2 tbsp refined oil
Method
Dry roast the poha till they are crispy, but do not let them change colour. A good way to know if they are done is that, the sides of the poha start to curl up a bit. Also when you hold the flakes in between your fingers and press it a bit, they should easily crumble. That means your poha is roasted. This is a very important step as this will determine the texture and crispness of the chivda. Next roast oats till they slightly change color. Do not stir a lot because they will easily get powdered. Heat oil in a kadai and add the daliya dal and peanuts. Roast them for 2-3 minutes till the daliya dal starts to turn reddish. Next add the curry leaves and chillies. Fry them till the curry leaves and chillies are crispy. Then add the asafoetida, fry for a few seconds. After this goes in the coriander and cumin powder, which also you fry quickly for a few seconds till you get a nice aroma of the spices. Now add in the poha, oats, sugar and salt. Mix till the poha is well coated with the spices. Cool and store in an airtight container.
Sabzi
Recipe: Tamato sev sabzi
Ingredients
250g tomatoes, chopped in small cubes
4-5 garlic cloves, crushed or chopped
2-3 green chillies, chopped finely
100g thick sev
2tbsp oil
2tsp cumin seeds
1tsp turmeric powder
2tsp chilli powder
2tsp coriander powder
1tsp asafoetida
10g jiggery
Salt to taste
Method
- In a pan heat the oil and add the asafoetida powder and cumin seeds, let them putter. Add the garlic and green chillies.
- Once they start spluttering add the tomatoes and chilly powder with a glass of water (water can be added as required - more or less)
- Add the jiggery, coriander powder, turmeric powder and salt. Cover the pan till the jiggery melts completely. Stir occasionally.
- Once the jiggery is blended add the sev and stir. Let the concoction be on the liquid side, like gravy. The sev will absorb the water but if you want the mixture to be on the gravy side you can add extra water.
The tomato sev sabzi is ready. Serve hot, garnished with coriander leaves.
Thalipeeth
January 8, 2023: The Times of India
From: January 8, 2023: The Times of India
The Maharashtrian millet bread, Thalipeeth, is one of my favourite foods for breakfast or a snack. Serve with a spicy Akoori or a dry fried chicken keema, replete with ginger and chaat masala, or just to eat on the go, as I do, as an open-faced sandwich, generously spread with some achar that has a bit of sweet in it.
Mix together 3/4 cup jowar flour, ¼ cup bajra flour, ¼ cup wheat flour, ¼ cup besan and ¼ cup rice flour in a large bowl with 1/3 tsp carom seeds, 1 tbs sesame seeds, ½ tsp cumin powder, ½ tsp coriander powder, ½ tsp aamchur, ½ cup very finely chopped onions, ¼ cup very finely chopped cilantro, 1 long green chili sliced ultra-thin and ½ tsp salt. Start by adding 1/2 cup of water and then slowly add more (up to 1 cup, partly depending on atmospheric humidity) just until it forms into a firm but pliable dough. Tear off a piece and make a ball of dough slightly bigger than a table tennis ball (or a healthy lime) and press it by hand on a butter wrapping paper or other greased paper till it forms a disk roughly the thickness of your ear lobes. Place on a preheated lightly greased tawa hot enough that you can feel the heat rising from it from an inch above (placing the disk directly on the tawa and peeling the paper off works well). Dribble a teaspoon and a half of oil all around the disk and make sure it is not sticking by sliding a spatula under it. Cook about 3 minutes per side (break off a piece of the first one to check that it is cooked inside).
