Marathi Language Day: 10 Maharashtrian dishes that will give a mouthgasm!

Maharashtrian cuisine is an interesting blend of flavours. Though it is characterised as mildly spicy food, the cuisine ranges from street food to snacks to fine cuisine. The food here is diverse, because of the many communities, that cover a range from mild to very spicy dishes. The cuisine is packed with everything from meat and fish curries to desserts like kheer made from rice and jaggery. Talking about the diversity in food, the Konkan cuisine has more coconut, the Kolhapuri cuisine emphasizes more on non-veg and spices and the Vidharba food has a strong hold on chili powder and garlic.

Modak

The trunk god’s favourite food ‘Modak’ is made of rice flour stuffed with a mixture of jaggery, coconut, and dry fruits. They are either steamed or fried, but the steamed ones have their own charm.

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Puran Poli

There is a tradition of making Puran Poli during festivals. The sweet flatbread is prepared from flour, chana dal, jaggery, ghee and cardamom powder. The melt in the mouth is served with oodles of ghee.

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Sol Kadhi

Taking true to its name, the Soul Kadhi is literally the soul of Maharashtrian food and is mostly found in Konkan region. The kadhi is accompanied with food and is prepared from kokum extract and coconut milk.

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Batata Vada

When in Maharashtra you cannot ignore Batata Vada. Also called as the Bombay burger, the delicacy is prepared with potatoes mixed in masalas dipped in gram flour batter and then deep fried. It is served with pav (bread), fried green chilies, chopped onions, and chutneys.

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Usal/Misal Pav

Usal is a spicy gravy prepared with mixed sprouts and is served with pav (bread). When the gravy is garnished with mix farsan, onion, tomatoes, and coriander leaves it is called as Misal. Pav is accompanied to make it less spicy.

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Thalipeeth

The Indian pancakes are made of flour mixed with chopped onions, tomatoes, spices, cumin powder, salt, and chilies. Thalipeeth is served with ghee or chutney or pickle or curd. It is a popular breakfast food and is also eaten for dinner or lunch.

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Pithale Bhakari with Thecha

Pithale bhakari is a traditional dish made with chickpeas or besan flour cooked with onions, ginger-garlic paste, cumin-mustard seeds and curry leaves. The bhakri is prepared with bajra, rice or jowar rotis. While the thecha is made with chilies crushed with garlic and groundnuts.

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Pandhara/Tambda Rassa

Tamda Rassa is a popular dish from Kolhapur made with chicken/mutton and lots of spices. It is spicey. While the Pandhara Rassa is not-so-spicy chicken/mutton gravy and is made with onion and cashew paste.

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Kothimbir Vadi

The delicious crispy snack is made with gram flour, coriander leaves, and spices. Kothimbir means ‘coriander’ and vadi means cubes or slices. These cubes are fried either deep or shallow.

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Sabudana Vada

The traditional deep-fried snack is made with soaked sabudana (sago) mixed with boiled potatoes, chilies and spices. The mixture is made into small tikkis and is deep fried. The vada is served with chutney or chai. It is mostly consumed during fasts. Another popular sago dish is Sabudana Khichdi.

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