A Banana Leaf Lunch

-
Our friends Radhika and Bala held a housewarming ceremony and to celebrate it they had a traditional Tamilian Brahmin Banana Leaf lunch in a hall opposite their home.Radhika is a Palakkad Iyer...a sect of Tamilians who moved to Palghat,Kerala and are known for their intelligence


We sat on chairs (some places, one has to sit on the floor) in a line...termed "pangat" in Marathi.
The waiters trooped in with pans and buckets with dishes I had never laid my eyes on.


















At first we had to clean the banana leaf which had been splashed with water.Then the waiters put pickles and chutneys on the left along with a gram flour pattice(which I skipped).The selection of vegetables were astounding.....Pachadi made of cucumbers and curds,Pineapple Vegetable (stellar with its sweetness tempered with mustard seeds),Kootu made like a thick Kadi having chickpeas, Olan with pumpkin and coconut ,Pullisery with banana and Aviyal with vegetables and coconut.Papad was served as a veritable accessory.

At the centre was a mound of rice with a simple but delicious tur dal and a touch of ghee.No chapatis or rotis were served.Above that was the Rasam...a light gravy and Sambhar...a thick gravy with vegetables such as drumstick and pumpkin.Dessert consisted of sweet Coconut Payasam and Milk Payasam.Ended the meal with curds and buttermilk.

The meal was simple and relatively oil free.Vegetarian food with a spectacular involvement of lesser eaten vegetables such as gourd,yam and white pumpkin.
No wonder Tamilian Brahmins don't miss nonveg!








Comments

Kalyan Karmakar said…
the banana leaves remind me of Bengali feasts and community feasts during pujas in the 80s

the meal looks similar to the keralite banana leaf onam saadyas that i used to eat at hotel deluxe at fort
February 13, 2012 at 4:15 PM
Rhea Mitra Dalal said…
There are few things that can delight the soul as a good Tam Brahm Sambaar! I grew up on it as my buddy and neighbour was a Tam Brahm and her mom was an awesome cook. I would sniff my fingers for hours later just to get that distinctive sambaar smell :)

Lovely post!
February 15, 2012 at 2:01 PM
Anonymous said…
So comfort food...
picturebite.com
February 22, 2012 at 9:17 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Food at a Baarsa...A Maharashtrian Naming Ceremony

-
Image
Today we had the naming ceremony of my grand-nephew...one rarely gets to see such functions so was mighty thrilled when I heard about it.A time to connect with cousins is always welcome The parents of the baby Vikrant and Rakhi glowed with joy.Their parents and grandparents were in attendance at the Kohinoor Hall at Prabhadevi.The priest chanted mantras.Then everyone went unto the great-grandmother (Panji)and showed their respect and took her blessings.We showered the baby and her with flowers and she in return showered the baby with tiny gold flowers.Then the aunt went and announced the baby's name....Arjun!! The grandmother then read out a note which was supposed to have been conveyed to her by Arjun in which he declares the good quality of each of his relatives that he hopes to inherit...lovely! This was followed by a typical Maharashtrian lunch... Khamang Kakdi or Cold Cucumber and Yoghurt Salad which was oh so refreshing Bhajjis of potato,chillies
Read more

The Malcolm Baug Parsi Pop-Up

-
Image
Had a fascinating time at Malcolm Baug,Jogeshwari,thanks to the invitation of my friend Perzen Darukhanawala Patel (also known as Bawi Bride ) at the lovely Jer Villa. Baugs are colonies set up by Parsis,mainly the N.M. Wadia Trust and this one is so named as it was bought from an Englishman named Malcolm.This was earlier a hunting ground.We were privy to these lovely stories, thanks to the presence of our friends and archaeologists Kurush and Rhea Mitra Dalal.Malcolm Baug has been developed like a hill station and has quaint bungalows with lovely gardens. Baugs were set up for needy Parsis by Bai Jerbai Wadia and her sons.Others include Cusrow Baug,Navroz Baug,Rustom Baug,Jer Baug and Ness Baug which are gated communities that have buildings and gardens.A nominal rent is collected but the upkeep is undertaken by the trust. Arrived there with my lovely food blogger friend Romi,her humorous hubbie Gaurav (actor,anchor and of the radio station Fever) and India Food Network
Read more

A Heartwarming Goud Saraswat Brahmin Meal

-
Image
My tryst with Saraswat food started with a lovely book I picked up in Pune by Mrs Nadkarni.Written in Marathi,it had a plethora of dishes and as I tried them one by one,I realized thateach had a unique flavor with just a minor variation in ingredients..Soon after I came upon Rasachandrika,a cookbook by the Saraswat Mahila Samaj printed in 1988.This being in English,made it easier for me to cook the long list of vegetarian dishes it had. When I saw Authenticook had a Gaud Saraswat Brahmin (GSB) meal planned for this Saturday,I was thrilled.Having tried some at the home of our Mangalorean origin GSB friends Pradeep and Chethana Rao,I know this was going to be a treat. Saraswats originated from Kashmir and lived on the banks of the Saraswati river.in the Goud region in Northern India.They spoke Sanskrit.Due to a famine,they had to look for alternative sources of food and therefore though they were Brahmins,they started eating fish.Some say as the river dried up,they migrated
Read more