Day 2 at Mahalaxmi Saras Exhibition,Bandra

Went back again to the Mahalaxmi Saras 2013 exhibition at Bandra Reclamation.This time with friends Sue and Nathan...two global travelers who like to try everything.They had me in splits with their travel stories.I first met them at Kalyan and Kainaz's place where we met Simon and Sybil Majumdar.They too have the same philosophy.Sue and Nathan write a blog called Yearaway

The show is not just about food but also about various handicrafts.After a longtime I spotted the "soup" which is used to separate grain from the chaff...a process called threshing,as Sue enlightened me

There are stalls from various states so no wonder that I spotted a Maharashtrian tribal woman posing with a Bengali mashi

Bought some lovely Goda masala...a typical Maharashtrian masala used in sprout dishes and curries

Then came across Organic Turmeric grown and pound by various families and sold under one common name.There was a distinct aroma of haldi as compared to the one we buy in cities.The man at the counter was well informed and told us how it had a higher concentration of curcumin...which is an antioxidant and antiseptic

We spotted unusual papads such as beetroot,carrot and spinach!

Then there was Red Rice which I had eaten at the Farmers' Market at Mumbai some Sundays ago.It was made into dosas and idlis there

I bought the Colocasia root which can be boiled and seasoned and eaten and is said to have a healing effect on the gut.

Spotted a different variety yam which can be cut into slices and roasted on a tava

Then of course was Cow's Milk Ghee....

Some stalls sold farm fresh vegetables....leafy greens and drumsticks...bought some

One place sold tuna pickles from the South!

Another had chappals made from areca tree (supari tree) and banana fibre from Kerala

There were Masalas galore....including red chilly powder from Jalgaon.

I had bought a magazine featuring Kolhapuri food sometime ago but couldn't make the recipes for the lack of the "Onion Garlic Kolhapuri Masala" which I found here.

The above variant of fenugreek can be found in villages and has a bitter taste.

After all the sightseeing,we walked through the food court which was huge!

.......but not before Sue bought a lovely Warli painting for Nathan.Warlis are tribal people that live in Maharashtra and Gujarat

There was Pomfret,Surmai and Prawns to choose from.

At the Sinhagad stall we had Gavti Chicken and Bhakri! Sinhagad(Lion-Fort)is a fortress near Pune.It was recaptured by Tanaji Malusare,Shivaji's general by climbing the steep slopes with the help of a monitor lizard.

The stall next door had Crab dishes....Grilled Crab,Crab Soup,Crab Biryani and Stuffed Crabs from Khed in Ratnagiri

The Hurda Thalipeeth was outstanding!! Made of new grains of jowar,this reminded you of fields and fires.Truly magnificent!

I am waiting for Mahalaxmi Saras 2014