OnaSadya (Onam Feast) - for you..!!!

 

 

Dear readers n foodie friends..Finally,Onam is here at our thresholds..For us its Uthradam day after tomorrow which happens to be Onnam Onam (First Onam) n Thiruvonam the next day.For any Malayali,in any part of the world,this is the festival..the occasion to get a bit (or more..) nostalgic..memories about home land..Kerala..those lush greens glittering on OnaPulari(Onam day morning)  n coconut trees swaying in light breeze n  “Aarppoo…Irrooo” sounds n Athapookkalams (floral designs) n Vallam Kali n scrumptious Sadya n ..list goes on..Wherever we are ,on that one day we tend to miss our place n dwells into those sweet memories of our childhood Onam’s..right? :)..My memories of Onam is filled with heavenly fragrance of Kaya Upperi,that my mom makes 2 days before Thiruvonam..n Pulikali ,when people dressed like tiger’s n hunters do the joyful dance n go celebrating through the streets..n Our Boat race /Vallam kali..n of course the Sadya..:)..As kids we used to sway in swings that my dad would set up during Onam vaccation n that swing sport stopped one fine day when I had an accident with it..Dad pushed my swing hard n me instead of enjoying it,got scared n jumped blindly from the fast moving swing..*$@%#$%..Rest you can imagine..I still have bumps on my lower lip..:D

 

All that we can do is ,try to recreate the feel at home n enjoy with our family n most of us do prepare Onasadya for that..:)..Hot Kuthari choru (rice) with a number of palate-pleasing colorful curries ,pappadam (fritters),pickles n finally the sweet payasam(kheer) to finish it off…sounds bliss right..So let today’s post be that..I’ll help you all with your OnaSadya menu by bringing in here,all sadya items I have posted before..:)

This is my 2nd Onam here,n last year Onam was on the 2nd day of my arrival in US.Still,being our first Onam together I managed to make  a Sadya which was not all that great..:D..n then I made Sadya again on Vishu n here is a glimpse of that.In that particular post,I have jotted down most of the recipes..but will club that all with links here again..:)

Follow the links/Click pics for recipes

As I have mentioned before,a Sadya will have rice as the main entry,on one side of a fresh Vazhayila(banana leaf) with multiple curries on the other side of the leaf rib.Usually people start the sadya with Rice,Katti Parippu(Yellow moong dal curry) , ghee(clarified butter) n pappadam(round fritters made of Urad dal-available in Indian stores in US)..Here is the Parippu curry

 

 

..then its time to introduce Pulissery or Kurukku Kalan..

Pulissery is a thick gravy which has veggie pieces like Vellarikka( a type of cuccumber) n a coconut paste n yogurt as main ingredient.Kalan has yam,plantain n the same coconut paste n yogurt.Both the dishes has tempering as final touch..

..n some Mampazha Pulisseri also which has the sweet mango flavor in it..

 

..n also there is a long array of side dishes like Aviyal,kichadi,pachadi etc..But if you  like to have lil Sambar also on top of rice,then here is it for you.Authentic Central Kerala Sambar...:)

 

 

..some Thoran is a must..Thoran is a preparation of grated/sliced veggies with grated coconuts n tempering..Here is the Cabbage Thoran..:)

 

 

 

 

..or some healthy Cheera thoran (Spinach thoran)..

..No Sadya is complete without Aviyal..Its a tasty mixed veg preparation with lots of colorful veggies and a coarse ground paste of coconut n chillies n cumin powder..:)

..Kichadi n Pachadi is also a main item for the Sadya..Kichadi’s are made with Okra,Bittergourd etc n Pachadi’s with Tomato,Pineapple/grapes,beets etc..Method of prepartion is more or less the same though..

Here is Okra Kichadi ..

..n Tomato pachadi..(old pic)

 

 

..n Pineapple-grapes Pachadi /Pineapple-Munthiri pachadi

..n Beetroot Pachadi..

..Olan is a mild yet so much flavorful n yummy dish ..Pumpkin n kidney beans cooked n drenched in thick coconut milk n flavored with coconut oil n curry leaves..:)

 

Erisseri is my personal favorite in Sadya..Its yellow pumpkin n kidney beans cooked with coconut paste n finally topped with some fried flavorful coconut.The crunchy taste is amazing..Koottukari is also a similar preparation made with lack chick peas(kadala),yam(Chena) n Kaya(raw plantain) etc n almost the same preparation method..:)

..To digest all these tasty dishes n also to give your taste buds some spicy kick before the sweet payasam,some Rasam should be there..Its a kind of Dal soup..spicy n hearty..

..Also some spicy butter milk..Just pulse a cup of yogurt with half a cup water,a piece of ginger,3 green chillies,salt n 4-5 curry leaves..Spicy butter milk is ready..:)

..n finally time for Payasam(Kheer)

..Here is some Palada Pradhaman /Ada Payasam..

 

..n some good ole’ Semiya payasam..:)

 

..Yum..So thats the OnaSadya..Dont forget to serve with Achar’s(pickles),Injipuly(ginger curry..will post that soon),Upperi’s n Pappadam’s..:)

I wish you all a very joyful n amazing Onam..Enjoy with your loving one’s n ….

..eat, eat n eat to your tummy full..:)

hugs

:)