Maharashtrian

A bottle gourd peel thecha is shown in a shallow pan laid on a dark brown wooden board with bottle gourds seen in the background
Gluten-free, Maharashtrian, My Signature Dishes, Pickles & chutney, Recipes, Vegan

Bottle gourd peel thecha / Bhoplyachya salancha thecha / भोपळ्याच्या सालांचा ठेचा 

Bottle gourd, also known as dudhi in India, is a very versatile vegetable. Although it’s classed as exotic produce in the UK, it has become a common find in Indian grocery stores across the UK. A long pale green bottle gourd with delicate white flesh inside dotted with soft edible seeds is rather delicious (and […]

Raw mango chutney
Maharashtrian, Pickles & chutney, Recipes, Regional, Vegan

Kairichi Chutney / Raw Mango Chutney / कैरीची चटणी

Chutneys and pickles are, in my opinion, a much-neglected aspect of Indian cooking. That is especially true in so-called Indian restaurants in the UK where you might find a bland mango chutney served with ‘poppadoms’ as a kind of appetiser, or perhaps a bowl of runny mint chutney. The truth is that Indian condiments have […]

Puran poli thali
Indian, Indian desserts, Maharashtrian, Recipes, Regional, Vegetarian

Puran poli / पुरणपोळी / Maharashtrian sweet lentil flatbreads

Whether it’s the Hindu festival of colours (called Holi), or a farming festival of oxen (called Bail Pola), a Maharashtrian puran poli is not to be missed. It’s traditional to make this Marathi delicacy for festivals like Holi, Diwali, Bail Pola, Ganesh Chaturthi and Gudi Padwa. I feel obliged to roll some of these sweet […]

Masale bhat
Indian, Maharashtrian, Recipes, Regional, Vegetarian

Masale Bhat

The world is blessed with so many different ways to cook rice. Where would we be without this humble grain? So many souls are sustained by it. But for such a mundane ingredient it’s amazing how it forms the basis for something unique to the region that I grew up in, the wonderful masale bhat. […]

Gluten-free, Indian, Maharashtrian, Recipes, Regional, Vegan

Sabudana Vada / Sago Patties / Sago Balls / Tapioca Patties

It’s that time of year again when I binge on delicious and fairly healthy vegan fasting treats under the guise of celebrating ‘Mahashivratri’, a Hindu festival honouring Lord Shiva. I say ‘under the guise’ because this festival is anything but fasting for me and many Indians like me. It is believed that Shiva performed his […]

Gluten-free, Maharashtrian, Recipes, Regional, Vegan

Khamang Kakdi Koshimbir / Maharashtrian Cucumber Salad

There’s always a place for salad in a Maharashtrian thali. A typical accompaniment in a wedding thali served alongside a myriad of chutneys and pickles, is this ‘khamang’ kakdi koshimbir or cucumber salad. It’s like a cucumber raita, only better. A well-balanced thali will usually include this cool cucumber koshimbir to offset the spicier dishes. […]

Gluten-free, Maharashtrian, My Signature Dishes, Recipes, Regional, Vegan

Olya Harbharyachi Amti / Saar / Green Chickpea Soup / ओल्या हरभऱ्याची आमटी

We take so many things for granted in our kitchen; if we want to make a quick ‘chole’ we can easily grab a tin of chickpeas from the store cupboard, pop it open, pour it into a pan with some fried onion, garlic, spices etc. turn up the heat and a few minutes later it’s […]

Maharashtrian, My Signature Dishes, Recipes, Regional, Vegan

Turichya Ghugrya / Whole Pigeon Pea curry

Turichya ghugrya / तुरीच्या घुगऱ्या aka whole pigeon peas or whole toor beans with pearl millet flatbread / बाज़रीची भाकरी is a winter staple where I grew up in India and a meal I fondly remember having at my grandparents’, all of whom were farmers. They knew their food way better than I do today.  […]

Gluten-free, Indian, Indian desserts, Maharashtrian, Recipes, Regional, Vegetarian

Tilgulachi Vadi / Sesame Peanut Flapjacks

We Indians, never pass up the opportunity to make jaggery-based sweet treats in the cooler months. And the festival of Makar Sankranti gives all the more reason to make these ‘til-gulachi vadi’, as we call them in Marathi or ‘sesame-peanut flapjack’ as my English husband once described them as he popped one in his mouth […]

bhogichi bhaji
Gluten-free, Maharashtrian, Recipes, Regional, Vegan

Bhogichi Bhaji / Maharashtrian Mixed vegetable Curry

If there was ever a festival that celebrates the seasonality of produce, it’s Makar Sankranti – the first Hindu festival of the year that’s celebrated across India under various names. And this ‘bhogichi bhaji’ is just a beautiful way to commemorate this festival through food. The day before Makar Sankranti is Bhogi and it’s the […]