Planning to prepare a homecooked, wholesome fare for Gudi Padwa this time around? Usher in the new year with some classic recipes that make-up the festive platter in a traditional Maharashtrian household. Every new beginning is celebrated with something sweet across Indian cultures and a classic Marathi Padwa fare is no different.
A sweet dish, a savoury vegetable, something crisp like a pakora or papad, pickles and chutneys and warm puris constitute the hearty home cooked festive meal prepared for Gudi Padwa. And there are some dishes in this entire line-up that are absolute must-haves on this day. What’s interesting about each of these recipes is that they are quite straightforward to prepare, yet when brought together, they interact with each other beautifully to render the meal a very wholesome and filling feel.
Kheer Or Shrikhand
This is as old a dilemma as it gets for the home cook planning a meal on Gudi Padwa. While vermicelli kheer and puri remains a favoured combination, it is shrikhand or sweetened hung curd laced with saffron that comes out on top as the sweet element prepared in several homes for the new year. Shrikhand can be made easily by mixing hung curd or cream cheese with sugar and churning this until it becomes a silky, smooth mixture. For its part, a delicious creamy kheer made by adding crushed nuts and aromatic cardamom is also a fine enough choice on this day. Whatever sweet dish the home cook chooses, one of these is a must-have on the new year day.
Warm Puris
Masale Bhat
No festive meal in the Maharashtrian kitchen is complete without a rice preparation. Along with the traditional varan-bhat or the lentil and rice pairing, another significant element of the new year feast is the masale bhat or a rice dish flavoured with assorted spices and condiments. This is a slightly spicy, savoury, umami recipe made by tossing rice in a homemade brown masala, whole spices like bay leaves, cloves and peppers and a rich tempering of mustard, cumin seeds, red chillies and curry leaves that lend the dish a lot of depth. Warm masale bhat can be served by making little round rice moulds topped off with a fresh coconut and coriander leaves garnish and a generous dollop of ghee.
Kairichi Koshimbir
While this cold raw mango relish is a traditional dish prepared during the first month of the new year, it is also just as significant a dish to have on the Gudi Padwa platter. In many households, the first kairi or raw mango of the season is brought home for the new year itself and it is used to make a chilled koshimbir that is bright, tangy and full of a vibrant acidity. Grated raw mango is mixed with chana dal and crushed to render a coarse, wet relish that can be served alongside the other elements of the festive meal.
Batata Bhaji
Bhaji or sabzi on a traditional Gudi Padwa platter is the savoury aspect that binds the meal together. The sweetness of the shrikhand or kheer is counteracted by the spiced touches of the potato bhaji. In between bites of the sweet dish, munching on the puri and boiled potato sabzi makes for a good flavour break. The home cook can prepare this dish quite simply by tossing chunks of boiled potatoes in a fresh, aromatic tempering of mustard seeds, curry leaves, green chillies and hing. Garnished with fresh coriander, the batata bhaji acquires a fresh vibrancy befitting a summertime festive fare.