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Among seafood, the most popular fish is bombil or the Bombay duck, which is normally served batter fried and crisp. Bangda or mackerel is another popular fish in coastal Maharashtra. It is curried with red chilies, ginger and triphal. Pomfret is another popular fish eaten barbecued, stuffed, fried or curried. Pamphlet triphal ambat is a traditional dish in which fish is cooked in creamy coconut gravy that greatly enhances its taste.
Besides fish, crabs, prawns, shellfish and lobsters are also relished by the coastal Maharashtrians. A popular prawn dish is the sungtachi-hinga kodi, which consists of prawns in coconut gravy, blended with spices and asafetida.
In the vegetarian fare, the most popular vegetables are brinjals. A popular style of cooking brinjals is bharlivangi or baby brinjals stuffed with coconut. Another typical dish is the Pachadi, which is tender brinjals cooked with green mangoes and flavored with coconut and jaggery. Besides, common vegetables are greatly relished by the Maharashtrians. A typical dish is the patal bhaji, which is a sweet and sour dish flavored with groundnuts.
All non-vegetarian and vegetarian dishes are eaten with boiled rice or with bhakris, which are soft rotis made of rice flour. Special rice puris called vada and amboli, which is a pancake made of fermented rice, urad dal, and semolina, are also eaten as a part of the main meal.
Maharashtrian fare is incomplete without papads, which are eaten roasted or fried. A typical feature is the masala papad in which finely chopped onions, green chilies and chat masala are sprinkled over roasted or fried papads.
The most popular dessert of Maharashtra is the puran poli, which is roti stuffed with a sweet mixture of jaggery and gram flour and is made at the time of the Maharashtrian New Year. Other popular sweets are the ukdiche modak, the panpole ras, and the shreekhand.
Distinguishing features of the Varadi cuisine are the dishes made of besan (gram flour) like zunka bhakar and pathawadi and the vada-bhat. Non-vegetarian food is also very popular in this region. As seafood is not easily available here, chicken and mutton are commonly cooked.
Staple dishes
The staple dishes of Maharashtrian cuisine are based on bread and rice:
Pav Bhaji
- Poli or chapati - unleavened flat bread made of wheat, more common in urban areas.
- Bhakri - bread made of all kinds of flours, mainly millets like jowar and bajra, form part of daily food in rural areas.
The bhaji is typically a vegetarian dish made from a vegetable, with Goda masala essentially consisting of some combination of onion, garlic, ginger, red chilli powder, green chillies and mustard. A particular variant of bhaji is the rassa. Vegetarians prepare rassa or curry of potatoes and or caulifower with tomatoes or fresh coconut kernel and plenty of water to produce a more fluid behaviour than bhaji. Varan is nothing but plain dal, a common Indian lentil stew. Aamti is another variant of the curry, typically consisting of a lentil (tur) stock, flavored with goda masala, tamarind or amshul, jaggery (gul) and in some cases coconut as well. One of the masalas that gives Maharashtrian cuisine its authentic flavor is the goda (sweet) masala or kalaa (black) masala.
Non-vegetarian dishes mainly use chicken, mutton (lamb, sheep or goat), fish and other sea food. The Kolhapuri taambda rassa (red curry) and pandhra rassa (white curry) of chicken and mutton from the southern city of Kolhapur and the varhadi rassa or (varhadi chicken curry) from the Vidarbha region are especially well known throughout Maharashtra. The coastal regions of Konkan are more famous for the fish and seafood dishes.
A typical lunch or dinner usually starts with Poli (bread), accompanied by one or more bhaji(s) and a koshimbir (salad) along with some side (usually pickles). This is usually followed by a second course of varan,aamti or rassa with rice. As with most of Indian cuisine however, each region has its own quirks, preferences and variations of the above general format.
Koshimbir is very common and healthy addition to the plate. Typically made from raw veggies mixed with yogurt and ground roasted peanuts Danyache Kut.
The plate served has a specific place for each food item served. The bhaji is served in the plate on the right hand side while the chutney, koshimbir are served from left going up the periphery of the circular plate. The papad, bhaji are served below the koshimbir with the rice and poli served at the bottom of the circle closed to the diner's hand. The puran is served at the top in the inner concentric circle. The amti, rassa is served in separate bowls placed on right hand side of the diner. Water is placed on the left hand side. It is considered ill mannered to use left hand while eating
Non-Vegetarian and Vegetarian Specialties
The most popular seafood of Maharshtra is the bombil or the Bombay duck, which is normally served batter fried and crisp. Almost all non-vegetarian and vegetarian dishes are served with boiled rice or with bhakris, soft rotis (bread) made of rice flour. A pancake made of rice, urad dal and semolina is called vada or amboli. This a special rice puri, eaten as a part of the main meal.
Brijals are the most popular vegetable of this region. A popular preparation of brinjals is bharlivangi or baby brinjals stuffed with coconut. Maharashtrian fare is incomplete without papads, which are eaten roasted or fried. Puran poli is the most popular dessert of Maharashtra. It is roti (bread) stuffed with a sweet mixture of jaggery and gram flour, and shreekhand. Shreekhand is sweetened curd containing flavors of cardamom and saffron.
Maharashtrian Specialty
The cuisine of Maharashtra completes itself with mouthwatering food. Mumbai, the capital of Maharashtra is the also the food capital of the state. Some of the popular snacks that can be enjoyed here are Chaat, pani puri, bhelpuri, pav bhaji, and dosai, etc. These are mostly sold on the streets and on the beaches, where people gather in the evenings to unwind themselves.
Apart from vegetarian snacks, non-vegetarian snacks are also available like Muslim kebabs, baida roti (an egg roti stuffed with minced meat), tandoori chicken, seekh kebabs, and fish koliwada.
In Mumbai, 'paan', a mouth freshener can also be enjoyed in a very artistic form. One of the popular variety of paan is the Cold and Sweet paan in which the sweet filling is chilled. |
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