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Rice is the main
course of this Strictly Vegetarian Meals. All
together there are 7 to 11 essential dishes
which have to prepared for Onasadya. Number of
dishes may at times also go upto 13. Onasadya is
consumed with hands, not with spoons or forks.
Onasadhya is prepared on second day of onam,
othewise called radam onam or Thiruvonam. People
of Kerala wish to depict that they are happy and
prosperous to their dear King Mahabali whose
spirit is said to visit Kerala at the time of
Onam Traditional Onam
The food has to be
served on a tender Banana leaf, laid with the
end to the left. The meal is traditionally
served on a mat laid on the floor. A strict
order of serving the dishes one after the
another is obeyed. Besides, there are clear
directions as to what will be served in which
part of the banana leaf.
How is it Served
There is a distinct order of serving the the
grand feast of Onam. Pappad or Pappadum is to be
served on the extreme left. On top of the big
pappadum banana is served. The banana can be 'Rasakadali',
'Poovan', 'Palayankodan'. From the right pappad
- salt, banana wafers, sarkarapuratti fries are
served. After this, ginger lime and mango
pickles are served. Next comes 'vellarika', 'pavakka',
beetroot and 'ullikitchadi'. 'Kitchadi' made of
pineapple and banana splits or of grapes and
apple is served along with this. On the right,
'cabbage thoran' is served. Then comes a thoran
made of beans and avil followed by bread and
green peas mix 'thoran'. The meal will be
complete with the 'avial' and 'kootu curry'.
Rice is served when the guests seat themselves
and just two big spoons is considered enough.
After this 'parippu' and ghee is poured. Then
comes Sambhar. Desserts are to begin with
adaprathaman followed by 'Kadala Payasam'. This
colourful arrangement on the lush green banana
leaf makes the food look even more tempting and
irresistible . Hold on...Be a little
patient....you need to wait a little before you
start gorging the lip smacking meal. There are
some rituals which need to be followed. First
full course meal is served for Lord Ganapathi in
front of a lighted oil lamp (Nila Vilakku). This
is in accordance with the Malayalese trend of
starting everything in the name and presence of
God.
More about onam
sadya
Erissery
This is either prepared from pumpkins/red beans
or from yam and raw bananas cubes. The spices
used in this include split green chillies,
ground coconut, cumin seeds, turmeric and red
chillies. Erissery is seasoned with mustard
seeds spluttered in oil. This is a main stay for
the occasion, though not very popular these
days.
Kalan or Pulisseri
This is prepared from buttermilk. Ingredients
consist of sliced plantains called nenthra-kaya
and yams or chena. These are boiled in water
with salt and chillies. It is flavoured with
ground coconut and mustard seeds spluttered in
oil. Some even add cucumber cubes to Kalan.
Olan
Olan is prepared from sliced cucumber and
brinjal. Sometimes pulse is also added. They are
boiled in water with salt and no chillies. When
properly boiled, some fresh coconut oil is
poured. The dish is seasoned with flavour
kariveppila (curry leaves).
Aviyal
This is kind of a mixed vegetable as all sorts
of available vegetables are added to it. All
vegetables are first boiled in water with salt
and chillies. Tamarind and well ground pulp are
added at proper time. Aviyal is flavoured with
coconut oil and Kariveppila.
Thoran
Thoran is prepared by slicing beetroot and
several other vegetables into very small pieces.
These are then boiled in water with some salt
and chillies till all the water dries up. Water
can also be strained away. For seasoning, ground
coconut pulp and mustard fried in coconut oil is
used.
Mulakoshyam
This resembles olan. It is a special Onam
delicacy from the state of Kerala and has been
recently added to Onam Sadhya.
Koottukari
This is a curry consisting of a variety of
vegetables and some Bengal gram. It differs from
Aviyal as it does not contain tamarind.
Sambar
This is an extremely popular recipe from South
India and relished by the whole of India. It
consists of dal and a variety of vegetables like
brinjal, drum-sticks, pavakkai (bitter gourd),
etc. All vegetables are first boiled in water
with salt and chilies. Tamarind is also added to
enhance the taste. Other spices like coriander,
cumin seed etc. are fried in oil and powdered.
Sambhar is flavoured with mustard seeds and
asafoetida.
Pachchati, Kichchati
These are types of curry consisting chiefly of
cucumber, mustard and sour butter milk or curds.
In Kichchatim, young and tender cucumber is
added
Rasam
This lip smacking recipe is prepared from
tomatoes treated with tamarind juice. It is
seasoned with bay leaves and mustard seeds
spluttered in oil. Some people take rasam with
rice. Rasam also helps in digestion.
Payasam
This is an extremely delicious dish and is a
sort of pudding. It is prepared from boiled
potatoes mixed with molasses and coconut milk.
The mixture is flavoured with spices. There is
another type of payasam called 'Pal Payasam' in
which rice is boiled with milk and sweetened
with sugar.
Prathaman
There is a whole variety of Prathamans such as
ata, pazham, parippu and palata prathamans.
Beverages
A special drink is prepared for Onam in which
water is boiled with a combination of cumin and
dried ginger (chukku). This is beneficial from
health point of view.
Upperi or Chips
Upperi is prepared from various things like raw
bananas (kaaya), yam (chena), jack fruit (chakka),
bitter gourd (pavayka) and egg plant fruit (vazhuthanga).
Slices of the ingredient are fried in coconut
oil to a crisp condition.
Pickles (Achaar)
These are prepared well in advance of Onasadhya.
Pickles are chiefly made from mango, lemon,
ginger, chillies and curry naranga.
Pappads (Pappadam)
These are prepared from black grams and are
fried in oil. Pappadams are usually served in
three sizes - small, medium and large.
Fruits
Chiefly plantain fruits of various kinds are
served along with other articles of food at
meals.
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