Happy Onam !!!
Today is Thiruvonam, the most important day of the carnival of Onam, celebrated by Keralites everywhere. I get to hear the Onam story every year, and I love the beautiful legend. It is believed that a wise, benevolent and judicious king called Mahabali ruled over Kerala. The state witnessed it's golden era during the reign of this great king and he was the beloved of all his subjects. However, the gods felt challenged and a plot was hatched to curtail his growing powers (Talk about politics!!!). Lord Vishnu transformed himself into a dwarf called Vamana and approached Mahabali while he was performing a yajna and asked for alms. Pleased with the dwarf brahmin's wisdom, Mahabali granted him a wish. The Vamana asked for a simple gift — three paces of land — and the king agreed to it. Vishnu in the guise of Vamana then increased his stature and with the first step covered the sky, blotting out the stars, and with the second, straddled the netherworld. Realising that Vamana's third step will destroy the earth, Mahabali offered his head as the last step. Vishnu's fatal third step pushed him to the netherworld, but before banishing him to the underworld Vishnu granted him a boon. Since he was attached to his kingdom and his people, he was allowed to return once a year from exile. Onam is the celebration that marks the homecoming of King Mahabali. It is the day when a grateful Kerala pays a glorious tribute to the memory of this benign king who gave his all for his subjects.
People dress up in their best and welcome Mahabali with Pookalam which are beautiful floral decorations laid on the ground. As the festival is traditionally a harvest festival linked to prosperity, people also spend a lot of time feasting, singing and dancing. What I love most about Onam is the lavish vegetarian meal or sadhya eaten on a banana leaf.
I prepared some traditional dishes to welcome Mahabali and I was most eager to make cheru payar payasam which is a sweet made of green gram dhal or moong dal.
Recipe:
Ingredients
1. cup or 200 green gram dhal
2. cup thick coconut milk from 1 grated coconut
3. cups second coconut milk from the same grated coconut
4. 250 grams jaggery
5. 1 ½ tbsp sago
6. 5 tbsps ghee or clarified butter
7. ½ tsp cardamom powder
8. ½ tsp cumin seed powder
9. ½ cup coconut – thin slices
10. ½ cup raisins
11. A few cashew nuts
12. Water, as required
Method:
Cook the sago in a cup of water, drain and keep aside.
Fry the coconut slices, raisins and cashew nuts in two tbsps of ghee and keep aside
Melt the jaggery in a quarter cup of water.
Roast the green gram dhal in a pressure cooker. Once the dhal is roasted properly, wash it and pressure cook it in as little water as possible. Make sure that all the water is absorbed.
Add the melted jaggery to the cooked dhal and mix well. Stir in the second coconut milk, cooked sago and remaining ghee and boil till the payasam thickens. Add the cardamom and cumin seed powders to the thick coconut milk and add to the payasam. Finally add the raisins, cashew nuts and coconut slices to the payasam. Do not boil the payasam after adding the thick coconut milk or the payasam will curdle.
Today is Thiruvonam, the most important day of the carnival of Onam, celebrated by Keralites everywhere. I get to hear the Onam story every year, and I love the beautiful legend. It is believed that a wise, benevolent and judicious king called Mahabali ruled over Kerala. The state witnessed it's golden era during the reign of this great king and he was the beloved of all his subjects. However, the gods felt challenged and a plot was hatched to curtail his growing powers (Talk about politics!!!). Lord Vishnu transformed himself into a dwarf called Vamana and approached Mahabali while he was performing a yajna and asked for alms. Pleased with the dwarf brahmin's wisdom, Mahabali granted him a wish. The Vamana asked for a simple gift — three paces of land — and the king agreed to it. Vishnu in the guise of Vamana then increased his stature and with the first step covered the sky, blotting out the stars, and with the second, straddled the netherworld. Realising that Vamana's third step will destroy the earth, Mahabali offered his head as the last step. Vishnu's fatal third step pushed him to the netherworld, but before banishing him to the underworld Vishnu granted him a boon. Since he was attached to his kingdom and his people, he was allowed to return once a year from exile. Onam is the celebration that marks the homecoming of King Mahabali. It is the day when a grateful Kerala pays a glorious tribute to the memory of this benign king who gave his all for his subjects.
People dress up in their best and welcome Mahabali with Pookalam which are beautiful floral decorations laid on the ground. As the festival is traditionally a harvest festival linked to prosperity, people also spend a lot of time feasting, singing and dancing. What I love most about Onam is the lavish vegetarian meal or sadhya eaten on a banana leaf.
I prepared some traditional dishes to welcome Mahabali and I was most eager to make cheru payar payasam which is a sweet made of green gram dhal or moong dal.
Recipe:
Ingredients
1. cup or 200 green gram dhal
2. cup thick coconut milk from 1 grated coconut
3. cups second coconut milk from the same grated coconut
4. 250 grams jaggery
5. 1 ½ tbsp sago
6. 5 tbsps ghee or clarified butter
7. ½ tsp cardamom powder
8. ½ tsp cumin seed powder
9. ½ cup coconut – thin slices
10. ½ cup raisins
11. A few cashew nuts
12. Water, as required
Method:
Cook the sago in a cup of water, drain and keep aside.
Fry the coconut slices, raisins and cashew nuts in two tbsps of ghee and keep aside
Melt the jaggery in a quarter cup of water.
Roast the green gram dhal in a pressure cooker. Once the dhal is roasted properly, wash it and pressure cook it in as little water as possible. Make sure that all the water is absorbed.
Add the melted jaggery to the cooked dhal and mix well. Stir in the second coconut milk, cooked sago and remaining ghee and boil till the payasam thickens. Add the cardamom and cumin seed powders to the thick coconut milk and add to the payasam. Finally add the raisins, cashew nuts and coconut slices to the payasam. Do not boil the payasam after adding the thick coconut milk or the payasam will curdle.
sounds good !!!
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