Maharashtra’s food palate is diverse and caters to the tastebuds depending on the season. It uses seasonal produce to ensure the best and freshest dishes. If you belong to a Maharashtrian household, you are probably aware of how the Marathi food, drinks, and desserts are inspired by seasonal and local produce. The sweltering heat of Maharashtra leaves its inhabitants with no choice but to transform their dietary patterns. Gentler and cooler Marathi foods that are refreshing and not too harsh on the body are given preference. One sees a lot of Kairi (raw mango), ripe mangoes, and Kokum (mangosteen) in the preparation of Maharashtrian Dishes.
Kairi Panhe: This rejuvenating raw mango cooler is a refreshing and thirst-quenching drink that you will find in every household. It is generously sprinkled with rock salt, rich in sodium chloride, and helps rehydrate the body in summers. The bodies tend to get dehydrated due to continuous sweating. Raw mangoes are also a great source of Vitamin C.
Kairichi dal: As the name suggests, this is a Maharashtrian dal that uses Kairi. This is yet another Maharashtrian specialty famous in that region, especially during summers. People make this dish using three essential ingredients – raw mangoes, Bengal gram, and coconut. The dish is refreshing, tasty, low on calories, and doesn’t take too much time, making it ideal for summer months when people do not want to spend hours in the kitchen. This can also be served as a side dish, snack, or salad.
Thalipeeth: This popular Maharashtrian dish has its fame limited to that region and is yet to become well known outside the state. This is an easy-to-make, wholesome meal that does not take up too much of one’s time. This uses three types of flour- Jowar, gram, and whole wheat flour. To enhance the taste, people garnish it with diced onions, coriander, seasonal vegetables, and chillies. It is served best with chilled yoghurt and butter. You can get your Thalipeeth flour from Aazol foods online, the most authentic Maharashtrian food store.
Kulith Pithla or horse gram flour pithle: While traditional pithle is made using besan (gram flour), pithle made horse gram flour is a delicious and nutrient-packed alternative. Horsegram flour is a miracle superfood that has innumerable health benefits. While this is not a summer dish, it is still one of the less popular but delicious dishes that one must taste.
Palm fruit milkshake: Milkshakes are the quintessential desirable summer drinks. One can have a milkshake a day and stay full and feel rejuvenated for hours. Palm fruit or tadgola is one of the best ways to keep the body cool in summer. This naturally cool fruit is readily available in the summer and is perfect for the sweltering weather.
Solkadi: Solkadi is the evergreen cooling Maharashtrian drink made using buttermilk and Kokum. You can make this from scratch by soaking Kokum or buying Aazol’s Kokum Agal, the pure fruit extract. It is a natural way to chill out in summer and pairs very well with spicy Maharashtrian curries and rassas.
Sandga: Sandga is a spicy dough made using ground urad dal. It is ideal for making this in summers because the weather is conducive to drying the dough. It needs to be sundried for six to seven hours before being used in curries and dry vegetable preparations.
Pudachi Vadi: This Maharashtrian dish is a mixture of coriander leaves, dried desiccated coconut, chilli powder, and various other Indian spices coated with gram flour and then deep-fried. This evening snack is perfect to go along with a hot cup of tea to reignite you.
Keri Aamti: Keri Aamti or Kairichi aamti is another popular Marathi dish to beat the heat this summer. This is a perfect combination of spicy and sweet thick gravy made using raw mangoes and authentic Indian spices. Combining these two aromatic ingredients produces a flavour bomb, best served with steamed white rice.
