#Happy Ganesh Chaturthi (Gowri Ganesh Festival Special)

Happy Gowri Ganesh festival to you in advance.I am going to be really busy for the next few days making preparations for the festival puja and bringing together all that is needed to cook this delicious festive lunch.
Here is what I cook on Ganesh festival day every year.

If you wish to cook any of these dishes for #ganeshchaturthi, please click on the names of the dishes to go to the recipes.

• Phagila Phodi
• Alasande Upkari
• Bhenda Sagle
• Jeev Kadgi Bajo
• Batate Phodi
• Pathrode
• White Rice
• Dalithoy
• Tomato Saaru
• Go'd Phovu
• Madgane'
• Patholi

I will be posting recipe "Tomato Saaru" soon.

Teasel Gourd Fritters or "Phagila Podi" in Konkani

Teasel Gourd or "Phaagil" is very popular vegetable in the coastal regions of India widely available during the monsoon season.
The most common side dish made with this vegetable is the "Phaagila Podi" or Teasel Gourd fritters which we all love.
This is another snack/side-dish which my Mom makes quite often during this season.
Teasels have good medicinal properties. They are good source of antibiotics and also help in improving blood circulation.
The Konkani community love this vegetable so much that it is part of all festivals that come in the monsoon. 

Madgane' (Chana Dal payasam or Split Chickpeas Dessert)

"Madgane'" or "Chana dal payasam" is a dessert made of Split Chickpeas and Jaggery.
A traditional Konkani dessert made on almost all festivals and functions.
Chana dal or Split Bengal grams, is baby chickpeas that have been split and polished. They look and taste like small kernels of sweet corn and work well in soups, salads, and rice dishes.
Chana dal is high in fiber and help to lower cholesterol.
· Apart from having a great taste, it also has a very low glycemic index, which is important for those with diabetes.
· Chickpeas are a helpful source of zinc, folate, calcium and protein
· Chickpeas are low in fat and most of it is polyunsaturated.
I learnt this dessert from my Mom, who is an expert in making this.
I have however simplified it by using readymade "Coconut milk" as compared to my Mom who makes coconut milk at home, which is a slightly tedious process.

Mushroom Bhutthi (Mushroom Curry - Konkani Style)

Mushrooms are one of the most nutritious foods known to us.They provide the nutritional benefits of both vegetables as well as meat, beans or grains.
They are low in calories, fat free, cholestrol free and very low in sodium. Yet they provide very important nutrients for our body.
Mushrooms is one big favourite at home for all of us, so once a week I make mushroom curry in different styles.
This recipe is the "Konkani style curry" known as "Mushroom Bhutthi".

Kadgi Chakko (Raw Jackfruit curry)

"Jackfruit" also known as "Kadgi" in Konkani is a very popular vegetable in Coastal Karnataka.
Available in Summer season, this vegetable is cooked is several different styles and served in almost all functions during the summer season.
This dish "Kadgi Chakko" or Raw Jackfruit dry curry or "Jackfruit Sukka" is one of my favourite gadgi dishes.
My mom is an expert in this, but somehow over the years I have managed to prepare this dish after learning from her.

Batate Humman

"Batate Humman" is a Konkani side dish. 
Potatoes simmered in mildly spiced coconut gravy with a dash of asofoetida.
A non garlic non onion gravy dish, cooked mostly on festival days when konkani people do not eat onion and garlic.
This is a very simple gravy dish which can be made with fresh or dessicated coconut.
A big favourite among most of the konkani community, but the biggest fan of this dish I know is one of my cousin, who loved this dish so much as a kid that he wanted his mom to cook large quantities of it and fill it in the well they had it in their backyard, just so that he could eat it whenever he wanted.

Dalithoy - Konkani Dal

Famously known as "DDT or Dhaat Dali Thoi)" in Konkani meaning Thick Dal, is cooked in almost every konkani house, and is a must dish in all konkani weddings, festivals, functions and the likes...
Most of my non Konkani friends are big fans of this simple dal.