Marathi Cuisine: A brief look
India is a land of religions, and an overall plethora of geographic and ethnic diversity. Hence, cuisine in India is largely divided on the basis of sub-cultures and their locations.
Marathi Cuisine is prominent in Maharashtra, India’s third largest state in terms of area and the second most populous. It occupies a significant portion of Western India and prominently has a diverse landscape including major rivers, the Western Ghats, a 700+km coastline and a plateau. It is needless to say that these parameters have greatly influenced the food of Maharashtra.
Maharashtrian food is further classified on the basis of sub-regions, which are:
- Konkan (Coastal)
- Paschim Maharashtra (West)
- Marathwada (Central)
- Vidharba (East)
- Khandesh (North)
Each of these provinces house various types of cuisines, while they may look the same on the outside, have a large difference in them with regards to the use of spices, their eating habits, as well as the religious influences on the food.
Konkani Food:
The Konkan coast has a prevalence of a mainly pescetarian diet, owing to the abundance of fish and the main rural occupation being fishing. While not being limited to just fish, the Konkani people also consume chicken, mutton and eggs as a part of their diet. While wheat is not prevalent in this region it is substituted by rice as a staple grain.
Another ingredient specific to this region is the coconut. It imparts a distinct taste to the food when used in various forms. Konkani Food has various sub-sets to it as well, that i should cover on in future articles, but a prominent aspect of it includes unusual cooking techniques. Konkani cuisine uses lots of drying and fermenting processes as a main part of its cooking, which make it the most unique amongst all the cuisines of Maharashtra.
Paschim Maharashtra:
The western side of Maharashtra is divided into 2 culinary sects, the Pune cuisine, created by the Brahmin community and the Maratha Cuisine, from the Kolhapur-Satara-Sangli sector. The Pune cuisine predominantly has food derived from the settlement of Brahmins and therefore has a more vegetarian diet, with mild and sweet flavours.
Pulses, grains, roots and various flours are a common staple in this region. The Brahmins traditionally had a simple diet, devoid of even onion & garlic, but over time, this tradition has been diluted.
But authentic recipes still are made without garlic and onion during ceremonies and weddings. There is less use of spices and masalas, and more of fresh herbs. The Brahmins did not have a lot of physical work and therefore maintained a balanced diet that kept their nutritional needs met.
In stark contrast of the Brahmini cuisine, is the Maratha cuisine, which was a result of the settlement and the food of the warrior class of people in the region. they were soldiers and hence had a large portion of meat in their diet. To couple with the meat, they used a lot of spices to flavour the meat. These warrior tribes and settlements were not the rich, and had to rely on the most basic ingredients for their food and hence use less of fresh vegetables and herbs, but more of pulses, dried spices, flours and millets. Kolhapur is the epicenter of Maratha food in Maharashtra today, housing many specialties and traditions.
Paschim Maharashtra has also seen a huge boost in terms of its street food, predominantly in Pune and Mumbai, the main metropolitan cities that call for quick filling meals and snacks on the go, or just to spend time with friends and family.
Marathwada:
Marathwada, or the central region of Maharashtra is a largely a farming and agricultural community, owing to the arid climate, and a nutrient rich volcanic land to grow crops on. The main cash crop in this region is sugarcane, along with cotton. Food crops are grown here as well, but in a much smaller scale.
It is the region of Maharashtra that shares a large culture with its sister state of Karnataka, and a predominant Nizam rule there left a profound impact on the food of the area.
The Marathwada district is known for its flavourful rice preparations, along with rich and flavourful curries. The eclectic fusion of both mughlai and marathi flavours make sure that it is a hidden gem in Maharashtra. This region also has specific local delicacies like the groundnut chutney from Solapur, that is a sinfully textured semi-dry chutney. it is almost like slightly drier and coarser version of peanut butter, which make it a tantalizing treat for the senses.
Vidharba:
The eastern corner of Maharashtra is a special one. as it’s cuisine is widely accepted as the quintessential Marathi food in almost all of Maharashtra. The cuisine in this region is dominated by two major tribes, the Varhadi and the Saoji. Both these tribes bring large bold spicy flavours to the table, yet are unique in their cooking styles and techniques.
Their common features include a largely non-vegetarian diet consisting of chicken and mutton, a heavy handed use of dried chillies, the use of groundnuts and groundnut oil, as it is grown in abundance the region. Other than these, these cuisines also use dried coconut, chickpea flour(besan), and black pepper.
Khandesh:
The northern frontier of Maharashtra, also known as the Khandesh, is the land of the “kala masala”. “Kala” translates to black, in Marathi. It is named so because the masala consists f various roasted and charred ingredients which give the resulting masala a brownish-black colour. The use of this masala is the distinct identification of a Khandeshi meal.
Apart from the masala, the Khandeshi cuisine is also known for the abundant use of onion, garlic, peanut oil and a small extremely hot green chili called the “lavangi mirchi”.
Any Khandeshi dish has a noticeable smoky and umami flavour regardless of it being vegetarian or non-vegetarian. The Khandeshi people also have an unwavering love for eggplant. Eggplants can be char grilled over an open flame, then converted into a delicious mash, or then can also be stuffed and cooked in a nutty and spicy gravy, or deep fried in the form of fritters.
The Khandesh region is also known for an abundant produce of fruit and vegetables; notably grapes, bananas, green leafy vegetables and grains like jowar, bajra, and ragi.
Marathi Cuisine is a part of Indian cuisine that deserves it’s chance to shine in the spotlight and I’ll do my best to showcase the food of my people to the world.
I hope you enjoyed this glimpse of Marathi Cuisine and if you did, please follow me for more articles. I will be sharing more about each specific region of Maharashtra in my upcoming posts!
