Onam 2024 is from September 6-15. A major harvest festival, the 10 days of Onam are naturally linked to festivities, flowers, food and folklore: Legend has it that the demon king Mahabali once became so popular in Kerala that Indra, the ruler of heaven, started to worry that Mahabali's popularity might surpass his own. Lord Vishnu then came to Indra's aid. Taking his Vamana avatar, Vishnu asked Mahabali for a gift of all that he could cover in three steps. Ever generous, Mahabali agreed. Lord Vishnu then grew to a tremendous size, to cover the earth in one step and heaven in the next. For Vishnu's third step, Mahabali offered his head. From this point on, there are some variations in the story. Some say that Vishnu pushed Mahabali down to paatal lok from where he is allowed to return among his people once a year on Onam. Other versions say Vishnu was so impressed with Mahabali's response that he sent him to a much more enjoyable place than heaven. Both versions are extant, as are practices to celebrate the return of Mahabali or the victory of Vishnu over the demon king on Onam.
Chef Arun Kumar TR recounts these stories as well as Onam traditions from his great-grandmother's Tharavad in Kerala in his new book 'Feast On a Leaf: The Onam Sadhya Cookbook' (Bloomsbury). Chef Arun's book has a bit of everything you need to know about Onam - including Sadhya menus, serving tips and recipes. Sample what he writes about his favourite Onam Sadhya dish, Kaalan: "The story behind kaalan is linked to a mythical tale involving the demon king Mahabali. It is said that when Mahabali granted a boon to a young brahmin boy, the boy requested a dish that combined sour, sweet and spicy flavours. Kaalan, with its combination of yogurt, yam, raw bananas and coconut, is believed to be a representation of this special dish." (Scroll to the end for Chef Arun's Kaalan recipe)
In an interview to Moneycontrol on September 5, a day ahead of Onam 2024 festivities, Chef Arun explained that Kaalan is one of five essential dishes in a traditional Sadhya, served on the final day of Onam, Thiruonam Aashamsakal (on September 15 this year). The other four are Olan, Pulissery, Erissery and now Sambhar. He also spoke about Onam traditions, Onam Sadhya lunch, his favourite Sadhya recipe, and why stone grinders (mechanical or automated) are better than blenders. Edited excerpts:
Your new book is all about Onam. And you begin this book with a story about how some people in Kerala celebrate the return of Mahabali on the last day of Onam, while others celebrate the victory of the Vimana avatar of Lord Vishnu over Mahabali. Could you briefly recount that story, and why this variation?
There are two strains as far as the story of Onam is concerned. As children, we were told about Mahabali. About how Vishnu came in the avatar of Vamana the dwarf and kind of tricked him and controlled Mahabali. Basically that was the legend, and Mahabali was seen as a hero, somebody who was a very generous king and did a lot for his people. And it was told that Vishnu granted him one boom: that he could come back to earth once every year to meet his people. And that day happens to be Onam.
But when I go back to my Tharavad, that is my parents' house in Kerala, and go back a little further to my great-grandmother before them, Onam was really a kind of harvest festival. The people thanked Vishnu for having given them a great year and hoping for a good year later. There was this group of people, mostly Nairs, who worshipped Vishnu during Onam.
What happened was early this century, there was a movement in Kerala to unify all the Malayalam-speaking citizens. And so during the 1960s, the Communist government decided to declare Onam a kind of state festival. Because by now they had started injecting this story of Mahabali as this good demon king who did a lot of good for the people and would come back every Onam to visit them to see that they're all happy and have had a good harvest. So it was a deliberate move on part of the government to make it a more secular festival.
You can't not talk about food when you're talking about Onam. What does your Sadhya comprise?
The Sadhya has actually taken on a lot of additions over a period of time. In the early days, if you had about four or five dishes with a couple of accompaniments, it kind of made-up the sandhya. But as time went on, it became a kind of, not really showing off, but after the harvest each household wanted to show the kind of abundance they had. So they kept adding dishes to the sadhya and made it a great feast.
My own sadhya, I think since I started cooking it, has always comprised 20-24 dishes on the leaf. I don't think the leaf can take too many more.
How many types of payasams are there typically?
Normally, we would say two: one white, one brown. If you're being very generous, we add a couple more.
And your personal Sadhya? How many payasams does that comprise?
I normally would do the white and the brown and would have one additional one which could either be jaggery based or could be sugar based. So three definitely.
Where do you stand on the traditional versus modern cooking tools, including the stone grinder?
I've seen women at my tharavad using the Ammi Kal (two granite stones, one flat the other hollow), and there is a certain pattern in which they do it. And there is a science to it because as you keep grinding it, a little of what you're grinding keeps coming out, cools down and it's pushed back inside. So keeping what you're grinding at a particular temperature is achieved better when it is stone to stone.
When modern-day mixies scale in, which is largely metal, if you ran it for too long, it could kind of spoil the coconut. But today I think with technology you get automatic stone-to-stone grinders. So if you want to cook a very large amount, if you're feeding 100-200 people at Sadhya, which is what happens when you are catering or at the restaurant, I guess the automatic stone grinders are preferable.
Do you have a personal favourite Sadhya dish?
Actually the dish which challenged me the most happens to be my favourite, and that is the kaalan: a yam and raw banana curry which uses curd and a coconut chutney. Now the problem was when I started cooking the Sadhya, and started cooking Kaalan, my mother and my aunt would never give it their approval because they would either say the yam was not cooked enough or it was cooked too much, or the coconut and curd mixture was not smooth enough or you still could feel a little grain. It took me many years to be able to kind of perfect that. And the day my mother said, yeah, today your Kaalan is good... That's why it remains my biggest challenge and a favourite.
Can you describe a little bit, what kind of preparation goes into making a Sadhya?
The biggest part of a Sadhya in the preparations is cutting the vegetables, because for the Avial (vegetables in coconut chutney), you need it in finger-size pieces; for the Kaalan (yam and raw banana curry), you need it as cubes... So the prep of a Sadhya is really the difficult part because you need to get them all right otherwise when you cook it, there'll be a variation in taste. And then there's the grinding of the coconut because each curry demands a certain texture. The Avial requires a slightly rough texture, the Kaalan requires, like I said, a very smooth texture, and the Erissery, which is a pumpkin curry, it needs to be in-between. So those are the difficult parts. When you have all that ready, the Sadya comes together very fast.
One last question, you mentioned that the Sadhya could have as few as five dishes or as many as 24-26 dishes. What are the essential 5 or 6 that need to go there, and what are the additional things that come in on the leaf?
About the leaf place(ment), the tail of the tongue, what we call the tongue of the banana leaf, needs to be to the left of the person who's eating it. The reason for this is you start with small quantities of chips and a little bit of salt on the left and you slowly graduate along the leaf to more and more food that comes in. So by the time you're on the right end of the leaf, you have, if you look vertically, about 5 or 6 things in a line now. Certain things which were important in the old days are Olan, a Pulissery (a kind of curd and ground coconut based raita) and a Erissery, they're a must.
Actually the sambar and the avial were later introductions, which came because of influences from Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. They kind of entered the Kerala kitchens and now it's like the sambar in the beginning is very important because you start the meal with a little lentil and ghee and then the sambar. So if you have the sambar, this lentil curry, about four of the curries and two stir fries, I think you more or less have a good sadhya. I'm skipping the dessert and the chips, of course.
How to make raw banana and yam curry Kaalan
Chef Arun Kumar TR's Kaalan recipe, excerpted from Feast On A Leaf, with permission from Bloomsbury:
Kaalan (Yam and Raw Banana Curry)
This is another must in an Onam sadhya. The story behind kaalan is linked to a mythical
tale involving the demon king Mahabali. It is said that when Mahabali granted a boon to a
young brahmin boy, the boy requested a dish that combined sour, sweet and spicy flavours.
Kaalan, with its combination of yogurt, yam, raw bananas and coconut, is believed to be a
representation of this special dish.
Kaalan is one of the touchstones of a good sadhya. As soon as it is served, connoisseurs of a
sadhya run a finger through the curry and gently press it on the yam pieces. The curry has
to be smooth in texture, and the yam should just about crumble. Then comes the taste test,
a quick lick of the fingers which would result in either an enthusiastic look or a despondent
one. The flavour has to be a perfect balance between tangy and pungent, with just a hint
of sweetness and sourness.
It took me many, many years to strike the right balance before my mother actually approved
my preparation. I must admit that when the curd is not sour enough, I resort to adding a
pinch of aamchur, a trick I revealed to my mother much later after her approval.
Ingredients
250 g yam
150 g (1–2) raw bananas
1 cup (around 100 g) coconut
1 cup (around 200 g) yogurt/curd
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1–2 green chillies
Turmeric powder as required
Salt to taste
Oil for tempering
½ teaspoon mustard seeds
1–2 dried red chillies
1 sprig curry leaves
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 15–20 minutes
Serves: 4–6
Nutritional Value (Per serving of 100–150 g)
Calories: 150–200 kcal
Fat: 8–10 g
Carbohydrates: 15–20 g
Fibre: 3–5 g
Sugar: 2–4 g
Protein: 3–5 g
Sodium: 200–300 mg (may vary based on salt content)
Instructions
1. Skin the yam, lightly peel the raw bananas and cut them into 2.5 cm cubes. Soak
them separately in turmeric water for 10–15 minutes. Wash well in running water
(this removes the juice that tends to irritate the throat). Preferably use a pair of gloves
while handling the yam and bananas.
2. Cook the yam and bananas separately in enough water and a pinch of turmeric. The
bananas will cook in about 10 minutes and the yam in 15–20 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk the sour yogurt to a smooth consistency.
4. Grate the coconut with green chillies, cumin seeds and a pinch of turmeric to a
smooth, thick paste, adding water as required.
5. Combine the coconut mixture with the curd and place on a medium flame. Stir
continuously for about 5 minutes. The mixture should reach boiling point.
6. Add the cooked yam and banana. Mix well and cook for a few minutes. Remove
from heat.
7. Heat oil in a tempering pan. Crackle mustard seeds, red chillies and curry leaves.
Pour over the curry and mix.
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