Marathi cuisine, and green tomato koshimbir

 

Marathi vegetarian cuisine is essentially non oily, quick to make and uses freshly available ingredients. Of course there are variations based on which part of Maharashtra you are from. The konkan coast is rich fertile land. The main crop is rice. Coconuts are available in plenty. So are fruits like mango, jackfruit and banana. Kokam or 'amsul' are used in sour preparations. On the other hand the khandesh or Marathwada region uses more of millets, jowar and bajri for making 'bhakri', a type of unleavened roasted bread. Groundnut is used whole or powdered. Red chillies, garlic, onion are used in greater quantities. The dishes from konkan coast tend to use more of green chillies.

 

You can find this difference in how a simple item like daal is made. Basically it is tur daal cooked and spiced to which water is added to form a medium thick broth. People from the Deccan plateau call it 'varan'. It is thicker, contains more spices, and red chillies or chilly powder, usually tamarind to add a sour touch. The 'amti' prepared by people originally from konkan coast, would be thinner, with chopped green chillies, a dash of fresh coconut and amsul.

 

 

Let's look at a simple green tomato koshimbir.

You need firm green tomatoes for this.

 

 

Ingredients: 

3 green tomatoes chopped fine

1 cupful of crushed groundnuts (peanuts)

2 green chillies chopped

Ingredients for Tadka

One teaspoon sugar.

Salt to taste.

 

 

Method:

In a bowl mix the chopped tomatoes, groundnuts, sugar and salt.

Prepare the tadka (given in a previous post). Pour on the mixture and mix again.

 

Excellent when eaten with roti or chapati.

 

Note:

Someone had asked me to include how many people my dishes can serve. It's like this. If you serve small portions like chutney, this koshimbir may be enough for 7 – 8 people. Me, I can finish it all by myself!