Ugadi recipes you must try. We are not discussing just one, but 5 awesome recipes.
The festival marks the beginning of a new lunar year in the Hindu calendar. It usually falls on the first new moon day of the Indian month, Chaitra. Most often, Ugadi corresponds to late March or early April of the English calendar.
A major festival in Karnataka, Ugadi brings with it new hopes for the people. And they express their joy and hopes by decorating the house with flowers and mango leaves, buying new clothes, and of courses, holding feasts at home.
No festival is complete without food. So, here are five delectable Ugadi recipes prepared in Kannada households on this auspicious occasion. Read on, cook and indulge.
A Comprehensive List of Ugadi Recipes
1. Mavinakayi Chitranna – (Mango Rice)
Ugadi is a season of Mangoes too. Why not add this mango rice to your list of Ugadi recipes?
Ingredients
- Rice: 1 cup
- Raw Mango: 1 (medium)
- Coconut (grated): ½ cup
- Mustard seeds: 1 tsp.
- Split black gram (urad dal): 1 tsp.
- Split Bengal gram (chana dal): 1 tsp.
- Groundnut (unpeeled): 2 tbsp.
- Curry Leaves: A handful
- Red Chilies: 4
- Fenugreek seeds (methi): 1 tsp.
- Oil: 4 tbsp.
- Turmeric Powder: ¼ tsp.
- Salt to taste
Method
- Prepare the rice. Make sure that it doesn’t turn sticky.
- Grate the mango and keep aside.
- Heat a pan and roast together with the fenugreek seeds, red chilies and a half teaspoon of the mustard seeds. Keep aside the remaining half teaspoon.
- When the mustard seeds begin to splutter, drop a few curry leaves. Roast for a few seconds making sure that they don’t burn. Shift into a grinding jar and grind them into a fine powder. Next, add the grated mango and coconut, and blend it into an aromatic masala for the rice.
- In a deep bottomed wok, heat oil. Drop the groundnuts.
- Once the groundnuts begin to crackle, add the remaining mustard seeds, black gram and Bengal gram. Drop in the remaining curry leaves as soon as the mustard seeds begin to splutter.
- Add the blended mango preparation into the wok, followed by salt and turmeric powder. Mix well.
- Finally, transfer the boiled rice into the wok and mix well. Make sure that the mango masala blends beautifully with the rice.
- Serve hot.
Check out the recipe
2. Bele Holige/ Bele Obbattu – (Stuffed Sweet Roti)
Let us give a break to savory and try something sweet. Here is an awesome Ugadi recipe for the ones with a sweet tooth.
Ingredients
For Kanaka (the roti)
- All-purpose flour (maida): ½ cup
- Cooking oil: 4 tbsp.
- A pinch of turmeric
- Salt to taste
- Water (as per requirement for the dough)
For Hoorana (the stuffing)
- Split Bengal gram (chana dal): ½ cup
- Jaggery (grated): ½ cup
- Coconut (grated): 3 tbsp.
- Cardamom: 3 cloves
- Water: 1 cup
- Clarified butter (ghee): 2 tbsp. (optional)
Method
- Cook the dal in a pressure cooker for 3-4 whistles.
- Meanwhile, sprinkle salt and turmeric in the flour. Add water and knead it into soft dough. Smear the dough with cooking oil and allow it to rest for half an hour. This is the kanaka.
- Next, strain excess water from the cooked dal.
- Grind the jaggery, grated coconut and cardamom into a fine mixture. Empty the boiled dal into the grinder and blend them together into a smooth mixture. Add some water if needed in order to get that smooth consistency.
- Transfer the mixture into a hot pan and keep stirring until the excess water dries out. But take care not to over dry it.
- Let the mixture cool down to a warm temperature (not cold, else it would harden). Make lemon sized balls with the mixture. Remember that the balls must be soft and stiff enough not to break. Your hoorana is ready.
- Pull out lemon sized balls from the prepared dough. Press it against both your palms and gently punch a pressure at its center with your fingers. Now place a hoorana in that deflated center of the dough ball. Push it in gently and cover it evenly with the dough until no hoorana is visible from outside.
- Dust the stuffed ball generously with flour and roll it out into a thin chapatti. Be careful not to spill hoorana out of the cover.
- Roast it in a pan. Drizzle some ghee before taking down from the stove.
Check out the below video
3. Kosambari – (A Crunchy, Tangy Vegetables and Pulses Salad)
Time to try a crunchy, tangy vegetable and pulses salad.
Ingredients
- Split green gram (moong dal): 1 cup
- Cucumber: 1 (large)
- Green chili: 1-2
- Ginger: ½ inch
- Raw mango: Half
- Cilantro: A handful
- Coconut (grated): ½ cup
- Mustard Seeds: ½ tbsp.
- Split black gram (urad dal): ½ tbsp.
- A few curry leaves
- Cooking oil: 1 tbsp.
- Salt to taste
Kosambari. Image courtesy Bhavana Homecook
Method
- Soak the dal in water for an hour. Drain and keep aside.
- Finely chop the cucumber, ginger, chili, and cilantro.
- Grate the raw mango.
- In a bowl, mix together the dal, the finely chopped ingredients, as well as the grated mango and coconut.
- For tempering, heat oil in a pan. Drop in the mustard seeds, split black gram and curry leaves. Once the mustard seeds begin to splutter, pour the seasoning onto the split green gram mixture.
- Finally, sprinkle some salt and mix it well.
- Serve it alongside the Ugadi-special main course.
Watch the video
4. Mysore Bonda – (A Crispy, Fluffy, Deep-fried Snack)
Bondas are the perfect snacks you can dream on. Try this Ugadi recipe.
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour: 1 cup
- Rice flour: ½ cup
- Baking powder: ½ tsp.
- Plain yoghurt: ½ cup
- Cumin seeds: ½ tsp.
- Coconut (grated): 1 tbsp.
- Ginger (grated): ½ tsp.
- Cilantro (chopped): 2 tbsp.
- Water: 4-5 tbsp.
- Cooking oil for deep frying
- Salt to taste
Bonda. Image courtesy Monicasnk
Method
- Mix together the all-purpose flour, rice flour, salt, baking powder and cumin seeds.
- Add the grated coconut, ginger, chopped chilies and cilantro.
- Empty the yoghurt into the mixture. Pour in 4 tablespoon water. Mix well to get a thick batter of dropping consistency. Make sure the batter isn’t thin.
- Meanwhile, heat generous amount of oil in a pan for deep-frying. Check whether the oil is hot enough by dropping a tiny portion of the batter into the oil. The dropped batter must rise instead of sinking into the bottom.
- Drop small portions of the batter (1 tablespoon each) into the hot oil.
- Reduce the flame to medium and keep frying and stirring occasionally until the bondas are cooked from inside.
- Once they are golden and crisp, shift the bondas onto a plate.
- Serve hot with chutney.
5. Gasagase Payasa – (Poppy Seeds Dessert)
No festival is complete without Payasa. Say cheers to Gasagase Payasa.
Ingredients
- Poppy Seeds: 4 tbsp.
- Rice: 2 tbsp.
- Jaggery: ½ cup
- Coconut (grated): ½ cup
- Milk: 2 cups
- Cardamom: 1-2 cloves
- Water: 1 cup
Method
- Roast the rice and the poppy seeds on medium flame until the poppy seeds begin to exude a sweet aroma.
- Grind the roasted ingredients into the powder.
- Add the cardamom cloves and grated coconut along with a little water. Blend into a smoothie.
- Shift the smoothie into a saucepan. Add jaggery, milk and the remaining water into the saucepan.
- Boil on low flame. Keep stirring occasionally to make sure that it doesn’t stick at the bottom of the pan.
- Serve it either hot or chilled, the choice is yours.
Check out the recipe
Try these wonderful Ugadi recipes and relish this festive season with good food and company.
