Katachi Aamati

Indian food is well blend of all flavorings as sweet,sour,spicy,bitter,salty,tangy . Traditionally keliche paan/Banana leaf is used to serve(as a plate) maharashtrian food. Typical maharashtrian plate consists of salt,lemon wedge, koshimbir/raita, chutney, sukki batata bhaaji/ potatoes dry vegetable,aluchi bhaaji/Colocassia leaves vegetable,katachi amati/curry, bhaji/pakoda, papad, plain rice, masale bhatt/ spicy rice, sakhar bhaat/sweet rice,plain dal, puran poli,dessert, mattha/buttermilk and last but not least vida/ meetha paan/ Betel leaf.

This is my attempt to present a maharashtrian thali served on keliche paan.

There is a typical way on how the serving should be made on your plate like on the left side of plate salt,lemon wedge,chutney,pickle,koshimbir,panchamrut, bhaji, papad, kurdai, puranpoli, shrikhand-puri and on right side batata bhaaji,aluchi pattal bhaaji and kheer and in the center plain rice,masale bhaat,sakhar bhaat and in bowls katachi aamati,milk for puran poli.Sides of plates are decorated with rangoli and eveybody sits on paat/ small wooden raised stool. Before starting to eat everyone says a sholka 'Wadani kaval gheta' and believe me it's soul satisfying food; indulging all your senses.

Now lets talk about katachi aamati. It's a spicy soupy dish accompanying plain rice.Drained water from cooked chana dal is called as Kat. Let's get into it...

Ingredients-

• 2 cups kat (refer puranpoli for preparing kat)
• 1 teaspoon red chili powder
• 1/2 tablespoon jaggery
• 1/2 tablespoon tamarind paste
• 4-5 curry leaves
• 1 tablespoon dried grated coconut
• 4-5 cloves
• cumin seeds
• 2-3 dried whole red chilies
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
• salt
• oil

Method-

1. Take grated coconut and cumin seeds and roast it till coconut become golden color.
2. Take kat in a bowl add red chili powder, curry leaves,cloves,jaggery,tamarind paste,dried chilies.
3. Heat oil in a pan and add pinch of asfodia and turmeric powder then add kat mixed with all spices;then add roasted coconut and cumin seeds and boil it till the jaggery gets dissolved.
4. Serve hot with plain rice.