Onam foods refer to the foods that are specially made for the popular harvest festival Onam, in Kerala, South India. The festival falls in the months of August-September or Chinga masam, according to the Malayalam Calendar. There is a tradition of making a grand feast called ‘onam-sadya’ on the auspicious festival and at least 30-40 Onam dishes are included in the feast. Some of the most popular Onam dishes are parippu curry, thoran, payasam and sambar.
Traditional Onam Recipes and Food Menu
Traditionally, Onam is celebrated for ten days and each day has its own significance. Onam sadhya is usually prepared and served on the 10th day of the festival. Tenth day of the Onam is known as ‘Thiruonam’ and the grand feast served on this day is called ‘Thiruona-sadya’. Onam dishes are served during the feast, which is usually held during the lunch time. Various types of vegetable curries, appetizers, and main dishes are served. Rice dishes are considered an integral part of this traditional Onam food menu.
Significance of Onam Dishes
Onam dishes are prepared to celebrate the harvest festival of Kerala and also to celebrate the visit of the famous king of Kerala called ‘Mahabali’. There are various stories associated with King Mahabali, but mainly people of Kerala were very happy and led a prosperous life in his reign. Mahabali was relegated to patala loka or lower regions of universe by Vamana an avatara of Vishnu, who acted upon the instructions of Lord Indra. It is believed that at the time of Onam, the King returns to his land, and Malayalees welcome him by arranging a grand Onam feast. The feast includes all the festive Onam recipes in order to offer it to the King. The nine-day long festival also marks the rice harvest in the state. Rice dishes are quite significant in the Onam food as the first crop of rice is specially used to make these dishes.
Modern Onam Recipes and Their Variations
Traditional flavors of Onam dishes have evolved owing to the requirements of modern palates and lifestyles. An example of such Onam recipe is Val Val. It’s a typical dish from Karnataka but was introduced in Onam food menu as a new recipe. More people are experimenting with vegetable payasams discarding the age-old grain or lentil based payasams. Beetroot payasam, carrot payasam are some of the modern additions to Onam food menu.
Modern youth are fond of packed food items rather than the traditional Onam recipes. Traditional Onam recipes are fried and contain lots of sweets hence they are considered unhealthy by the modern diet conscious generation and this is also a reason for the less popularity of Onam dishes at the festival.
Customary Way of Serving Onam Food
Onam food or onam-sadya is traditionally served on the banana leaves. There is also a particular order in which food is served on the plantain leaf. On one side of the leaf, pickle and chutneys are placed. Rice is served in the middle of the leaf and other curries are served one by one in a particular manner beginning from left to right.
Onam-sadya is a feast prepared for the entire family and friends. All members sit on the floor and eat food together.