Stories of Lord Krishna and his friends having butter and milk from people’s homes are popular among children and grown-ups alike. Dahi Handi symbolises this tradition. Today, on the birthday of Lord Krishna, we talk to food experts to know about their own fond memories of the festival and one special dish that they would like to make on Janmashtami.
Recalling her childhood days in Mathura, Mumbai-based home chef Shobha Sane says, “Janmashtami was celebrated in a much bigger way back then in Mathura than what I see today in Maharashtra. What was interesting for me as a child was that people, both young and old, would dress up as Krishna and come together and perform songs and bhajans. It felt like the city had taken a step back in time,” says Sane.
Her fondest memory of Janmashtami in Mathura was getting her baby brother ready for the festival. “I wanted him to dress up as Krishna, but what was interesting was that our house help was convinced that my brother was Krishna because he would be hungry all the time. It was funny to watch her touch his feet and cry with joy. But that is how people in Mathura are, they love Bal Gopal and take a huge amount of effort to prepare for the festival,” says Sane adding that another thing that she loves about Janmashtami is that “you can steal the prasad and not get schooled for it”.
Since Lord Krishna dearly loved buttermilk, Sane likes to create a dish with this ingredient. “We live in the age of millennials, so I would definitely make something that they would enjoy like a Raspberry Buttermilk Cake. And even though it is a cake, it is super healthy,” she says.
Sidney Dcunha, executive chef, Conrad Pune, says that since Janmashtami is a festival that is celebrated across the country, the bhog (prasad) that is prepared is different in every region. “My distinct memory of the festival is the tradition of preparing Chappan Bhog and my most favourite dish made on Janmashtami is Gopalkala,” says Dcunha. A blend of pressed rice, curd and spices, Gopalkala has simple ingredients but is packed with flavours. The chef says that this is specially popular among kids because it is believed that Lord Krishna would go into the woods with his friends and have it for lunch.
Dcunha considers himself lucky to have had the opportunity to explore these flavours in his school where every child was asked to get the ingredients from home. “To me, this dish brings with it a wave of sweet nostalgia of my childhood,” he says.
Dahi Handi festival and the feast that follows has also been memorable for him. “Curd and sweets churned together and served in an earthenware pot is one of the best bhogs I have ever had,” he adds.
If he were to add a modern touch to these age-old traditional recipes, Dcunha says that he would create Pista Panjiri Fudge. It has a lot of traditional ingredients but the approach is slightly modern. He feels that if Lord Krishna was born in today’s age, it could have been his go-to dish as well!
Datta Jadhav, junior sous chef, Le Méridien Mahabaleshwar Resort and Spa, says that in Maharashtra some of the popular dishes are Sabudana Tikki, Makhane Kheer, Sweet Boondi, Rava Ladoos, Rabri and so on. In Maharashtra, along with the prasad, other savoury items are also distributed among family and friends. “That’s because Maharashtrians enjoy spicy food and are foodies,” he jokes.
But for the chef nothing can beat the taste of Banana Sheera or Sweet Boondi that he as a child relished during Dahi Handi festival and while running between pujas from one house to another. “Those were some really good old days because the ingredients that went into the dishes were not fancy but the final taste was out of this world,” the chef concludes.
Raspberry Buttermilk Cake
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(Recipe by Shobha Sane, home chef)
Pista Panjiri Fudge
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Method
(Recipe by Sidney Dcunha, executive chef, Conrad Pune)
Til Gud Ka Ladoo
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(Recipe by Datta Jadhav, junior sous chef, Le Méridien Mahabaleshwar Resort and Spa)
