Solkadhi... the drink!

I had seen images and posts on this, but never really thought too much about it. Infact, going by its name- Solkadhi, I kinda assumed it was part of the Kadhi family [ the curd based dish that is made both in north & south and eaten with rice].. 

During my recent trip to Goa, a friend asked for Solkadhi at a hotel, but they did not have stock.. And that is when my curiosity got piqued and I wanted to taste this, especially upon discovering it was a drink, specific to that region. 

The moment came when we were getting back to Bombay from Goa.. We had stopped at Kamat for a break, and that is when I sipped my 1st Solkadhi... Loved it, so much so that we had a 2nd one as well. It was pink in colour, which I attributed to Kokum, and was packed with flavour- garlic to whole bunch of other spices.. Since I love kokum [ my very 1st taste of this tangy fruit was during my 1st trip to Goa], I loved this drink as well... I was told this particular version we had was from a packet and the home made ones are even better... 

Wikipedia says

"Popular in Goa and the Maharashtra's coastal region, it is made from coconut milk and kokum, also known as Aamsol or Aamsul. It is the dried fleshy skin of a fruit called Garcinia indica, deep purple-pink in color, full of antioxidants that the pigment anthocyanins provide{{citation needed}}. Garcinia indica, or Kokum, owing to the presence of a high concentration of anthocyanins, is a great antioxidant that works like an anticarcinogenic and anti-aging agent. It is known for its digestive, refreshing, cleansing and cooling properties. The preparation is prepared from liquid extracted from fresh coconut known as coconut milk; however, nowadays you can also get this extracted milk in TetraPak. The coconut milk so obtained is usually mixed with kokum, a little bit of salt and/or chili-garlic paste is added for taste and enhancing the probiotic contents."

Look forward to exploring more local cuisine on my next trip...

The Birthday & Goan flavours

The Birthday came and has gone by... As with the past few years I did manage to escape.. But the ttrip this year was different and special.. I know I say similar things every year,but then this year it truly was different and I felt special... Why? Cos this time it was not a solo trip, it was not a trip to a new destination but infact was to a place I have been to before but it was a whole new experience.

I have done trips with friends and random groups as well, but then it is always good to travel with someone who ensures you have a good time, who takes the effort to do things for you and is someone you get along very well with... Makes sense?

My 1st trip to Goa was almost a decade ago, alone and one where I did plenty of touristy things- see all the popular sights, walk around the beaches, take the local transport and melt away in the heat of October- November. This trip on the other hand was a total contrast, I was not alone [ as mentioned earlier], the weather was awesome [ crazy rains to cool breeze] and I did explore a side of Goa I hadn't seen before.. Above all this, got to try local Goan dishes that I dint venture much into last time around. It was a culinary treat for both of us... :-) 

The only Goan food I had tried & loved was Bibinca, the layered dessert... That apart I had tried their Feni, and cashews.. but then this time around, I got to taste some of their popular dishes and enjoy the variety of flavours & spices.. some were too spicy to handle, while others were simply yummilicious. 

From Day1, we steered clear of all generic dishes like pasta or pizza and ensured the main meals had one goan dish in them. For breakfast, we were ok to do omelette toast, pancakes hash browns etc, but then when it came to lunch and dinner, we went to places that served authentic Goan food.. One afternoon we went to Brittos, in Baga Beach. The place is situated right on the ocean front, so you get to enjoy the cool ocean breeze, watch people enjoy themselves as you sipped on chill beer and dug into the freshly made fries and food. Oh boy, the fries were sinful, they were fresh soft and just amazing.. almost like the hand cut fries I had few years back at a restaurant in Chennai.. We finished up the meal with a slice of Blueberry Cheesecake, which was alright.. I like my cheesecake tad sour but this was fresh cream & sweetish.... 

Another evening we decided to order in [it had been pouring non stop and so we were in no mood to get dressed, drive out], but then as luck would have it, we had to do just that... We had ordered  at Lio Loco burgers and drinks via Zomato, but 45mins passed and no update. When we checked, came to know the delivery guy had a flat tire and hadnt even reached the restaurant, zomato wasnt being helpful, and so we decided to cancel the order & request a refund. A call to the cafe and we were told food was ready, and waiting for us. Since the place wasnt too far, we grudgingly got off our asses and headed over to the place. The poor guy [also the owner] had kept the place just for us [ he said he usually shuts at 8pm], reheated the burgers, made us fresh fries & drinks to go as well. During the course of the conversation came to know the place was quite popular among students, there was a school/college nearby...  We sat there, chit chatted with him a while as we dug into the juicy burgers. One of the burgers was double patty, I was unable to go beyond a few bites, heck I couldnt even get my mouth around the ginormous thing.. Friend took it and polished it off in minutes.. :-) The place had a few cool posters on it and a seriously gorgeous wall art - a Lion's face that was vibrant and details blew us away... 

One of the dishes that I was told was a MUST in Goa was the lobster Thermidor, my companion had tasted it a decade plus ago, remembered how amazing it was and wanted to give me the same experience. One after, braving the crazy rains, we drove down to Calangute and he walked ahead, declining my offer to get under the umbrella and walked towards Souza Lobo, located right along the ocean... The place was fairly huge and was near packed when we walked in... mmmm... 

One more... The night before we were to leave Goa, we headed to a place called The Hangout, a small resto pub of sorts [ that was open for the 1st time this year during monsoons] where I tasted Sorpotel..served with a side of Goan Pav... This is a dish that traces its history to the Portuguese but is now cooked across the coastal Konjan region, mainly in Goa and Mangalore. A simple stew, it had masala made with vinegar and not just red chillies.. The spice factor was fairly low and went very well with the pao bread. While talking to the owner of the place, he mentioned that this was a dish that you would find at all special occasions, even weddings and was made by slow cooking the whole thing.. He also went on to share that many had this dish for breakfast with eggs and bread... 

Well, I could go on and on about the dishes I tried and the rich flavours... But the bottomline is that food is also about the company, the place,and  the experience... not just the flavours and the taste... 

Sussegado - Just Like Goa!! @ Spice Haat, Hyatt Regency, Teynampet, Chennai

A trip to Goa is what you can expect through this Goan Food festival at Hyatt Regency... Take a drive down the beaches, sample some of the fresh seafood, or maybe grab a beer and dig into the veg biryani and the mushroom gravy at one of the cozy cafes, you will find them all here amidst the lavish buffet at Spice Haat in Hyatt Regency. And this festival is on till the 14th Sep only... So, here is your chance to taste the flavours of Goa and meet the Chef who has come down for the festival!!

The evening opened with an introduction to the Chef-  Chef Edridge Vaz and his take on Goan food. He spoke about how North & South Goa have completely different set of spices and flavours, some are spicy while others are quite mild and simple. There are a few which are made with Peri-Peri sauces, while others use basic ones to achieve the same flavours. 

The meal kicked off with a Mocktail, perfect for the warm evening following which came the three starters- 2 non veg and 1 veg.. I being the solo veggie in the group got to taste the vegetable Jeri -Meri, which was quite nice and made with a mix of veggies. The guys dug into the Peri-Peri prawns and Rava Fried calamari happily. 

For the main course, we were told the Goan dishes were part of the regular buffet except they had a distinguishing name card with a small image of Goa on it. There were a few veg and non veg dishes.. Almost all were quite mild, simple flavours, and a touch of coconut/coconut milk on them as well. 

The highlight of the evening were the desserts- the layered Bibinca [is a type of pudding and a traditional Goan, East Indian and Mangalorean dessert. Traditional Bebinca has 16 layers], Dodol [ an halwa of sorts made with black jaggery & rice flour] and the rice pancake with black jaggery +coconut filling with a drizzle of honey and roasted almonds around it, called  Alle Belle..  I washed it all down with some coffee before calling it a night! 

Price:

Sussegado - Just Like Goa! is part of the dinner buffet at Spice Haat which is priced at Rs 1550/- plus taxes. This food festival is on upto 14th of September as a part of the Dinner buffet at Spice Haat.

Disclaimer: The reviews posted on this blog are based on my personal experience. Also remember these were just my views!! Remember, no two palates are the same. Bon Appétit :-)

Goan Food Festival at Mainstreet, Residency Towers - 28 May to 8 June

There she was, born into a very ordinary middle class family, married off at a young age to a rich man, she led a lavish life till her husband fell ill and was bed ridden. That is when things changed, her family got into a financial turmoil. She took it upon herself to learn cooking, and got into catering service. Inititally she worked for nearly 18 hours, and started small with an order for 20 people. And now, nearly 2 decades later, she is a quite renowned for her food and gets invited across the country to not only be a part of Food fests, but also talk to women on how they can stand on their own feet.  She is quite an inspiration!! Am talking about Chef Sarita, who is a Maharashtrian but has made Goa her home. .  She now runs her own catering company, supported by her kids. We met her at Residency Towers where spoke to  us in length about the Goan Food Festival and her involvement in the same. 

It is not every day that you meet someone so humble and inspiring! She went on to talk about the dishes, how in Goa there were 3 major communities each with a different set of spices and palettes.  As we were chatting away, we were served not one but 2 mocktails, refreshing indeed.. Since I was the only veg in the group, I had to wait for my starters to arrive. The Canapes that arrived were yumm- I quite loved the soft crisp cups and the flavour filled veggies within it. It was topped with mayo+onions. After that came the tandoor paneer which was alright [ felt the paneer was tad dry and chewy]. From there, I made a beeline towards the buffet where I sampled some of the dishes. There were not too many Goan dishes there, esp in Veg section, apart from the Daal, which was alright.  Quite liked the Cauliflower starter and the baby potatoes tossed in herbs. As for the other dishes they were from the usual buffet...

Since I had to leave early,I quickly raced across to the Dessert counter and grabbed a bibinca [ a layered dessert famous in Goa] which was good [have had it before and so knew what to expect in terms of taste and texture]. I do wish they had served us Kokum juice instead of the regular mocktails and the place was done up with some Goan touches.

The highlight of the evening apart from meeting the Chef were the 2 singers. They were amazing. Dressed in Goan attire, they came over and belted out quite a few numbers, having us tapping our feet. It sure added to the evening. The one song they sang that still plays in my head is the Makanaka Song..

Video Clip recorded at the venue

The Chef was sweet enough to extend an open invitation to us to stay with her and enjoy Goa and the cuisine with her... Well, it has been 5 years since my last visit and me thinks it is about time I made another plan!!

The Festival is on from 28 May – 8 June. 

The buffet is priced at Rs1000 inclusive of all taxes per person. 
For children between 7-12 years of age, it is Rs 600/- inclusive of all taxes per child and  for children below 6 years, it is complimentary.

Address:
The Residency Towers,
115, North Boag Road,
Thiyagaraya Nagar,
Chennai - 600017

To make your reservations call 2815 6363 today!