IN SEASON
diwali T
D
his year, Diwali – the Festival of Light – is celebrated on Sunday, October 30th. As with many festivals around the world,
food is an important part of the celebrations: family and friends gather to share traditional Diwali dishes. Here, Bini Ludlow of Indian cookery school Sweet Cumin explains the festival and its foods.
coloured powder and lit with divas (clay lamps or candles) to attract Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity, to bless and visits their home. T ere are many fi reworks during the night to ring in the New Year festivities.
Day two is New Year’s Day. Families dress in their new attire, women and girls wear colourful saris and visit the temple to pray and wish everyone a prosperous year ahead. It is customary to bow down to the elders of the family, signifying a mark of respect where giſt s and money are exchanged.
iwali, also known as Deepavali, occurs between October and November each year,
and is celebrated by the Hindu, Sikh and Jain communities throughout the world. In
diff erent regions of India, Diwali is a festival that symbolises the victory of good over evil, the end of the monsoon and the harvest festival celebrations.
T e festival is a two day event. Day one is Diwali. In the Gujarat region of India, every home is decorated with Rangoli patterns using
Diwali is a time where friends and families gather together and visit each other’s homes. On arrival you’ll be off ered a feast of sweet dishes, including sweet halva, fennel seeds, nuts, dried fruits and sakar (crystallised sugar). Aſt er several welcome drinks and a serving of channa chaat (a spiced chickpea and potato dish served with tamarind chutney) or samosas, everyone makes their way to the dinner table for the feast. A thali of vegetarian and fi sh dishes will include poppadums with mango or lime pickle, crispy bhajya made from gram fl our, spices and vegetables which are deep fried and served piping hot with a green chutney, as well as a warm crunchy spiced sambaro salad, stuff ed aubergine curry, jewelled rice, delicious sweet and sour Gujarati dal, perfectly seasoned pan-fried masala fi sh, soſt freshly cooked chapattis with butter or ghee, and a sweet dish
such as shrikhand (curd, saff ron, cardamom and sugar) to name a few. T ere are plenty of diff erent fl avours and textures: it really is a feast for both the eyes and the taste buds!
BINI’S CHANNA CHAAT
This simple vegan Diwali dish is delicious served warm or cold – it’s a great dish to share as a family.
Serves 3-4 VEGAN Opti on
200g cooked canned chickpeas, drained 400-500g waxy potatoes 3-4 tbsp rapeseed oil 30g fresh ginger 3 cloves fresh garlic 1 or 2 fresh fi nger chillies (to your preference) 10ml lemon juice (or to taste) Quarter of a tsp salt (or to taste) 2-3 medium fresh tomatoes, chopped 1 small red onion, fi nely chopped Fresh coriander, chopped DRY SPICES: Quarter to half a tsp turmeric 1 heaped tsp coriander powder 1 heaped tsp cumin powder
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