If you were ever to venture to India’s west coast, you’d find that food isn’t quite similar to what you get in the plains. Being such a diverse land gives both Indians and foreigners the opportunity to experience unique cuisines that seldom make their way across borders. The Konkan coast as we mentioned is the perfect example of this. Thanks to influences from multiple facets of Indian history, Konkan cuisine today is a melting pot of flavor, texture and ingredients.
Image Credits: Outlook Traveller
The next time you visit our resort in Gokarna, you must remember to try some of the recipes listed here. Just ask the staff at our resort in Gokarna and we will be more than happy to accommodate your request! With that said, here’s your guide to Konkan cuisine across the entire Konkan coast.
History Of Cuisine And The Konkan Coast
When it comes to taste buds, Konkan cuisine has been inspired and interspersed by the Marathas, the Malvans, the Konkani Brahmins, and even the Portuguese with their occupying of Goa. The Konkan people are said to have started out life on the west coast as hunters-gatherers during 3000-6000BC. Being coastal people meant they had access to teeming populations of fish as well. The fertile Western Ghats also gave them access to a variety of produce, including one fruit in particular that will become apparent later in this post.
Thousands of years later, the next great influence on the Konkan coast was the arrival and capture of Goa by the Portuguese. They brought bread, a variety of fruits and vegetables along with unique cooking methods like using vinegar and preservatives.
What Konkan Food Is Like
Konkan food is a medley of flavor dominated by the sea. Fish forms a major part of most Konkan cuisine in Karnataka even among certain vegetarian communities. The fresh catch of the day is sold by Kolli fisherwoman in the bylanes and markets of the villages or sold in fish markets among bigger towns. For the non-pescitarians, there are plenty of chicken preparations too like Kombdi vadi and lambda rassa!
But don’t think for a moment that vegetarians have been left out of this culinary endeavor. Our resort in Gokarna is a testament that vegetarian Konkan cuisine can taste as unique as its other half! Rice is a staple for most people along with dalitoy, a rich lentil-based stew that is simmered for hours together with minimal spices. Solkadhi is another staple dish that’s also a refreshing drink during summers. Valval, a popular vegetable preparation is also a staple during meals.
But almost no dish is complete with kokum, the omnipresent fruit of the Konkan coast. Kokum is the common name of the Garcinia Indica fruit. Its dark purple color may remind you of Jamun but kokum has a completely different profile. With a tangy sour taste closer to tamarind, kokum has been used as a souring agent and a preservative for centuries now. It is also consumed directly or added to juices. When at our resort in Gokarna, don’t forget to ask for some kokum sherbet to cool you down during the sunny days!
Vegetarian Konkan Recipes
- Sol kadhi: A coconut milk and kokum concoction that is either drunk directly or eaten with rice. Solkadhi is a savory drink meant to aid digestion and act as a cooler.
Image Credits: Open Drinks
- Kosambari: South Indians may be familiar with this salad that has shreds of coconut, coriander, and beans/peas. Further on the west coast, this is known as Koshimbiri!
Image Credits: Dassana’s Veg Recipe
- Ghaavaane: A rice flour pancake similar to dosa, eaten with vegetable stew or chicken curry
Image Credits: Sanjeev Kapoor
Chicken Konkan Recipes:
- Kombdi Vadi: Chicken curry served with vade, a poori-like fried dough bread
- Chicken sukka: Chicken cooked with desiccated coconut and spices, this is both a konkan and a canara dish that is popular in Karnataka!
Image Credits: Kali Mirchi
- Malvani chicken curry: The classic malvani dish that makes use of spices like triphal (a type of peppercorn) and lots of kokum in its preparation
Fish Konkan Recipes:
- Bombil: Known as the bombay duck, Bombil is eaten all across the coast and not just in Bombay. It can either be fried or turned into a curry with dried bombil fish.
- Malvani Fish Curry: The classic Konkani curry made with triphal, coconut milk and kokum
Image Credits: Archana’s Kitchen
- Kolambi Bhaat: A prawns preparation that’s a form of dry pulao, this one is not to be missed if you like both prawns and rice!
