Sadya

Long post! You have been warned.

It was this day, 30 years back, my celebrity status as the ‘youngest child at home’ was snatched away. My younger brother was born.

Not only was he youngest at home, he was the youngest grandchild from both my parents’ side. He was this bald, beautiful, cutest little thing wrapped up in blankets.

My first memory of him, was mom bringing him home from the hospital. I was at home to welcome them. I remember standing at door, blocking the door with my hands and legs (as much as I could – I was only four then), and asking mom sweetly to leave the baby outside and come inside the home.

I tried telling my parents that I was happy with the brother I already had (I have an older brother) and that I don’t need another one, but my parents insisted on keeping him. And since I didn’t have much choice in the matter, we three grew up together.

Being the youngest at home, he received a lot of attention at home. I did my best to keep him in check, but then my father always backed my younger brother (Sigh…). We never realized that he was growing up, you just don’t – cause the youngest is always the youngest!

When he was around 5 years old, my father took the three of us to the fair. There was this train ride, for kids. My brother wanted to ride them. I told him it was for smaller kids. Still he wanted to go and my father let him. We were the first and so waited for the ride to start. The other seats started filling in. Babies. All of them. Babies!

So brother took the ride with some 5-6 other babies of 2-3 years old. He was looking like a giant among them. He was embarrassed and furious, because me and my older brother were howling with laughter every time the train moved past us. The sweet memory still lingers….haaa….

Now, unbelievable as it may seem, 30 years have gone by since my mom refused to throw the baby outside for my sake. And my brother is still the youngest, plump, bald little cute thing. Happy Birthday!

Sadya: You can read more about Sadya here.

  • Vegetable Side dishes
    • Cucumber Kichadi : Cucumber chopped fine and added to coconut paste and yogurt
    • Mango Pachadi : Ripe mango cooked with jaggery and tempered with red chilies
    • Cabbage Thoran : Cabbage chopped fine and cooked with coconut 
    • Potato Fry : Potatoes spiced with chilli powder(This is not a usual dish)
    • Avial   : Mixed Vegetables, cooked in a coconut paste
    • Kootu : Pumpkin cubes cooked with chana dal in coconut gravy 
    • Olan : Ash gourd and black eye beans cooked in coconut milk
  • Rice
  • To mix with rice:
    • Sambar – Stew made with vegetables, tamarind and toor dal
    • Rasam 
    • Curd
  • Sides:
    • Banana
    • Mango slices
    • Fries/Vatral 
    • Banana Chips
  • Sweet
    • Payasam/Kheer – Rice cooked with milk and sugar 

Ingredients for Payasam:

  • Milk                             :            1 liter
  • Rice                             :            2 tbsp
  • Sugar                          :             1 cup (more if you want a sweeter payasam)

Method:

  1. Wash and clean the rice and pressure cook it directly in a clean cooker along with the milk. I keep it for four whistles, which is usually the amount of time I keep for cooking rice.
  2. Once the pressure drops, bring the rice mixture to a boil in the same cooker without the lid or you can use any wide heavy bottom pan for this. Keep stirring or the milk might boil over the pan.
  3. Add the sugar and stir again until the milk becomes thick like a pudding and changes its color.
  4. If preferred, you can heat ghee in a small pan and brown raisins and cashews and add it to the payasam.

This entire spread was prepared by my sweet mother in law. I begged her/bugged her till she relented and made this for me. Of course, I moved around the kitchen acting busy, but she was the one who did the real work :D.

Sadya served the traditional way. In banana leaves. While my brother is eating packed lunch in his tiffin box, this is what we had yesterday!

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26 thoughts on “Sadya”

  1. Pingback: Buttermilk Cake with Caramel frosting | My Kitchen Trials

  3. My son was jealous the same way when my daughter was born. He would ask me whether I can leave her at the doctor’s office / return her to a store. :)
    That is indded a wonderful spread.

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  13. Wow that surely took me by surprise..I completely forgot that I have another set of wonderful Thalis coming my way..this is surely rocking Rajani..awesome sadya and so beautiful written…I guess all kids do that..I am told that even my bro did the same when my parents got me home..so I know how it feels to be an unwanted sibling..lol..but then we grow up to be best buddies is another story of course..looking fwd to drool over your posts!

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  19. Lot of work has gone for this post. Writing and the pictures, arrangements. You must be one patient lady. I think I gained 5 pounds just looking at the entire Thali. Very nicely done.

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  20. Haha, i said the same when mom came back home with my sister,cant stop laughing,Happy birthday to ur younger brother..

    Wat a feast,omg its mindblowing..

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  21. Fantastic write-up, I’ve always enjoyed your writing style. I’m the youngest of 2 (I have an older brother) and really had the limelight of being the youngest. Love the spread…you must be a real favorite to your mil …look at that feast …I just came back from gym and I think I need to head back again for just looking at it!!! Finally, My best wishes and a very Happy Birthday to your younger brother.

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  22. Happy birthday to ur kid brother.
    What a traditional thali and everything looks soo yummy. Thanks to ur MIL and thanks to you for posting the yummy pics.

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  24. aww that is so cute…happy birthday to your younger bro….there are so many similarities, with me being the 2nd daughter among us 3 sisters…i had similar views about the youngest one…tried telling her many times that she was dropped from the plane flying over our house …she seemed convinced a couple of times until mothre came to her rescue…was so much fun…being younger..and lovely platter to celebrate the occasion

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  25. do I have words to speak?…I am going crazy looking at this grand feast amazing!!fabulous….fantastic..what’s wrong with me..why am I at such a loss of adjectives?..seriously loving the whole platter..yes I do know lot of dishes..but yet some are new..will come back and read fursat mei…n before I forget..a very very Happy Birthday to u r cute brother!!

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