Ugadi in India is a popular festival that is observed by the People of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. This festival celebrates the arrival of Spring. It also welcomes the new year as per the indigenous calendar of this region on this day. Among the different traditions that are followed on this auspicious day, one custom is a blanket favorite among the people here - food. There are various types of preparations that are made on Ugadi in India. This celebration is a confluence of cultures from all the 3 states it is celebrated in. In this article, we will take a quick look at some of the different types of sweets that are popularly prepared on this day.
The Badam Halwa is quite a favourite sweet dish in various parts of India. But the method of its preparation is different in different places. Here we have the Badam Halwa that is prepared on Ugadi in Karnataka. This is a rich and wholesome dish that usually comes in small servings. The main ingredients in this halwa are - almonds (badam), clarified butter (ghee), sugar, saffron, milk and cardamom. This sweet dish has an aromatic fragrance and a bright yellow colour.
This is one of the most famous sweets in India. The Mysore Pak traces its origin to the South Indian state of Karnataka. It has a texture similar to cookie dough. This delicious sweet is made with 3 simple ingredients - sugar, ghee and besan. It has a rich and sweet taste that lingers in your mouth for a long time.
This is a delicious and easy to make coconut stuffed roti (Indian Flat Bread). This sweet dish is made by kneading flour into a dough with water and a dash of turmeric. The stuffing of coconut is sweetened with jaggery. This is stuffed into small balls of the dough and then rolled to flatten using rice flour. It is then roasted on a pan with a little sesame oil drizzled on it. It is best served hot.
This is a hidden gem from the Andhra cuisine. Bellam Garelu is a sweet version of the Urd Daal Vada. Unlike the regular Vada the batter made for this dish does not contain any onion or chilly. To make this dish, the vada after being fried is immediately dipped in a sweet syrup made from jaggery. It is then flavoured with cardamom powder and sometimes crushed black pepper.
Atukula Ladoo is a type of light and round sweet made from flattened rice (chira/chiwda/poha), vermicelli and moong daal. The ladoo also has the goodness of dry fruits added in a generous quantity. The use of ghee and sugar makes it a well-preserved item. These ladoos are a staple for traditional Ugadi in India celebrations.
