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      Every land has its own flavour and recipes for food. This largely depends upon the landscape, the people and the crops grown in various regions. And it is the same with Maharashtra - however what makes the cuisine more memorable and savoury is the hospitality of the Maharashtrians apart from the expert cooking hands that make the meals. It is also known the those belonging to this state consider their food as 'Anna he poornabrahma' meaning they consider 'anna', or food, equal to 'Brahma', or the creator of the universe. Food is God, to be worshipped. Even inside the state itself, one can find distinguishing flavours and food styles that make eating an interesting activity alltogether.

      Apart from this, the people of this state also believe in offering their food first to the lord as a thanksgiving for all that He has given. Especially, on festive occasions, some specific mithais are offered such as Ukadiche Modak (Ganesh Chaturthi) and Satyanarayan Puja Sheera.

Konkan :
      The traditional crops of this area are coconuts, mangoes, cashews, rice and a variety of pulses. Annually, Konkan produces a good yield of coconuts that are used for copra, oil, choir and other products. Along the sloping lands, one can see mango, guava, betalnut and coconut groves stretching far and wide.

      On sandy dunes, clumps of chew trees blossom each summer. The region also grows a great quantity of kokum, a sweet-sour fruit whose dried skin is used for adding a gentle sourness to Konkani curries. Kokum seeds are used for making a delicious sherbet which is called the `local nectar'.

      Fish is abundant and vast varieties of seafood are available in the many towns, depending on the season. However, the Konkan coast is short of milk and therefore sweetmeats are made of rice, wheat, besan or coconut.

      Any local eatary will serve you with the most mild, naturally fragrant vegetable mixtures with local papads or the like; or you may taste spicy hot fish and meat curries whose base is coconut milk, spiked with innumerable exotic spices and herbs. As you may go southward along the coast, you notice that certain cooking ingredients are typical to the area- kokum, curry leaves, asafoetida, red chillies and coriander seeds to name a few. Whatever the food, Konkani gourmets are very particular about the quality of spices, herbs and can spend long hours in discussing the vast variety of red chillies available in the area.

      On festive days, Konkani people make sweets from rice flour and liquid jaggery. Some of these are eliappe, shevais served with sweet cardamom-flavoured coconut milk or patolis, which are packets of steamed rice flour with a sweet coconut filling. There are a large varieties of ghavans, which are like dossas, eaten with dry or fresh chutneys.

South Maharashtra :
      Rich in sugarcane fields, rice farms and milk, one can come across well-irrigated farms that produce plump, juicy fruits and vegetables throughout the year. The region is watered by rivers like Koyna, Krishna and their tributaries; and known as the sugar bowl of the state. In the winter months, southern Maharashtra becomes a crucible of bubbling sugarcane juice, heated to make jaggery and sugar.

      This season offers a feast of coconut kernels cooked in the syrup and eaten with peanuts and fresh chana. Winter also means plenty of milk, and typical milk sweets like basundi, masala milk, shreekhand and kheer. It is a social event in these areas to go to the riverbank for a picnic or row down the river to eat young roasted corncobs (hurda) with pungent chillies and green garlic ground to make a tongue-scorching chutney. Milk, nuts, rough bhakaris of jawar, hot meat curries and chilli-spiked snacks are favourite foods here.

      The people of South Maharashtra have two special qualities. They eat exceedingly well and are proud of their martial background. Milk, nuts, rough bhakaris of jowar or bajra, hot meat curries, chillispiked snacks -these are the favourites of the people here.

Vidarbha :
      Vidarbha is rich in peanuts, rice and, most of all, citrus fruit, like oranges and sweetlimes. In the winter, lorry-loads of oranges criss-cross the highways, taking mountains of juicy tangerines all over the state. Vidarbha's cuisine is spicier and more exotic than that of the coastal and southern regions. The ingredients commonly used are besan, or chickpea flour, and ground peanuts.

      However in metropolitan cities,towns & at almost all tourist centres in Maharshtra one can get a full choice in not only Maharashtrian cuisines but also in cuisines from other parts of the country.In fact at many places Chinese,Thai,Continental,Mughlai food is also available.

Food for festival
Gudi Padwa, Holi, Haritalika, Ganesh Chaturthi, Diwali, Makara Sankranti are some of the festivals native to the state of Maharashtra. And some special foods during these festival times are as follows:
Gudi Padwa: Soonth Panak, Sprouted Chana Usal
Holi: Puran Poli
Haritalika: Coconut Potali
Ganesh Chaturthi: Karanji, Chakli
Diwali: Shankarpali, Badam Halwa, Chakli, Karanji.
Makar Sakranti: Shengdana Chikki

Food in Weddings
After the marriage ceremony is done with, guests sit down to a traditional meal served on a banana leaf. The meal is entirely vegetarian in nature and is created without any onion or garlic. It consists of a selection of vegetables in coconut gravy, green mango chutney, cucumber and peanut salad, rice, puris, golden dal called `varan' and a sweet dish like jalebi, creamy basundi or saffron-scented shrikhand. `Mattha' or coriander-flavoured, salted buttermilk complements the meal which ends with a sweet `paan' called `vida'.

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