The banana leaf sadhya made for Onam, Vishu or any of the Kerala festivals has an array of side dishes that are served on the top half of the leaf. Some of these we have posted earlier
Aviyal
Thoran
Pachadi
Kichadi
Erisherry
Mango pickle
However, the mildest, creamy yet simple olan is missed if it is not on the leaf. Have you made it?

What is olan?

Olan is a slow cooked stew made with gourds cooked in coconut milk. It is a mild creamy curry that predominantly uses ashgourd and pumpkins. Depending on regional variations you will find yard long green beans (payar) or cooked cowpeas added to it. It is flavoured gently with salt,curry leaves and slit green  chillies. Unlike a lot of Kerala dishes it doesn’t have a mustard tempering, rather a good tablespoon of pure coconut oil stirred in as soon as it is removed from the heat for that roundeness and fragrance you experience.

How is sadhya olan different from regular olan?

If you are familiar with Kerala recipes, you will know that olan is one that is probably the least made in most houses. This is because the regular olan is a runny curry with less complex flavours. However  the sadhya olan with the creaminess from the coconut milk and the cooked cowpeas is a thicker version which never runs. Though mild it has a well flavoured along with the semi mashed vegetables. The key to making the sadhya style olan is managing the liquid content.

Ingredients to make olan

Vegetables: since this is a mild stew with gourds and pumpkins, so they make the bulk of this recipe. the withte fleshed wintermelon ( elavan) is preferred over the giant ash gourds. The pumpkin adds a it of colour and sweetness. if you cant get the wintermelon, bottle gourd, watermelon peel or chayote work well too.
Bean: the creamy composition works because of the earthy flavours from the cooked cowpeas. Cowpeas have an earthy flavour and are perfect for this mild recipe.
Coconut milk: coconut milk is the cooking liquid here. At first the this cococnut milk is used to cook the gourds in. At the final stages, string the thick coconut milk or coconut cream. this ensures that the final result is thick olan and it is creamy.
Seasoning: Salt is the only seasoning here.
Spices: this is a mild stew and uses no spices. The single green chilli added is for fragrance, not heat. This is opional.
Oil: the final roundedness of the recipe comes from half tsp of coconut oil stirred in at the end. This is an optional step, but brings the flavour exactly like the one in the sadhya.

Mealprep this mild gourd stew

The gourd stew or olan is a great recipe to mealplan. It stays good for a few days under refrigeration. They do freeze good, but not great. The gourds do go a bit limp upon thawing the frozen one. So add it to your mealprep not much to your freezer list.

What pairs well with sadhya olan?

Sadhya olan is a great accompaniment to the banana leaf meal or a South Indian thali. It pairs well with idiyappam (string hoppers), steamed breads or chappathi. In a great rush week, Olan is perfect with some toasts or just as such warmed in a bowl resembling a chunky soup.

Lets make Sadhya Olan

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Hope you had a great Onasadhya. If you are looking for the best organizational tips to make sadhya, do check out our post
Guide to Sadhya.
When you make this olan recipe, do share your thoughts in the discussion below. We would love to hear from you.  If you like to share or save this recipe, here is the pin link.

Sadhya olan pin for later.

See you in the next post.

Ingredients for jeera rice

Let’s make jeera rice

• Washing the rice and soaking: measure the rice and add to the bowl. it is so important to wash the rice multiple times till the water runs clear. Don’t pop it into a sieve and run it under water, it doesn’t help. Rather, rub the rice grain and drain the water each time. It takes about 3 to 4 washes to get the rice run clear. Drain well and set aside.
• Now to soaking, measure the water 1:5 times of the rice. Add to the drained rice and let it sit for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes ( can go up to 30 minutes), drain the rice and save the soaking water. The cooking water is the cooking medium later as you have already measured it out. 
• Saute the spices add ghee to the instantpot. Saute them on low heat till they are aromatic and slightly change in colour. The ghee is now flavored with the volatile oils of the spices. 
• Frying the rice: Frying the rice on  low heat for a a few minutes coats the rice grains with the aromatic ghee. This process also ensures that the rice does not stick to each other when cooking. I prefer to add the salt at this stage so it is evenly distributed. 
• Cooking the rice: Pour the soaking water that we drained and set aside, back into the rice. This water is enough for the cooking process. Place the lid and pressure cook for 1 whistle ( the Indian pressure cooker measure). Remove from heat. Let the pressure hold and naturally release. This takes about 15 minutes off the heat. 
• Fluff and garnish: When the pressure is naturally released, use a fork and fluff the rice gently. Be careful as the steam is still hot.  Once this is done, the jeera pulao is ready to be served.

Can I make this recipe in the instant pot or rice cooker? 

Should I soak the rice? 

Key points to remember.

• Do not use excess water to soak the rice. The water as per the ratio is plenty.
• Do not drain the soaking water and add fresh water afterwards to cook, this changes the ratio of water for cooking the rice to fluffy separate grains. 

Can we make this recipe vegan?

What pairs well with jeera rice?

Mealprep and storage

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