On the occasion of every holiday, particularly religious ones – Hindu, Muslim, Christian – I get homesick. Treasured memories offer company and comfort. And, in my own way, I engage in some of the rituals and traditions; chief among them is the food and treats I make. This year is no different.
On my plate this Diwali is a combo of vegetables and seafood.
Fried okra, fried callaloo (spinach), tomato choka and a fish-shrimp curry. Thick, rich pumpkin dhal cooked with fresh coconut milk rounds out the menu. It is not the usual but for me it is more about the act. To cook the seafood curry, I cut fish fillets into chunks so they could cook up quickly with the shrimp. To accompany the veggies and curry, I made potato (aloo) roti.
The day started with me sipping leisurely on a large cup of masala chai. The time spent in the kitchen, chopping vegetables, fire roasting the tomatoes, kneading dough, prepping the filling etc had me thinking: why am I doing all of this?
Growing up, I was predominantly surrounded by my mother’s family, especially my late, beloved aunt, Betty, who was Hindu (she later converted to Catholicism) and her family. It was from Auntie Betty that I learnt a lot about festival foods. I would watch her and my late cousin, Shanti (her daughter), and the other relatives who would come to visit for the holidays, prepping and cooking all day. The house would be full of delicious smells and chattering as the women caught up on what was happening in each other’s lives and discussed what their children were up to. On holidays like these, my late mom never cooked at home, we always went to Auntie Betty’s home for a food-fest. It is striking that all the women I mentioned in this paragraph have transitioned. And I ask myself again – why am I making all of this food? Oh, I know, to wrap myself in all the love they lavished on me.
Among the festival foods I am most proud of knowing how to make (having learnt from the experts in the family) are Roat and Parsad (mohanbhog). I am not making any this year though, going with the Cardamom Sago Pudding I shared with you last week.
For those of you observing Diwali, what’s on your plate? And those of you joining in the festivities by visiting friends and family, what are some of the things you are looking forward to? One of the things I really like about us is how we all join in the celebrations of religious holidays, regardless of which it is.
Tonight, I will light candles, not only as a measure of what the occasion represents – the triumph of good over evil, light over darkness – but also in remembrance and thanksgiving.
Shubh Diwali!
Cynthia
cynthia@tasteslikehome.org
