Rasatle Fov or Pohe In Coconut Milk

Rascche Fov/Rasatle Fov~Goan Cuisine

Rastle Fov is a classic Goan Dish made for Diwali. The taste of this delicious poha made from boiled rice aka ukde tandul in coconut milk is something unique and you have to eat it to believe it.

I have the unique status as a Kannadiga married to a Maharashtrian but the person considers himself to be a Goan!

So in the blogging Marathon today we are at Goa.

Some of you may have ideas about Goa ! Goa is beach, sun, Carnival and drinks but as a resident I see Goa quite differently I am trying to share that here. Maybe this article is to make myself understand the similarities in all our customs where the moral of the story is victory of good over bad!

A Mermaid a Landmark in Panaji, Goa

There is plenty said on Goa, its cuisine but do you know how Diwali is celebrated in Goa? The similarities and differences with the customs in Maharashtra and in Karnataka.

Diwali is celebrated on 5 different days some have the celebration from the Dhanteras but in Maharashtra it starts with Vasubars, a day before, on this day the cow and calf are worshiped.

The next day, is Dhanteras where we purchase gold etc. in Karnataka it is also called as “Neer Tumbo Habba” the festival of filling water. It used to be quite a sight all the big utensils in which water was stored used to be washed and before refilling slaked lime and vermilion used to decorate them. They looked so beautiful!!

I still remember when I was small my Mama, Madhu mama was posted in a small town called Harihar. Water was heated for bathing in a huge wood fired pot. This pot was enclosed in a structure that was built with bricks and cement. Only the opening of the pot was visible and water was poured in/out through this opening. Wow, the water used to be super hot….. Anyway, I remember Mami emptying the pot to wash it. How she washed it I d not know must
have scrubbed it with the coconut scrubber and ash. The typical cleaners then, economical and eco friendly!!

There is the sky lamp or the akash kandil is hung and the rows of lights are lit in the evening.

Day 2 is Narakchaturdashi!! This is the night when the demon Narkasur was slain by Krishna and he returned in the wee hours of dawn. To help him to find his way Rukmini his divine consort lit lamps. On Krishna‘s safe return she was so happy that she performed “aarti”!

The tradition is followed even today in Karnataka. As kids we used to wake up early at around 5 am, lit a few lights and “aarti” was performed. This was followed by abhangya sanan or bath, new clothes donned and eating of the
sweets that Amma had made. In between, we managed to distribute the trays of sweets to neighbours.

In Goa, however, there are effigies made and then they are burnt in the wee hours of the mornings. Then in the morning there is an abhangay sanan, aarti and eats made form fov or beaten rice. (More about fov later let’s finish Diwali and its many festivities first) Evening is meant for Laxmipuja in case there iaremurath and visiting friends and relatives. Feasting and enjoying.

Day 3 its Padwa it commemorates the defeat of the King Bali at the hands of Lord Vishnu in the form of Vaman. This is the day when Bali returns to earth for one day.

Then its day 4 where the brothers and sisters come together to celebrate. Bhau beej or Bhiaya Dooj. On this day the brother visits the sister and the sister puts tilak on him, performs aarti, feed his different delicacies. The brother on his part promises to take care of her safety and well-being.

Actually in Karnataka, we have another day which is called “Akkain Tadgi” the sister gifts the brothers. ( Even then it was not a oneway traffic)! But now this is rarely celebrated.

This may the end of Diwali for this is the last day of festivities. The Aakash Kandil and the lamps are put away.
The leftover sweets and savouries are finished. Then the wait starts for the next Diwali!

Not so in Goa we continue till ” Tulsi Vivvah” its called “Vali Diwali” Vali meaning Big!

So what do you do on Diwali day? What are the rituals that are followed in your part of the world? Do you have some traditions that are a must do?

But wait I have said that in Goa we have fov. Fov is Pohe or beaten rice. We have different kinds of fov made. This is our spread!

Diwali che Fov /Diwali Spread

There is Batat Fov or aloo pohe this is a regular all over India but do you know rasatle pohe?This is the Fov/Pohe/Avalaki we use for making these Fov.

Rasatle Fov

Indian State: Goa

Recipe Source: Vidya Dhavlikar

Ingredients:

300 grms (approx) Fov or pohe/ beaten rice

For the chutney:

1 tblspn jeera/cumin
15 kali mirchi/ pepper corns
4 Kashmiri chillies
1 small rock of hing/asafoetida
1 coconut, freshly grated
Salt to taste

For the ras:

1-2 coconuts, freshly grated
¼ cup thick tamarind juice
¼ cup jaggery grated (adjust as per taste)

Method:

Roast the cumin seeds, pepper, chillies, and the hing/asafoetida without oil. You will get a delicious aroma. Set aside to cool.
Put the jaggery in the tamarind water and set aside. Let the jaggery dissolve.
In the mixer/ blender add the grated coconuts add water, say about 1 cup of water. (I use the biggest jar the liquidiser).
Pulse it. Add more water and grind till you get a smooth paste. You may need to add water to get a smooth consistency, add it but remember that little is better.
Once you get a smooth consistency strain it with a fine sieve, cheese cloth. Press the coconut with the back of the spoon or palms to get maximum juice. This is a thick liquid called “das ras /thick coconut milk” in Konkani.
Now transfer the coconut to the back to the mixer and extract the juice again in the similar way. Collect the juice in another vessel this is the “patal ras /thin coconut milk”.
You can repeat the process yet again and collect the juice in another vessel this again ends up in patal ras /thin coconut milk.
Put the patal ras /thin coconut milk and das ras /thick coconut milk in the fridge till needed.
Grind the cooled ingredients with coconut to a fine paste. Use water as needed. It should be thick chutney. The consistency of the chutney should be very fine, smooth paste. ( this can be made and stored in the freezer for about
1 month)
Wash the fov/ beaten rice in a lot of water. Then drain them completely.
In the drained fov/ beaten rice add 2-3 tblspn chutney. Mix well till all the fov/ beaten rice is coated with the chutney.

Add the patal ras /thin coconut milk, tamarind and jaggery mix. Check the seasonings and adjust the taste. It should be tangy, sweet but sour taste. Adjust as per taste. The whole thing will be watery.

Put the container in the fridge. Let it chill. The fov/ beaten rice will absorb all the water and thicken it.

Just before serving add the “das ras /thick coconut milk” mix and serve.

Rsache/Rasatle Fo

Notes:

Make and mix the fov/ beaten rice with patal ras /thin coconut milk and keep in the fridge early. Generally, it’s made early in the morning and served later during the day.
The quantity here is huge. Remember the fov/ beaten rice will swell when soaked. For one serving the standard ¼ cup of unsoaked fov/ beaten rice will be enough. Adjust as per taste the rest of the seasonings.
I have given the traditional method that the coconut milk is made but when I make it I use the 3 terra pack 200 ml each. ½ a pack of coconut milk and water say, 1 ½ cups make my patal ras /thin coconut milk. The rest is das ras /thick coconut milk used as needed.

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Comments

The Pumpkin Farm says

April 07, 2014 at 3:36 am

when i read the name of the dish i thought you have got yourself an easy way out ….n i think of you exactly the way you described kannadiga married to maha settled in goa…but you have done such a great job with your choice of dish for your karmbhoomi…i enjoyed this post the most

Priya Suresh says

April 07, 2014 at 6:51 am

Beautiful spread there, btw rasatle fov sounds very delicious, bookmarking to give a try soon.

Sapana Behl says

April 07, 2014 at 10:43 am

This version of phoe looks absolutely mouth watering !

Nivedhanams Sowmya says

April 07, 2014 at 6:18 pm

such a beautiful platter… love it..

Pavani N says

April 07, 2014 at 6:29 pm

Thanks for sharing the Diwali traditions. That poha dish looks absolutely delicious.

Varadas Kitchen says

April 08, 2014 at 2:16 am

Enjoyed your post very much. The ammado chutney looks awesome! The spread of poha brought back memories.

Usha says

April 08, 2014 at 2:59 am

Enjoyed reading the post. We too call the one kind of oil lamp as kandili. Also loved the Diwali spread. You chose a nice recipe for the state. Looking at the title, the recipe looked simple but it really isn't.

Manjula Bharath says

April 08, 2014 at 4:35 am

Oh my such an informative on fov 🙂 the spread is looking so tempting and delicious fov varieties 🙂 Fabulous post dear 🙂

Jayanthi Padmanabhan says

April 08, 2014 at 8:51 am

enjoyed reading the post.

Gayathri Kumar says

April 08, 2014 at 10:51 am

Very interesting to read about your Diwali celebrations. And this type of poha preparation is very new to me. Learned a lot about Goan cuisine today…

Nalini's Kitchen says

April 10, 2014 at 2:17 am

Wonderful write up and the spread looks so inviting…

vaishali sabnani says

April 10, 2014 at 2:46 pm

This takes me back to my GOA trip…this is yum…all of you there must try..I tried them while in GOA and simply loved them.

Harini-Jaya R says

April 11, 2014 at 12:12 am

Wow! this looks mouth watering, Archana. Nice to know the Diwali tradition out there..

Chef Mireille says

April 13, 2014 at 12:19 am

I love anything and this made with coconut milk must be awesome

Srivalli says

April 13, 2014 at 4:36 am

I was so waiting for this post Archana..ever since you told me that you were going to make this, I was so intrigued ..what a lovely spread and so much to read, thanks for the local history, enjoyed reading it.

Sandhya Ramakrishnan says

April 18, 2014 at 2:23 am

What a feast you have and it is lovely to read about the state from a resident of the state.

Sreevalli E says

May 02, 2014 at 3:12 am

Beautiful write up. The recipe is very interesting with all the flavors going on there.

Rasatle Fov or Pohe In Coconut Milk (Savoury)~ Indian State Goa

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