A friendly, step-by-step Kerala sadhya you can cook at home.

What Onam is

Onam is a harvest celebration from Kerala. Families visit the temple, share a grand vegetarian meal on a banana leaf, and welcome King Mahabali with joy and gratitude.

Your simple sadhya plan

• Rice as the base
• Sambar for comfort
• Avial for mixed veg in coconut yogurt
• Thoran for a quick stir-fry
• Olan for a mild ash gourd and coconut milk curry
• Parippu with ghee for the first mix
• Rasam for a tangy finish
• Inji puli as the sweet-tart ginger relish
• Curd and banana to cool things down
• Payasam for dessert

Smart shopping list

• Vegetables: ash gourd or pumpkin, carrots, beans, drumstick, raw banana, cucumber, green chilies, curry leaves
• Staples: raw rice, toor dal, grated coconut, coconut milk, tamarind, jaggery, ghee, mustard seeds, cumin, turmeric, hing, dried red chilies
• Extras: banana chips, papad, curd, ripe bananas, cashews, raisins

Cook once, serve many

Make coconut pastes first. Pressure-cook dal early. Keep one tempering base ready with mustard, curry leaves, red chili. You will use it across dishes and save time.

Parippu

What it is: creamy lentils that start the meal
You need: toor dal, turmeric, ghee, cumin, hing, green chili
Steps: Cook dal till soft. Mash with a pinch of turmeric and salt. Warm ghee with cumin, hing, and chopped chili. Pour over dal. Serve with a squeeze of lemon if you like.

Sambar

What it is: hearty veg and dal stew
You need: toor dal, tamarind, sambar powder, drumstick, carrot, beans, tomato, mustard seeds, curry leaves
Steps: Cook dal. Simmer veg till tender. Add tamarind water and sambar powder. Mix in dal. Finish with a quick tempering of mustard and curry leaves.

Avial

What it is: mixed veg in coconut yogurt
You need: carrot, beans, raw banana, ash gourd or pumpkin, yogurt, grated coconut, cumin, green chili, coconut oil, curry leaves
Steps: Grind coconut, cumin, and chili to a coarse paste. Steam veg with a little water and salt. Stir in paste. Add whisked yogurt off heat. Finish with a drizzle of coconut oil and torn curry leaves.

Thoran

What it is: quick stir-fry with coconut
You need: cabbage or beans, grated coconut, mustard, curry leaves, green chili, turmeric
Steps: Heat oil. Splutter mustard. Add chili and curry leaves. Toss in veg with salt and turmeric. Cook crisp-tender. Mix in coconut and switch off heat.

Olan

What it is: mild, fragrant curry
You need: ash gourd, red cowpeas or black-eyed peas, coconut milk, green chili, coconut oil, curry leaves
Steps: Cook peas till soft. Simmer ash gourd with a pinch of salt and chili till just tender. Add coconut milk and peas. Warm gently. Finish with coconut oil and curry leaves.

Rasam

What it is: light, tangy soup
You need: tomato, tamarind, rasam powder or ground pepper-cumin, mustard, curry leaves, hing
Steps: Simmer tamarind water with tomato and spice till fragrant. Temper mustard, curry leaves, and hing. Pour over. Keep it light.

Inji puli

What it is: sweet-sour ginger relish
You need: chopped ginger, green chili, tamarind, jaggery, mustard, curry leaves, turmeric
Steps: Sauté ginger till golden. Add tamarind water, jaggery, turmeric, and salt. Cook to a glossy relish. Temper with mustard and curry leaves.

Payasam

What it is: the festive sweet
Two easy picks:
Ada pradhaman: rice flakes, jaggery, coconut milk, ghee, cardamom, fried cashews and raisins
Palada: rice flakes, milk, sugar, ghee, cardamom
Steps for ada pradhaman: Melt jaggery in a little water. Strain. Cook ada till soft. Add jaggery syrup and simmer. Stir in thick coconut milk at the end. Finish with ghee-fried nuts and cardamom.

How to plate on a banana leaf

Tip points to your left. Rice near the top center. Parippu and ghee first. Then sambar. Thoran to the left, avial to the right. Olan near the top right. Inji puli and pickle at the very top. Papad and banana on the side. Rasam after sambar. Curd and banana at the end to cool the palate. Payasam in a small bowl or on the leaf if you like.

Timing map for a smooth afternoon

Morning: cook dal, soak tamarind, prep coconut pastes
Midday: finish parippu, sambar, and thoran
Last hour: assemble avial and olan, make rasam
Final 20 minutes: fry papad, warm payasam, set the leafs

For kids and guests

Give small roles. Let kids place chips and papad. Ask a guest to stir payasam or fold napkins. Keep water and extra spoons at the table so no one has to get up.

Allergies and simple swaps

No dairy: skip yogurt in avial and add more coconut milk. Use oil instead of ghee.
No nuts: leave out cashews.
Gluten free: this menu is already friendly. Check packaged chips and asafoetida.
Less spice: reduce chili and use more coconut for body.

Try this today

Cook just three items: rice, avial, and payasam. That gives you color, comfort, and a sweet finish without stress.

Want a printable menu and shopping list

Tell me how many people you will feed and I will send a one page plan with quantities and a 2 hour schedule.

To sum up

Onam food is warm, bright, and shared. Keep flavors clean, keep textures varied, and let the leaf do the talking. Cook with patience, eat together, and save a spoon of payasam for someone you love.