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Ugadi Pachadi - Andhra Delicacy Reflecting Different Flavors Of Life

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Today we are celebrating Ugadi, the Telugu New Year Day, which is the first festival of our Telugu calendar and the first big festival that comes after Sankranti.

Our Andhra festival is known by different names in different states of India like “Gudi Padwa” in Maharastra and “Ugadi” in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. Whatever the name this festival takes in different regions, it heralds the dawn of Vasanth Rutu (Spring Season), which is considered the first season of the year (Chaitra Maasam). Ugadi to the Telugu speaking people marks a beginning of a new year in which nature is in full bloom, symbolizing regeneration and celebrating the season’s freshness.

Ugadi Pachadi - sweet, bitter chutney reflecting the different flavors of life

With the coming of Ugadi, mango season is in full swing with fresh green mangoes flooding the rythu bazaars, garlands of marigold, roses, kanakaambaram, chamanti, naturally perfumed jasmine flowers (mallepuulu) which are in full bloom adorn the deities in temples and yes, you find most of our Andhra women’s braids are adorned with clusters of mallepuulu (jasmine flowers). The doorways of our homes are adorned with mango leaves which signifies prosperity and general well-being.

But the most unique and significant tradition of Ugadi is beginning the new year with savoring a unique flavored pachadi (chutney) that epitomizes the spirit of Ugadi called “Ugadi Pachadi”,with sweet, sour, pungent and bitter tastes (shadhruchulu or six tastes). This chutney or sauce is a symbolic reminder of the myriad facets of life in a sense prepares us for the year ahead. Of course, other than the special pachadi we also prepare special foods with the use of raw mango like papppu maamidikaaya, maamidi pulihora, maamidi kobari pachadi,pulihora,bobattulu, payasam and garellu.

Ugadi Pachadi is a special preparation prepared in every Andhra home on Telugu New Year’s day. Its made with fresh tamarind, jaggery(panela), fresh mangoes and neem flowers (margosa). One can add sugarcane, coconut and bananas also. The sweetness of jaggery, the sourness of tamarind, the bitterness of neemflower and the pungent flavor of the green mango skin, spice of the chilli powder ,raw tender mango’s taste and lastly salt form the shadhruchulu or six tastes of the sauce.

Pachadi ingredients - mango, tamarind, jaggery, salt, chilli pwd, neem flower

Ugadi Pachadi Recipe

Prep & Cooking: 20-30 mts

Makes approx 35-40 punukulu

Cuisine: Andhra

.

Ingredients:

1 cup of raw fresh mango cleaned, dried, finely chopped along with skin

1 tbsp margosa flowers (neem tree flowers)

1 cup grated jaggery

1 tbsp fresh finely chopped coconut pieces (optional)

3 -4 tbsp tamarind paste

red chilli pwd (according to your choice)

salt to taste

1 Mix all the above ingredients to form a sauce like appearence.I f you want a thin and watery chutney add very little water (2-3 tbsps). You can also add small pieces of sugarcane, pieces of ripe banana, putanaala pappu (roasted channa dal) along with the above ingredients.

Note:

Each home has its own version of preparing the ugadi pachadi but the main ingredients (reflecting all the six flavors) are as specified above.

The myriad rich taste of this delicacy tickles and lingers on our tongue for a long time leaving a medley of flavors. The flavors of the Ugadi Pachadi signifies that the mixture of bitter margosa flowers and sweet jaggery reflect the myriad facets of life, both joy and sorrow and prepares one to face both good and bad in the year to come. During this season we find people eating neem leaves and flowers at the onset of Vasantha Ruthu and through out the spring season as its a counter measure for kapha dosha individuals (kapha dosha increases around this period).Ugadi Pachadi is a healthy low calorie pachadi where the Neem flowers, new tamarind, jaggery and fresh raw mangoes contain nutrients that cleanse the system and act as prophylactics (prevention of illness or disease).

Ugadi Pachadi - chutney reflecting the different flavors of life

Ugadi Subhakankshulu! Wishing you all a very happy Ugadi and a great year ahead!

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By sailu • Mar 30th, 2006 • Category: All Recipes, Andhra Recipes, Ayurvedic cooking, Chutneys & Pachadis, Festival recipes, Naivedyam (Prasadam), Vegan recipes

62 Responses »

  1. Shomas on March 30th, 2006 at 6:53 pm:

    you have described the essence of Ugadi very well. We do miss the whole atmosphere of festivals with people dressing up and families getting together etc.

    In karnataka we do the almost the same but we have something called Bevu bella( Neem flowers and Jaggery grated and made into small marble sized laddus and given to everyone saying let this year balance out the good and bad things.

    Have a wonderful Ugadi and prosperous New year

  2. Tanuja on March 30th, 2006 at 7:14 pm:

    Ugadi shubhakankshalu to u and ur family sailu:)

  3. Saffron Hut on March 30th, 2006 at 8:13 pm:

    Sailu, fantastic pictures!!! that bowl of pachadi looks sooo yummy! really nice.

    Happy Ugadi.

  4. Priya on March 30th, 2006 at 8:25 pm:

    Wish u and ur family a happy and prosperous ugadi.
    I love the kum kum bharani and all those cute little things in the pic. they r beautiful.

  5. Vineela on March 30th, 2006 at 8:32 pm:

    Hi Sailu,
    Presentation is excellent.
    HAPPY UGADI TO U AND UR FAMILY.
    ~V

  6. ARUN on March 30th, 2006 at 8:41 pm:

    Hi Sailu,
    Vyayanama Samvathsara Ugadi Shubakanshalu.

  7. KrishnaArjuna on March 30th, 2006 at 10:01 pm:

    Sailu,
    Ugaadi subhakankshalu!! Chaala baaga present chesaaru.

  8. spicehut on March 30th, 2006 at 10:07 pm:

    Lovely pic. There is something so pure & festive about marigold flowers !

    Wish you and your family a Happy Ugadi.

    -Sonali

  9. Ashwini on March 30th, 2006 at 10:58 pm:

    Sailu wishing you and your family a very happy Ugadi. Those are such beautiful photos and a great write up too

  10. Anonymous on March 30th, 2006 at 11:14 pm:

    Hi Sailu!

    Happy Ugadi to you and your family, and kisses to Nehal! Beautiful pics as usual! :)
    Priya

  11. tony of bachelor cooking on March 30th, 2006 at 11:48 pm:

    happy ugadi Sailu!!

  12. Indira on March 31st, 2006 at 12:23 am:

    Wow. Sailu, you made me feel nostalgic.!
    Just gorgeous!

    Ugadi subhakankshalu to you and your family. Please say hai to your cute son.

  13. Lakshmi on March 31st, 2006 at 12:41 am:

    hi sailu,
    Ugadi shubhakankshalu to u and ur family

  14. Latha on March 31st, 2006 at 2:27 am:

    Hi Sailu,

    Great post and photos as always! Happy Ugadi!

  15. Rita on March 31st, 2006 at 2:42 am:

    Beautiful presentation and description. You just brought me back home to India in a jiffy, sitting 10,000 miles away. Happy Ugadi to you all.

    I have been lurking a while, without leaving comments, today I could not resist…

  16. Priya Balabhaskaran on March 31st, 2006 at 3:40 am:

    Happy Ugadi to you and your family. Nice pictures:)

  17. Mika on March 31st, 2006 at 5:40 am:

    Happy Ugadi, Sailu! Lovely pictures. Tamilians also make pachadi on Tamil new year with neem leaves. We use dry ones though. Are the fresh flowers more bitter than dry ones?

  18. lera on March 31st, 2006 at 8:40 am:

    Greetings for ugadi to you and family!

  19. ramya on March 31st, 2006 at 10:50 am:

    Sailu
    thank you for your visit.I got late for my posting on ugadi.I thought of my posting early with ugadi but ours is on April 14th .do visit on sunday.

  20. Puspha on March 31st, 2006 at 2:07 pm:

    Ugadi Subhakankshalu to u & ur family.
    Very authentic presentation. The banana leave makes me miss home. I love eating on them.

  21. Shalini on March 31st, 2006 at 5:18 pm:

    hi Sailu,

    Belated wishes and awesome presentation!

  22. BDSN on March 31st, 2006 at 10:07 pm:

    Happy Ugadhi wishes to u sailu…ur presentation looks very nice….Wish I could taste ur pachadi…

  23. Priya Balabhaskaran on April 1st, 2006 at 12:20 am:

    Hi Sailu, Happy Ugadi to you and your family. Nice pictures.

  24. Paz on April 1st, 2006 at 2:59 am:

    Happy Ugadi New Year’s Day!

    What an interesting recipe.

    Best,
    Paz

  25. Kitchenmate on April 1st, 2006 at 3:18 am:

    Sailu,
    pictures looks so homely :) and yummy Pachadi too. Happy ugadi!!!

  26. Rorie on April 1st, 2006 at 4:05 am:

    What a wonderuflly informative and lovely post to read!

    Happy Ugadi (am i allowed to say that?), Sailu!

  27. sailu on April 1st, 2006 at 10:48 pm:

    Ugadi Subhakankshalu!Thank you all for your new year wishes and nice comments.

  28. sailu on April 1st, 2006 at 10:50 pm:

    Mika,I havent tasted the dry neem flowers to comment on its flavor compared to the fresh ones.

  29. mae on April 2nd, 2006 at 5:14 pm:

    Sailu, your presentations are utterly gorgeous. Happy celebrations to you and your family.

  30. Raji on April 3rd, 2006 at 11:05 am:

    luv ur pics sailu
    got lot better
    malli ugadi pacchadi tinalanipistundiiiiiiiii :))

  31. Anjali Naidu on March 12th, 2007 at 12:12 am:

    Ugadi shubhakankshalu to all you. Have a prosperous and healthy life this year and the following years.

  32. bindu on March 15th, 2007 at 9:29 pm:

    hi sailu i’ve just seen ur recipes and i noted them all. kothimire pachadi is so useful and really liked ur recipes. thanks sailu. now i can make variety of dishes rather than sticking to some stock dishes .

  33. Mahalakshmi on March 16th, 2007 at 4:15 am:

    Teluguvarandaraki nuthanasamvasthara subhaakanshalu
    (Happy Ugadi to all)

  34. Poorna on March 16th, 2007 at 6:00 am:

    Happy Ugadi to one and all

  35. Aradhana on March 16th, 2007 at 12:18 pm:

    Hi Sailu gorgeous presentation and nice ugadi pachadi.Looking forward for recipes on ugaadi.Please Do tell one.Happy Ugadi to u And ur family.

  36. IndiraRamesh on March 19th, 2007 at 1:16 am:

    Thanks Sailu for Ugadi Pachadi recipe. Happy Ugadi!!!

  37. venky on March 19th, 2007 at 1:38 am:

    Thanx

    Thank you Sailu,you made us feel at home looking at those PICS
    HAPPY UGADHI 2007

    Sailu

  38. Sireesha on March 19th, 2007 at 7:52 am:

    Andariki Ugadi Subhakankshalu….
    Ugadi Pacchadi choosi inti ni grutu cheseru…

    Thank you so much…

    Cheers,
    Sireesha

  39. Sai Devarashetty on March 19th, 2007 at 8:44 am:

    Wish you and your family a very Happy and prosperous Ugadi, Sailu!

    Beautiful pics and gorgeous presentation…

    Ugadi shubhakankshalu to All!!!

  40. Pradeep on March 19th, 2007 at 11:15 am:

    Woow !!!! Nice pictures… n presentation….. The clarity n colors of the pictures is tooooooo good. That itself brings ‘Ugaadi’ in my mind……

  41. MrutyumjayaRao on March 19th, 2007 at 3:39 pm:

    Andhariki Ugadi Subhakankshalu!

  42. Deepthi on March 19th, 2007 at 3:59 pm:

    Sailu -
    Excellent, nifty, organized website that delights all my senses. You can’t imagine how much happiness your site brings to a lot of us. Keep up the good work and wishing you yet another year of ecstatic enthusiasm in sharing your recipes….SARVAAJIT NAAMA NOOTHANA SAMVATHSARA SUBHAKANKSHALU.
    - Deepthi

  43. Bits on March 19th, 2007 at 4:56 pm:

    Andhariki Chandranama Samvathsara Ugadi Shubakanshalu.

    Sailaja Garu, Photolu challa baagunnayi and also very good presentation. I am big fan of your website. I greatly appreciate the effort you take to present the recipes. You are doing a wonderful job , just keep it up.

    Thank you.

  44. aruna on March 21st, 2007 at 9:58 am:

    Hi sailu happy new year.

  45. Sunita on March 29th, 2008 at 11:40 am:

    you did a great job. I really appreciate your time and effort.keep posting.
    Thanks for your ugadi recipe.

  46. Prasad on March 30th, 2008 at 10:13 am:

    Ugadi Subhakankshalu…..to you and your family….

    Keep up the good work.

  47. Keemo on April 2nd, 2008 at 5:18 am:

    Meku and Mee kutumba sabyula andariki ugadi subhakankhsalu

  48. G.RAMESH on April 3rd, 2008 at 5:53 am:

    hai antharikki ugadi puraskaralu

  49. n.renu on April 3rd, 2008 at 5:57 am:

    “HAPPY UGADI NEW YEAR” SWEETU, KARAMU,PULUPU KALISI IROJU MANAM ETTHUKUTHAMU ATHI POLANE MANA KUDUMPAMULA KALICHI UNTHATHI

  50. ramana on April 4th, 2008 at 3:59 am:

    Hi Everyone,

    Happy Ugadi to all of you.

    Regards,
    Ramana

  51. NANJUNDI on April 5th, 2008 at 2:30 am:

    hai every one whis u happy ugadi

  52. sham on April 5th, 2008 at 4:34 am:

    Dear Sir/Madam

    I wish to use your Yugadi image on our Kannada website.
    Here by I seek your permission. We will add thanks and courtesy to your beautiful blog.

    Appreciate your reply.

    Sham….Editor

    Appreciate you seeking permission before using an image from my blog. You can use the image and a link back to this blog would be appreciated.

  53. mahi on April 6th, 2008 at 9:38 am:

    nice pic really mouth watering………

  54. Narendra Jammula on April 6th, 2008 at 11:03 pm:

    May Joyous moments be yours to day and always!Happy Ugadhi!
    -Jammula.Narendra Babu

  55. kalyanbharath.ch on April 7th, 2008 at 4:11 am:

    May Joyous moments be yours to day and always!Happy Ugadi
    regard
    kalyanbharth.ch

  56. Indian food, Andhra recipes and Global cuisine inspired cooking » All Recipes Ayurvedic cooking Vegetarian Recipes » Celebrating Ugadi - Ayurveda & Wellness on April 7th, 2008 at 5:08 am:

    [...] Andhra, we celebrate and usher in the Telugu New Year by savoring our traditional Ugadi Pachadi, a unique combination of fresh ingredients - neem flowers, raw mango pieces, new jaggery, red [...]

  57. shalini on September 2nd, 2008 at 4:59 am:

    its realy nice!!!

  58. Lalitha on December 28th, 2008 at 3:53 pm:

    Hi! Sailu,
    I was looking for images for Ugadi and I discovered your website.
    I browsed through a little and I am eager to explore more.

    I have a request. Please let me know if I can use the pictures in this post (acknowledging the source, ofcourse) on my website for kids, http://www.telugu4kids.com

    Thanks,
    Lalitha.

    Lalitha, Appreciate you asking to use images on your website. Yes, you can use the images of this post acknowledging source.

  59. Lalitha on December 29th, 2008 at 6:37 am:

    Thank you.

  60. lara on March 26th, 2009 at 7:20 pm:

    If any body can’t get neem flowers,can use grated kakarakaya. I tried it last year,got the same taste.

    Hi Sailu,
    I appreciate ur recipe’s with wonderful presentation…keep it up.
    I wish u and your family a happy&prosperous ugadi.

    Thank you.
    Lara.

  61. sona on March 26th, 2009 at 7:35 pm:

    hi, happy ugadi.luv all ur recipes.

  62. santhosh on March 27th, 2009 at 1:44 am:

    virodhi nama samvathsara subhakankshalu

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