Onam is the harvesting festival (something like Thanksgiving in the U.S.) of the great State of Kerala. Keralites, all around the world, celebrate Onam with the traditional Onam feast and other cultural activities. The typical Onam feast is pure vegetarian and may consist of the following items:

• Pickles (Lemon, Mango and Ginger Curry)
• Pappadam
• Plantain Chips
• Thoran
• Aviyal
• Olan (or Potato Stew - White)
• Erissery (or Koottu Curry)
• Kichady (Sour)
• Pachady (Sweet)
• Rice
• Parippu
• Sambar
• Rasam
• Pulissery (Moru Curry)
• Yogurt
• Payasam (Pudding)

Usually a banana leaf is used as the plate. All the curries (pickles through pachadi) are served on the leaf. Then the main dish, rice, is served. The first course is parippu, butter and pappadam. The next course is sambar over rice. Next comes the payasam, which is not mixed with the rice. Rasam and then pulissery over rice follows. The feast is completed with serving the yogurt over the rice. Optionally a banana may also be served with the feast.

This is an effort to give the recipes of some these items in my own words. Items such as pickles, pappadam and yogurt are available from either American or Indian grocery stores. Hope this will help at lease some of the people who want to enjoy a good vegetarian meal. Your comments will greatly be appreciated and can be send to me at rnair1@columbus.rr.com. The recipes will be continuously updated with your modifications.