Onam Sadya Thali | Kerala Sadya Recipes (2024)

Posted on March 18, 2018 · Last Updated on December 7, 2021 · By Srividhya G · 36 Comments

Onam Sadya Thali – a rich and royal feast, an insanely delicious thali, nobody can say “No” to. With a wide variety of dishes loaded with veggies and coconut, it is a must-try Thali.

The Onam sadya dishes vary region-wise within Kerala. I did not follow any specific region and prepared the ones that my family loves instead. Check out the post for the individual recipes and how I prepared them.

Onam Sadya Thali

I always wanted to prepare an elaborate Onam sadya. I know it is doable but not quite easy though. When Valli announced the March themes and when I saw “Thali” in that, I made up my mind to prepare the sadya feast. My in-laws are here and MIL was excited too.

So last week, MIL and I decided to cook the feast. She helped me with chopping all the veggies and made her signature Avial and took care of Rhino. I made the rest and clicked all the pictures without a hurry. That’s a big thing these days. :-)

Onam Festival

We all know that Onam is the annual Hindu festival celebrated in Kerala. The festivalcommemorates the Vamana avatar of Lord Vishnu and the homecoming of the emperor Mahabali. Mahabali is the grandson of Kind Prahalada. King Mahabali, who is also a devotee of Lord Vishnu comes to powder by defeating the Devas.

When they approached Lord Vishnu for help, Vishnu decides to test Mahabali’s devotion instead of raising the weapon against him to get the lands back for Devas.

Vishnu takes the avatar of a dwarf boy, Vamana, and comes to King Bali. When the King does yajna (homa), Vamana approaches him and asks for property right over a piece of land that measures “three paces”. Mahabali agrees. Vamana grew big and covers the entire land ruled by King Bali in just two paces leaving him with nothing.

Finally, the king offers himself for the third pace. Lord Vishnu reveals himself and grants him a boon that he can visit the land he ruled every year. This revisit of King Mahabali marks the festival of Onam, and this delicious vegetarian feast called Onam Sadya celebrates the last day of his stay.

Ona Sadya

Ona Sadya is traditionally prepared with seasonal veggies and it mainly includes Yam, Raw Plantain, Ash gourd, Pumpkin, Cucumbers, Nendram banana variety, etc. I prepared everything except one item – upperi. Upperi is chips that can either sweet or salty.

The popular one is Sarkara Upperi which is nendram chips with jaggery. I got the nendram only at the last moment so I skipped making upperi with it. So I served it as is in the Thali instead. :-)

I have to post quite a few from my Onam Sadya Thali, Kerala Sadya Recipes list, so stay tuned for the updates. And today as part of the Thali, I posted the Beetroot Kichadi recipe. :-) The other recipes that are on my blog are linked below.

Onam Sadya Thali 1st Group

• Ada Pradhaman – A delicious coconut milk kheer prepared with jaggery and rice noodles called Ada.
• Matta Rice with Ghee – An earthy red parboiled rice native to Kerala.
• Kerala Style Tomato Rasam – A bit spicy but a comforting rasam with garlic, pepper, and tomato flavor.
• Cabbage Thoran – Kerala style cabbage stir fry with coconut. I prepared it like my Jackfruit seed thoran but without shallots.

• Olan –Kerala Sadya special recipe Olan – the rich, mild and creamy coconut milk stew with the goodness of black-eyed peas/cowpeas, red and white pumpkin.
• Eriserry – A medley of yam and plantain in coconut and pepper gravy. There are different eriserry varieties. The red pumpkin one is quite popular. But this yam and plantain version is equally popular as well which is more like Kalan but not Kalan. :-)

Onam Sadya Thali 2nd Group

• Avial – Yet another medley of vegetables in a simple coconut yogurt gravy.
• Beetroot Kichadi – A vibrant, healthy, and easy to make Kerala style Kichadi / Mildly sweet yogurt relish with beets.
• Cucumber Pachadi – A cool cucumber relish with mustard seed flavor.
• Theeyal – Usually, Sambar is prepared during the feast. But theeyal is also popular in some parts of Kerala. So I went with this delicious shallots theeyal.

Onam Sadya Thali 3rd Group

• Kalan – Kalan is prepared with yam or plantain or with both. Delicious gravy simmered in the coconut-yogurt sauce.
• Puli Milagai – This version of puli milagai might not be an authentic one that they prepare in Kerala. But it is adapted from the puli inji recipe. I learned this from my mom and ours usually has more chilies than ginger.
• Parippu Curry – Kerala style moong dal tadka with coconut and shallots.
• Pacha Manga Oorugai / Instant Mango Pickle – Instant cut mango pickle

• Sambharam / Spiced Buttermilk – seasoned buttermilk with the ginger and curry leaves
• Pappadam
• Nendram banana

Onam Sadya Recipe Roundup-

Avial | Instant Pot Avial Recipe | Mixed Vegetable Curry in Yogurt Sauce

Avial or Aviyal is a delicious mixed vegetable curry/stew with coconut and yogurt. Here is my mom's easy avial recipe that I made in Instant Pot!

Check out this recipe

Instant Pot Olan | Onam Sadya Recipe

Kerala Sadya special recipe Olan - the rich, mild and creamy coconut milk stew with the goodness of black-eyed peas/cowpeas, red and white pumpkin.

Check out this recipe

Neer Mor | Spiced Buttermilk

Neer Mor - A mildly spiced and refreshing buttermilk drink to beat that summer heat. A popular South Indian summer coolant.

Check out this recipe

Instant Raw Mango Pickle | Kili Mooku Manga Pickle

Delicious and Instant Mango pickle prepared with raw green mangoes and chili powder. A lip-smacking pickle recipe with minimal ingredients with hardly any soaking time.

Check out this recipe

One more thali to come. Keep guessing until tomorrow. :-)

Enjoying Onam Sadya Thali? You’ll love these, too:

• Brinji Rice | Instant Pot Vegetable Brinji Rice
• Ulutham Paruppu Sadham | Black Urad Dal Pulav
• Coconut Water Kheer | Elaneer Payasam
• Thalassery Veg Biryani | Malabar Biryani
• Vegan Red Kidney Beans Curry | Konkani Style Rajma Curry

P.S. Sending this to Blogging Marathon #86. Check out the recipes shared by the other bloggers here.