Today I bring to you the Janmashtami special easy Gopalkala recipe which is apt for toddlers and kids.
Have you heard about 'dahi handi' or gopalkala festival? It's a human pyramid formation where the person at the top tries to break the earthen pot of dahi or curd.
There are dahi handi competitions all over India and I can really sense the festive spirit among the Mumbaikars, which already started with the advent of September.
While travelling for a client meet in Mumbai, I asked my business partner about the specialties for Janmashtami at his house. He spoke about the various delicacies made by his mom like puran poli, gopalkala to name a few.
Though I have eaten almost all the savories and sweets he mentioned, gopalkala Janmashtami recipe was the one I hadn't heard of.
'Gopalkala is made with poha and dahi' he answered to my question of what the ingredients of gopalkala were.
"It's made with beaten rice and curd, but why the name gopal-kala, doesn't it mean that Gopal - Krishna and kala - dark, so the name of the dish has no connection with the color/texture right?" I asked him.
He was patient enough to tell me the story behind the birth of this recipe - gopalkala.
Story behind the birth of Gopalkala recipe:
It's said Lord Krishna and his friends used to travel long distances to graze the cattle. Each one of them would carry lunch packets from home. Krishna used to mix all the foods and then distribute among his friends. This recipe became later known as Gopalkala which is the favourite food of Krishna with curd, ghee and milk.
'Gopal' means 'Krishna' and 'kala' refers to 'mixed' in Marathi. So it's a 'mixed food by Krishna' or 'favorite food of Krishna'.
During midnight on Janmashtami, gopalkala along with other delicacies are offered to Lord Krishna as he was born at midnight.
I found the story and recipe quite interesting. Back home I planned to make it for Janmashtami and share it with you my readers.
The basic ingredients are more or less that of curd rice recipe that I have posted earlier. But the basic difference is that instead of cooked rice, here beaten rice, aval, avil or poha is used.
The recipe gopalkala is so easy to make, cooling and refreshing.
During the dahi handi festival, gopalkala is offered as the prasad/ prasadam here in Mumbai.
Gopalkala can be given to toddlers omitting green chillies. It's healthy, nutritious and cooling to the body.
Benefits of Indian gopalkala recipe:
Gopalkala is rich in iron and calcium.
The iron in poha can be easily absorbed by our body due to the acidic nature of the curd added.
Curd is rich in protein, phosphorous, calcium and Vitamin B2 whereas milk is rich in calcium, protein and fat.
Ginger acts as an appetizer. You can also add in puffed rice or puffed jowar to gopalkala.
Preparation of Gokulashtami special gopalkala recipe:
Clean and wash poha in a siever. Let it rest for 10 minutes. Heat ghee in a pan and sputter jeera.
Add in ginger, green chillies. Mix curd with the poha.
Mix in the tadka with the poha, curd. You can add cucumber and garnish with coriander leaves.
Usually gopalkala is served chilled, but you can serve toddlers at room temperature. You can serve it with pickle for toddlers and older kids.
Hope you liked this easy gopalkala recipe. Do try it out at home for this Janmashtami.
Which other delicacies do you make at home for Janmashtami? Do share with me in comments please.
Further reading:
