I had seen images and posts on this, but never really thought too much about it. Infact, going by its name- Solkadhi, I kinda assumed it was part of the Kadhi family [ the curd based dish that is made both in north & south and eaten with rice]..
During my recent trip to Goa, a friend asked for Solkadhi at a hotel, but they did not have stock.. And that is when my curiosity got piqued and I wanted to taste this, especially upon discovering it was a drink, specific to that region.
The moment came when we were getting back to Bombay from Goa.. We had stopped at Kamat for a break, and that is when I sipped my 1st Solkadhi… Loved it, so much so that we had a 2nd one as well. It was pink in colour, which I attributed to Kokum, and was packed with flavour- garlic to whole bunch of other spices.. Since I love kokum [ my very 1st taste of this tangy fruit was during my 1st trip to Goa], I loved this drink as well… I was told this particular version we had was from a packet and the home made ones are even better…
Wikipedia says
“Popular in Goa and the Maharashtra’s coastal region, it is made from coconut milk and kokum, also known as Aamsol or Aamsul. It is the dried fleshy skin of a fruit called Garcinia indica, deep purple-pink in color, full of antioxidants that the pigment anthocyanins provide{{citation needed}}. Garcinia indica, or Kokum, owing to the presence of a high concentration of anthocyanins, is a great antioxidant that works like an anticarcinogenic and anti-aging agent. It is known for its digestive, refreshing, cleansing and cooling properties. The preparation is prepared from liquid extracted from fresh coconut known as coconut milk; however, nowadays you can also get this extracted milk in TetraPak. The coconut milk so obtained is usually mixed with kokum, a little bit of salt and/or chili-garlic paste is added for taste and enhancing the probiotic contents.”
Look forward to exploring more local cuisine on my next trip…
