Ganeshotsav food special: A modak for every Mumbaikar

Modakam Madam to your rescueLiving in the neighbourhood of Prabhadevirsquos Siddhivinayak Temple Reshama Salkar could well qualify as one of the cityrsquos superheroines Moonlighting as Modakam Madam thatrsquos the name she is known by she wakes up at 330 am every morning takes a bath and begins the process of making the traditional ukadiche modak the Maharashtrianstyle steamed dumplings made of rice flour and stuffed with a sweet mixture of jaggery coconut and cardamom These modaks then make their way to Modakam a restaurant next to Siddhivinayak Temple thatrsquos a goto eatery for most devotees who visit the templeAdding a twist to tradition the 50year old Modakam near Siddhivinayak temple at Prabhadevi also sells madetoorder modak creations like this BEST bus that are completely edible PicTushar SatamldquoTraditionally these modaks are prepared by the women in the house We have been sourcing our modaks from Modakam Madam since the last 10 years She knows the proportions well and she shapes each modak by hand without using a mould Yet each is of the same sizeOn an average we sell anything from 500 to 1000 modaks per dayrdquo beams 62yearold Gopal Balgi whose brother Deepak Gaikar 55 is the secondgeneration owner of Modakam In existence for the last 50 years and started by his uncle this restaurant is the only one in the city that serves this variety topped with gheeTraditional ukadiche modak at Modakam PicsTushar SatamldquoWe keep the modaks par boiled Based on the order we steam them and serve them piping hot with a dollop of ghee That just adds to the tasterdquo Balgi informs Having started selling the modaks at a measly 8 per piece today they are priced at 25 and available throughout the year ldquoOur customers have never complained about the pricing because they know they are sure of our qualityrdquo he assertsThe unique madetoorder creationsModak bus anyoneApart from ukadiche modak the restaurant has also been creating some innovative modaks since the last two years With the mawa used in mawa modaks this season the restaurant has created BEST buses the Mumbai Metro architectural structures and even popular figurines like Minions and Chhota Bheem in the form of modaks Completely edible these madetoorder items weighing around threeandhalf kilos are priced at Rs 6000 onwards ldquoIt takes two workers about six hours to make each item These are popular because they add a visual appeal in a Ganpati pandal Wersquove already started getting orders for these varieties especially the Chhota Bheem ones We will be making them only till Ganesh Chaturthi the first day of the festivalrdquo informs Balgi At Modakam 81 Kamana CHS SK Bole Marg near Siddhivinayak Temple Prabhadevi Call 30401011 the madetoorder creations need to be ordered a day in advance Cost Rs 25 per piece for ukadiche modak75yearold at workSitting at Adarsh Mithai Mandirrsquos kitchen in Grant Road sporting a handlebar moustache the 75yearold Raju Devasi earnestly rolls out different varieties of modaks He may be hard of hearing and not even understand any other language besides his mother tongue Gujarati but Devasi can recite each step of the modakmaking process in great detailThe 75yearold Raju Devasi moulds the modaks at Grant Roadrsquos Adarsh Mithai MandirAfter all he has been working in this sweet shop established in 1951 for the last 50 years ldquoWe donrsquot source the mawa used for making our modaks Instead we make it inhouserdquo smiles DevasiKandi Malai Modak and Anjeer Modak The shoprsquos owner Bhupatbhai Thakker informs ldquoFrom the traditional mawa modak to kaju kesar anjeer and even mango modaks we sell close to 51 varieties During Ganpati festival we make around one tonne of modaks per day Since the last few years we have also been making sugarfree varieties and this year we have created Cashew Crunch modak with pieces of cashew nutsrdquo adds Thakker At Adarsh Mithai Mandir 309 Javji Dadaji Marg Nana Chowk Grant Road Call 23881039 Cost Rs 680 to Rs 1200 per kgMawa maniaThere are at least three shops named Panshikar in Dadar but when you ask pedestrians about the one where you get good modaks you are immediately directed to Panshikar Bros near Dadarrsquos bustling Kabutar KhanaThe Mawa Modaks are Panshikar Brosrsquo specialty itemsEstablished in 1928 by Sadashiv N Panshikar the nofrills standalone sweet and farsan shop is now run by the familyrsquos third generation Serving pedas barfis as well as popular Maharashtrian snacks they are best known for their Mawa Modaks Sticking to the traditional recipe passed on through generations the brightyellow coloured variety is made through the year in the shoprsquos inhouse factory During Ganpati season the bulk increases to 100s of kilos This is the only variety of modak that they serve and it has even made it as the 87yearold shoprsquos logoAt Panshikar Bros 384 Kelkar Road near Kabutar Khana Dadar W Call 24211133 Cost Rs 560 per kilo