Stay for Dinner: A Picture Book by sales-abramsbooks

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To my husband, Franklin, who chooses sadhya over every other food every single time. And with thanks to Alyson O’Brien, for finding and trusting the writer in me.

~ S.P.

For Mads—when’s our next dinner?

~ M.P.

The art in this book was created digitally.

Cataloging-in-Publication Data has been applied for and may be obtained from the Library of Congress.

ISBN 978-1-4197-7287-0

This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished book.

First published in Australia in 2023 by Bright Light, an imprint of Hardie Grant Children’s Publishing. First published in North America in 2025 by Abrams Books for Young Readers, an imprint of ABRAMS. All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, mechanical, electronic, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the publisher.

Abrams® is a registered trademark of Harry N. Abrams, Inc.

Written by

Sandhya Parappukkaran

Illustrated by Michelle Pereira

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Abrams Books for Young Readers • New York

I love dinnertime with my family.

Squishing splashy curry through layers of rice with our right hands.

Side curries, pickles, and pappadums jostle for space on our plates.

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And, on special days, we eat sadhya on big banana leaf plates!

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After school, I love playing sports with my friends–Charlotte, Phoebe, and Leo.

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Today it’s soccer at Charlotte’s.

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We play keep-away until dinnertime.

My parents call; they’re stuck at work.

Charlotte’s mom says, “Stay for dinner.”

Cutlery sparkles on their table.

“Fork in left, knife in right.” Charlotte shows me.

Ting, ting.

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Gravy splashes, peas escape.

I slice and spear until I catch every last rolling pea.

Yum!

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I think about our dinner table.

Mama and I scoop rice with our fingertips.

Papa and Ammama roll rice with their whole hands.

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I wonder why we don’t use cutlery.

Papa always says the food tastes better when we eat with our hands.

He’s right–mixing rice and curry with our fingers makes it more delicious.

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What would my friends think if they saw us eat?

The next day at Phoebe’s place we play badminton.

We lunge and smash until dinnertime.

My parents are with Ammama at the doctor’s.

Phoebe’s dad says, “Stay for dinner.”

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Graceful chopsticks gather rice.

“Keep the bottom one still and move the top one.” Phoebe shows me. Click, clack.

Noodles slip, dumplings skip.

I clickety-clack until my bowl is spotless.

Yum!

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I think about our dinner table.

At home Ammama sweeps her plate clean. She licks each finger one by one.

Copying her, I lick off every bit of rice.

Then Ammama burps.

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Mama beams at Ammama’s seal of approval.

What would my friends think of Ammama’s burp?

The next day, we play basketball at Leo’s.

We dribble the ball and send it flying.

My parents are stuck in a traffic jam.

Leo’s nonna says, “Stay for dinner.”

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Forks spin, flouncing spaghetti.

“Twist.” Leo shows me. Swish, swish.

Sauce splatters, meatballs bounce.

I keep twirling until I get a tight bundle. Yum!

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Mama wants to thank my friends for looking after me.

“Invite them over for dinner,” she says.

I suggest a barbecue.

Ammama suggests sadhya.

“Perfect,” says Papa. “There are plenty of banana leaves.”

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Will my friends laugh?

Eating with hands is not like ting-ting cutlery or click-clack chopsticks.

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“Let’s make fish and chips,” I say. Nobody listens.

On the day of our dinner, I drag the towel to slowly clean each banana leaf.

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The vegetables are chopped, the coconut scraped, a big pot of rice bubbles, and pappadums bloom in hot oil.

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Then my friends arrive.

Ammama invites them to join our dinner table. They watch, wide-eyed, as Papa serves.

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They all turn to me.

I blush like a banana blossom. Slowly plunging my fingers into the rice, I mix and sculpt.

Scoop . . . lift . . . and push. Then, I peek.

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They are copying me!

Rice rains down.

Sambar splashes, pappadum smashes.

“Yum!”

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Ammama finishes first, licking her fingers in appreciation.

Please don’t burp, I pray. But then I hear . . . This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished book.

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It’s not Ammama!

“Don’t worry,” I say to Charlotte with a smile. “In our family, a burp is a great compliment to the chef!”

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Ammama chuckles and joins in too.

Leo, Charlotte, and Phoebe lick their fingers one by one.

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I love dinnertime with my family, especially when friends are invited!

Green Beans Thoran

Sadhya is one of my favorite meals. I love the medley of flavors and textures that comes from the combination of many side dishes and soft plump rice. Every taste—sweet, sour, bitter, and salty—features in this meal. The textures range from the crunch of crispy pappadums to the squish of soft banana. The bright green background of the banana leaf on which sadhya is eaten provides the perfect canvas for the variety of colorful side dishes, which is a pleasing feast for the eyes. I hope you get to eat sadhya one day too!

Ask an adult to help you prepare Green Beans Thoran—one of the many dishes you find in a sadhya.

ingredients

1 pound fresh green beans

1 tablespoon coconut oil

¾ teaspoon black mustard seeds

½ teaspoon cumin seeds

½ onion, diced into small pieces

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

½ teaspoon turmeric powder

10 curry leaves

½ teaspoon salt

(or season according to taste)

½ cup water

method

Wash and trim the green beans. Chop them into bite-size pieces.

In a pan with a lid, heat the coconut oil over medium heat.

Add the mustard seeds into the hot oil. Wait until they start to sizzle and pop, then add the cumin seeds.

After 20 seconds, add the onion and garlic. Cook for 3 minutes.

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½ cup desiccated coconut

Add the turmeric powder, curry leaves, and salt. Give it a good stir.

Add the green beans and water.

Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 5 minutes.

Add the desiccated coconut. If needed, add a splash more water.

Cook, covered, for another 3 minutes.

Turn off the heat once the green beans are cooked through.

Serve Green Beans Thoran with rice, sambar, and pappadum to create a mini sadhya at home.

This is an advance, uncorrected proof. Not for resale, duplication, or reposting. Please do not quote without comparison to the finished book.