fasting recipes | sama ke chawal ki tahiri | vrat wali tahiri

 Sama ka chawal or Samak chawal is actually a millet called Barnyard millet that is mostly consumed during Navratri fasting. Barnyard millet cooks really fast when soaked and can be made into sama ka Jeera rice, Sama ka Upma, Sama ki Idli and Sama ka Dhokla easily. Making sama ka Dosa is also easy once you know how to use this millet. We love sama ki kheer too.

Sama ki tehri or tahiri cooks quickly once you have soaked sama in the fridge. Yes it is advisable to soak sama overnight either in water or thin buttermilk and refrigerate so it can be used to cook meals quickly as the soaked sama ke chawal lasts about 3-4 days. It is particularly convenient in Navratras if you are fasting.

ingredients 
(2 servings)

1/3 cup sama ke chawal (Barnyard millet) soaked in 1.5 cup thin buttermilk overnight
2 cups mixed vegetables chopped into small cubes
1 tomato pureed
one small potato chopped in small cubes
1 tbsp ghee
1 tsp cumin seeds
pink salt (sendha namak) to taste
pepper to taste
chopped green chilies and chopped ginger if required
chopped dhaniya patta to garnish

preparation 

Heat the ghee in a wide stockpot (or pan) and tip in cumin seeds. Let the cumin splutter a bit.

Add the potatoes and stir and cook for 2 minutes. Now add the pureed tomatoes and all the chopped vegetables, salt and pepper. It will be better to add the other vegetables one by one according to the time they take to cook. I added carrots first and then zucchini after the potatoes and carrots were done. Toss and cook them all together.

Now add the soaked sama ke chawal, mix everything well and cook covered on low flame. No need to add any additional water as there is enough water in the ingredients to get cooked. It takes about 5 minutes for this quantity to get cooked after adding the soaked sama ke chawal.

Fluff up once cooked, sprinkle with chopped dhaniya patta and chopped green chilies and ginger if using. Serve with cucumber raita.

Green chilies and fine julienne of ginger taste really good in this tahiri but you can avoid if you like it a little plain. You can always add some roasted nuts or paneer cubes on top to add some proteins. I normally like it lighter but it also depends on how hungry you are for the meal or whether you are serving this sama ke chawal ki tahiri for lunch or dinner.

fresh water chestnuts curry for fasting | 2 ways with fresh water chestnuts (singhada or paniphal) | vrat ka khana

Fresh raw water chestnuts or Caltrops are in season and thankfully we get them here in the capital too. Apparently Delhi has a lot of 'rainwater' bodies around the city too and the singhada comes from those and from far flung areas as well. We do get a deluge of singhade during this season and we end up buying a couple of kilos every week. The reason for another singhada post just after the Singhade ka achar.

And no, we are not fasting during Navratri though we used to look forward to this fasting season eagerly every year. Times change, no regrets.

We eat a lot of singhade every season. The most common way to eat is this simple stir fry with cumin seeds and lot of freshly milled pepper. This recipe is common in singhada growing areas of Eastern UP and Bihar, as my family learnt it from a family friend who had their own ponds of singhada around Chandouli  in Banaras.

This jeerey wala singhada was more of a tea time snack or an evening snack for everyday and a meal for fasting days. People don't wait for fasting days when singhada is in season. By the way, the same recipe is made with baby potatoes of the new season too, to be served as a snack and that is very different from jeera alu.

Jeerey wala kachha singhada recipe 

ingredients 
(2 large breakfast servings or 4 snack servings)
650 gm raw tender peeled water chestnuts (1 kilo singhade after peels removed)
1 tbsp ghee
2 tsp cumin seeds (jeera)
1 tsp or to taste freshly milled pepper (or crush in mortar and pestle)
pink salt (sendha namak) to taste
lime juice if required (we never use it but you may like it)

procedure 

Halve the water chestnuts so they make bite sized pieces and cook quickly too. Cutting them into halves ensures absorption of the salt better. Note that medium mature singhadas taste great in this stir fry. Very hard and mature ones are suitable for boiled snacks and curries.

Heat the ghee in a deep pan (kadhai) and tip in the cumin seeds. Let them crackle before you dunk in all the peeled and halved singhade. Add salt and stir fry in medium heat for a couple of minutes. Cover and cook for a couple more minutes.

Add the freshly crushed peppercorns, stir and cook some more till the singhada pieces start looking glazed. It is ready once you see the singhada pieces getting glazed with a slight change in colour.

You can add some lime juice or a hint of amchoor powder if you wish.

Serve right away.

Sometimes I add a little chopped coriander greens to it and skip adding pepper.

Both the variations are very different from each other because minimal seasoning results in a very fresh flavour that changes even if you change one ingredient.

You can add garlic chives or thyme too if you wish, I generally don't deviate from our traditional seasonings for this one. Though I use singhada from Chinese type stir fries too.

Now coming to a singhade ki subzi which is cooked in a true Banarasi way. During fasting or otherwise too, Banarasis love to cook the curries with milk and khoya when there is a special occasion. This is one of those milky curries that taste so good with kuttu or singhade ki puri that you may want to observe fasting forever. We have it with singhade ki roti mostly.

Kachhe singhade aur Makhane ki subzi 
(serves 2-3)

ingredients 
500 gm peeled and halved raw water chestnuts
100 gm or 2 cups of makhane (fox nuts)
2 tbsp khoya (preferably home made khoya)
1 cup milk
1 tbsp everyday curry powder (mix of coriander seeds, cumin, pepper and tejpatta)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder (optional, some people don't add this)
pink salt to taste
handful of chopped coriander greens
2 +1 tsp ghee (total 1 tbsp)
1/2 tsp cumin seeds

procedure 

Heat 2 tsp ghee in a deep pan (medium heat) and tip in all the makhana in it. Keep stirring to roast them evenly. They get roasted in about a couple of minutes and get crisp. Remove from pan and let them cool on a plate.

Heat 1 tsp ghee in the same pan and add the cumin seeds. Add the everyday curry powder , bhuno for a few seconds till it gets aromatic and add the crushed khoya. Bhuno till everything gets mixed well and aroma emanates.

Add the chopped singhade, milk, salt and let all these simmer together for 5 minutes. Add the fried/roasted makhane and simmer again till the makhane shrink in size and get soggy with the gravy. You may want to add a little more milk or water to get a desired consistency. I added some water to get a thinner curry that I like.

Once a thin layer of fat comes on top the curry is ready. Some people deep fry the makhana in ghee and this curry looks totally submerged in ghee and that is tasty too, but we can't afford to have those curries any more at this age and with this almost sedentary lifestyle.

This light yet so delicious singhade aur makhane ki subzi is just my type. I often have it as a meal in itself. Try doing that and let me know.

Many people have been pointing at severely polluted water bodies in the periphery of the city where all the sewage goes and more waste is dumped, where they say singhada is grown. But when you think of it, this plant cannot grow in polluted water bodies with so much of rotting organic and chemical waste. Singhada or water chestnuts (Indian) grows in shallow ponds and marshes where water collects after the rainy season.

Of course all water bodies and even soil is polluted but we need not to worry about the water chestnuts coming to us from sewage dumps. This crop needs immaculate and accurate methods of seed saving after the crop is harvested and then the germinated seeds are broadcasted (a method of sowing) in newly filled up shallow water bodies around farming areas after monsoons and in private ponds and lakes too.

Water chestnuts are safe to eat. We should worry more about the synthetic colours in cake frostings and even in some health drinks and fruit juices these days.

sama ke chawal aur moongphali ki kadhi | Fasting recipes for Navratri....

 Jeera rice made using sama ke chawal or Barnyard millet is as tasty as jeera rice cooked with any short grain rice. You have to try it to believe it. And if it is served with a kadhi, it becomes a comforting meal that is light on the system. The kadhi I am talking about is made using peanuts. Fasting foods are made using a limited number of ingredients but that doesn't mean it has to be boring and bland, or repetitive by any means.

So now you can enjoy kadhi chawal during fasting days as well, this recipe of peanut kadhi makes yummy kadhi and the tempering doesn't make you realize it is not the real thing. You would end up slurping the last bits believe me.

Recipe of sama ke chawal ka jeera rice...

ingredients...
(2 meal servings)
3/4 cup sama ke chawal
2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp or more black peppercorns
pinch of salt
1 tsp ghee
1.5 cup hot water

procedure...

Heat the ghee in a pan and add the cumin and black peppercorns. Add the pinch of salt and the washed and drained rice. No need to soak the rice.

Dry fry the rice just for about 30 seconds stirring constantly, add the water, cover and simmer for about 5 minutes. It gets cooked quickly.

The sama looks slightly sticky at this stage, is al dante too, cover and let it cook further in it's own heat after taking the pan off heat. After about 10 minutes you can fluff up the rice using a folk. It fluffs up nicely with each grain looking separate. Khila khila as we call it.

Do start with the kadhi as soon as you cover the lid to simmer this jeera rice.

recipe of the peanut kadhi....

ingredients...
(for 3 servings)
3/4 cups soaked peanuts (I used sprouted)
2 green chilies
an inch piece of root ginger
salt (pink salt or sendha namak) to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
3/4 cup very sour yogurt

Tempering to be done to finish the kadhi.. 
1 tbsp ghee, 1 tsp cumin seeds and 1/4 tsp red chilly powder.

procedure...

Make a paste of the kadhi ingredients without adding any water, no need to peel the peanuts.

 Pour this paste in a kadhai or deep pan. Add 3 cups of water and start simmering on medium heat, stirring all the while till the first boil comes. Lower the flame to very low and simmer for about 15 minutes.

For tempering, heat the ghee in a ladle or small pan, add cumin and wait till the cumin splutters. Add the red chilly powder and take the pan off heat. Pour the tempering ghee into the cooked kadhi.

This would make a yummy meal for navratri, vary satiating and filling and yet light on the system, detoxifying and cleansing in properties.

I served it with a quick stir fry of potato wedges, carrot batons and zucchini slices that I cooked while the kadhi was simmering. Just with a seasoning of salt and pepper.

I have won accolades for these two recipes and for this particular meal. Have served it on non fasting days too and people have ended up taking third and fourth helpings.

The leftovers reheat well if you are wondering how you will manage if you are fasting alone. Make it for 2-3 days refrigerate in portions, reheat in microwave and serve with different vegetable stir fries on the side. This is what I used to do when I was in research eons ago.

Hope you enjoy having kadhi chawal for your fasting days. I am enjoying a few fasting recipes though I am not fasting and have been eating my fish fries on the side...

Please do let me know if you try the recipe.

sama ke chawal ki tehri for vrat ka khana | fasting recipe for navratri...

Sama ka chawal or Mordhan as this grain is called in Hindi, the botanical name is Echinochloa colona . A very tasty grain that can replace rice for those who want to eliminate grains from their diet or for fasting days. A tehri is a fried rice or pulao/pilaf like dish that is mildly spiced and requires a side dish like raita and a curry or chutney etc.

This sama ke chawal ki tehri is made with grated carrots. You might like to add some grated coconut as well to add to the taste and texture.

ingredients...
(2 servings)
sama ke chawal 1 cup (soaked for 3 hours or overnight)
grated carrots 1 cup (you can use grated cabbage or even spinach etc)
dry red chilly broken to taste
cumin seeds 1 tsp
curry patta 10 springs
black pepper powder 1 tsp
sendha namak or pink salt to taste
ghee 1 tbsp
water 2 cups

Fresh lime juice as required (optional, I didn't use)

procedure...

Heat the ghee in a thick base kadhai or pan or pressure cooker pan (not to be pressure cooked, but the cooker pan is a good utensil to use otherwise too) and tip in the broken red chilies and cumin seeds. Let them splutter. add curry patta and immediately add the grated carrots as well. Add any other vegetable if using.

Stir fry for a couple of minutes or till the carrots wilt. Add salt and the drained sama ke chawal. Add the measured amount of water, mix everything well and cook covered on low flame. It cooks just like rice so check after 5-6 minutes and turn off the heat if the grains have absorbed all the water and have become al dante'. Keep covered for a while as it cooks on even after taking the pan off the flame.

Serve with raita and any curry or chutney on the side. Add fresh lime juice if required.

 I served it with zucchini raita and a quick paneer methi malai which is a fasting recipe too. I also had a little angoor ki chutney on the side. It was a yummy satisfying meal, full of varied flavors. Fasting food doesn't need to be boring and dull. You can always cook it interestingly.

Cheers for the new year and Navratra...

kuttu ki khichdi lauki tamatar ke saath | buckwheat khichdi with bottle gourd and tomatoes...

Kuttu ki khichdi is more like a stew that you can cook in about 20 minutes if all the vegetables are chopped. So technically it may be a buckwheat and bottle gourd stew with some bits of paneer for protein in the meal. A khichdi should have a grain and a lentil or more than one grain and lentils if we talk about authentic khichdi, but buckwheat groats can become almost khichdi like in consistency when cooked with a little extra water. Though it cooks like a pilaf as well.

Anyways, this dish is more like a one pot stew that can make a complete meal. We had it with a fish fry on the side as we are not into Navratri fasting anymore, but a large serving of raita or buttermilk will complete this meal if you are fasting.

You can use any gourd family vegetables to make this stew, sponge gourd and ridge gourd work well and zucchini also can be used for a good texture and mild taste that does not mask the nutty flavors of buckwheat. I used a soft bottle gourd of the round variety and some home grown tomatoes..

Buckwheat groats can be cooked with just the double amount of water volume wise to cook like pilaf and if the cooking liquid is more, the texture of the resultant dish is more risotto or stew like.

ingredients...

(2 meal servings with a side dish or raita)

chopped bottle gourd 5 cups (400 gm)

chopped ripe tomatoes 1.5 cup (150 gm)

finely chopped root ginger 1 tbsp

whole dry red chilly one broken

finely chopped green chilies to taste

curry powder (everyday curry powder) 1 tsp

turmeric powder 1/2 tsp

salt and pepper to taste

ghee 1.5 tbsp

cumin seeds 1 tsp

buckwheat groats 3/4 cup

paneer 100 gm chopped in small cubes

procedure...

Heat ghee in a pressure cooker pan (or a normal stockpot type pan) and tip in the cumin seeds. Let the cumin splutter before you add the red chilly broken and then the chopped ginger. Once cooked and fragrant, add the powdered spices and immediately add the chopped tomatoes and salt to taste. Cook this mixture till the tomatoes cook well and look like a chunky sauce.

Add the chopped bottle gourd (lauki), toss well and let it cook for about 5 minutes. Stirring it all once in a while. Add 2 cups of water and let it come to a boil. 

Add the buckwheat groats, mix well and cover the lid and pressure cook till the first whistle  If cooking in a stock pot, let it simmer covered till the buckwheat gets cooked. Add water if required to adjust consistency.

Add the cubed paneer and let it come a boil once again. Or just mix and cover if you want the khichdi  on the dry side.

Add finely chopped green chilies and coriander leaves if using.

Serve hot with raita or buttermilk on the side. The meal might look drab in color but the flavors are really good. Use the vegetable of your choice if you don't like bottle gourd but this meal becomes a detox type meal with bottle gourd used. Zucchini or pointed gourd (parval) would also be the same but any other vegetables would change the temperament of the meal a little.

Not to worry, all vegetables have their own benefits, so go ahead and cook this with spinach or a mix of bell peppers if you wish. Just take care not to mask buckwheat if you like the nuttiness of buckwheat.

This could be a daily meal during Navratri with changed vegetables and seasoning every day. Do let me know if you try this recipe.

Cheers and wishing you all a wonderful Hindu new year...

thandai : the quintessential holi drink | recipe of easy homemade thandai ...

Homemade thandai and easy? Yes. It takes just under 5 minutes to soak the ingredients and then another 10 minutes to make a paste after the soaking time. A concentrate of thandai is ready to be refrigerated and used as required. Add milk and enjoy thandai any time you like.

You must have come across Haldiram's Thandai or Mishrambu that is manufactured in Banaras. These bottles of thandai concentrate fly off the shelves of supermarkets and small shops alike during holi season. Thandai is a cooling drink to be enjoyed all over summer, but holi is the time when we start having thandai officially.

I had been planning to post a thandai for very long. Last year I made thandai after holi, took pictures too but that couldn't come to the blog. This time I thought let's treat you with this refreshing aromatic drink for the festival of holi. The bhang plant grows in my garden, it self seeds every year and I use it whenever required. For bhang waali thandai, there is nothing better than freshly plucked bhang (Cannabis leaves). Though nicely dried leaves are very aromatic as well.  Use dried leaves if you want.

Here is what you need for making about 10 glasses of thandai...

ingredients...

2 tsp fennel seeds
1 tbsp khuskhus or poppy seeds
1/2 cup of cashew nuts
1/4 cup of almonds
about 15 whole peppercorns (you can mix black and white peppercorns both)
1 tbsp dried rose petals
a generous pinch of saffron threads
about 2-3 tbsp of chaar magaz (melon seeds) is also added to this mix, I didn't have it this time

1/2 cup of sugar (or to taste)

Since I have some fresh bhang (cannabis leaves) growing in my garden, I used that too to make a bhang waali thandai, used 10 leaves to make 2 glasses of the green bhang waali thandai.

9-10 glasses of chilled full fat milk will be required to dilute the concentrate to make fresh chilled thandai.

procedure...

Soak all ingredients except milk and bhang leaves in about a cup of water or to submerge them all well. A minimum 2 hours of soaking will be good.

Blend in your mixie or food processor to make a smooth paste. Add the sugar too while blending the mixture.

Empty in a jar with lid as this is the concentrate to be refrigerated. If making fresh thandai for immediate use, dilute with chilled milk, blend again if you want it frothy and serve. Otherwise, take 2-3 tbsp of the concentrate, dilute with chilled milk to make a glass of thandai and serve.

To the same concentrate mix of thandai, add bhang leaves as required and blend again. Refrigerate or dilute immediately to make bhaang waali thandai. The regular thandai is also called kesaria thandai due to the use of saffron in it.

 If the kesaria thandai doesn't look enough yellow (kesari), don't worry. The blended saffron threads keep releasing color into the concentrate mix and make it quite yellow the next day..see how it releases color after just 5 minutes of blending..Adjust sweetening as per taste.

Bhang waali thandai has a very aromatic flavor of bhang, something relished by those who love it.

The Kesaria thandai has a prominent flavor of saffron, fennel and a mild hint of peppercorns. Richly nutty of course.

The amazing thing is, these hot peppercorns are cooling in nature when ground with water and taken with cold milk. The other ingredients are all cooling in nature as well.

 Now you realise how easy it is to make thandai at home. It doesn't take much time or effort as well.

Happy holi to you all and please do let me know whenever you try this recipe.

Cheers...

plantain n potatoes fry | fasting food made easy...

Yes the raw banana or plantain, commonly called as kachha kela can be made into a quick fry like potato finger chips. After the yam chips fit for a nice chai time snack here comes a fry which can be had as meal during fasting with a bowl of fresh curds .

This kind of a meal is an easy one step recipe involving shallow frying . The oil content is low as the shallow fried slices are drained on kitchen tissue .

I used unpeeled new baby potatoes and thinly peeled (using a potato peeler) raw plantain . For one serving you need one plantain and 2-3 baby potatoes .

Slice both the vegetables into 1 cm thin roundels .

Slit one or two green chillies and chop a handful of curry leaves .

Heat oil in a kadai and throw in the slit green chillies and curry leaves first in the oil , quickly followed by potato and plantain slices together.

Shallow fry them in medium low hot oil ( ghee or peanut oil are used during fasting ), till lightly browned . they remain soft inside and lightly crisp on the surface. Add salt ( rock salt for fasting ) to taste . Sprinkle turmeric water a few times while shallow frying the slices for a nice yellow color.

The slices need to turned and stirred continuously as while shallow frying they may get burnt on one side and stay raw on the other.

With a bowl of fresh curds , it is a nice meal , ready within 10 minutes starting from slicing the vegetables. This not a fattening meal as both the vegetables are complex carbohydrates and they are cooked along with their skins . Fat content is low and curry patta and green chillies make it even more healthy. I do not discard the curry patta and the green chillies visible in the picture as they taste great with the slices.

This fry can be a great side dish for any meal , not just for fasting.....

peppery yam chips...... fasting food

Yam is one of the root vegetables that can be eaten during fasting ... elephant yam and taro roots are very easily available in all North Indian markets , and this time of the year they are displayed on the stalls attractively along with plantains and sweet potatoes which are included in the fasting food list too.

I am talking about the zamikand ( meaning underground stem literally ) or the elephant yam . Taro roots or the arbi as it is called in hindi can be processed the same way to make chips.

The elephant yam is quite easy to cut into chips if you have a nice sturdy knife and some muscle. Just peel the brown skin and wash the block of yam you are using . Cut in one inch thick slices , again cut the slices lengthwise into 1 inch wide long batons . Now place 2-4 batons together on the chopping board and make as thin slices as you can . I did not click any pictures of the slicing process but you can use a slicer or food processor for your convenience and get nice slices of the yam.

Similar chips can be sliced from the taro roots after peeling them , they will result in round or oblong slices depending on the angle you choose for slicing them....

So , the square slices of elephant yam or the round slices of taro roots are thrown into hot oil to fry .

Start with a high flame and then fry the slices on medium flame so that they become dehydrated and cooked while frying . After about 7-8 minutes on medium flame ( if using 150 g of slices for one batch of frying ) the chips become pinkish brown and you can feel the crispiness .

Drain on kitchen paper and serve sprinkled with salt ( rock salt for fasting ) and pepper . Red chilly powder and amchoor powder can also be sprinkled if you like.

These chips do not absorb much oil and when drained on kitchen tissue they are not at all oily . Great for a masala chai during navaratri fasting or even during the other days....

Raw plantain chips can be made the similar way , i make them very often but i cannot upload any pictures right now ( I have to purchase space for that and the process in underway ) and these posts are coming from the drafts.

For raw plantains too you have to peel the green skin of the plantain ( which can be made into a yummy chutney ) slice them thinly and fry them directly into hot oil . A sprinkle of turmeric and asafoetida water ( 1 tsp of turmeric powder and a pinch of asafoetida dissolved in 50 ml water ) a few times into the hot oil while frying the plantain chips results in nice yellow hing flavored chips.

They are great sides for a daal chawal meal served instead of papad . Recently my younger brother loved the plantain peel chutney and plantain chips with a daal-chawal-subzi-raita lunch ...it's so fulfilling to see someone devouring into the food you cook with love.