Kesari Bhaat - केसरी भात (Saffron Infused Sweet Rice Preparation) - A Rajasthani Delicacy for my 401st Post

Hello Friends,


Updated: I had mistakenly written as 301st post whereas it is 401st. Silly me !!! :)


Wow, time just flies by, especially when you busy like hell. I have no memory of how these last couple of months passed. One more day and it will be September, whoa !!! Where has all the time gone? When I wake up in the morning, I usually consider that day almost done as it will pass without me doing anything, busy, busy, busy. 


OK, enough babbling. Today I am so happy that I am actually writing my 301st post. Can you believe, 401st post? It has been about 1.5 years since I started this blog, which was just an effort to have some Rajasthani recipes in one place as I did not find a single blog which had a lot of those. Most of the places had only those well-known 5 or 6 recipes. I am so proud to say that my blog boasts of about 90+ traditional Rajasthani and slight fusion recipes.


Also wanted to mention that I have now 316 follows (thanks everyone) and 228,729 hits.


Thank you to all my blogger friends and readers for their continued support and encouragement to make this blog what it is. If you all were not there, this blog wouldn't be where it is today. Thanks !!!


To celebrate this occasion, I am sharing a traditional and very commonly made Rajasthani sweet rice preparation. If you guys ever had Zarda recipe (a traditional Muslim Rice preparation), this is very similar to that.  Very easy to make and a perfect way to end your meal. I apologize for not a great picture. I was in real rush when I took it. When I make it again, I will try to replace this pic with a better one.


Kesari Bhaat - केसरी भात (Saffron Infused Sweet Rice Preparation)

Ingredients
Long Grain White Rice - 1 cup
Boiling Water - 1.5 - 2 cups (keep an eye on the rice while cooking and add more, if needed)
Sugar - 3/4 cup (adjust the quantity to suit your needs)
Saffron - a few strands (soaked in few tbsp of warm water)
Mixed nuts - 1/4 cup of your choice
Green Cardamom Powder - 1/2 tsp
Ghee (Clarified Butter) -2 tbsp
Preparation

• Wash and Soak rice for 1-2 hours. Drain after the period.
• Meanwhile in a non-stick pan take 1/2 tbsp ghee and fry your choice of mixed nuts) and keep separate.
• Take a heavy bottomed pan (to make sure that rice doesn't stick to the bottom) and add the remaining ghee.
• Once ghee is hot, add drained rice and fry till rice becomes translucent.
• Add boiling water to it along with saffron infused water and let it cook covered till it is about 3/4 way  cooked. Keep stirring every few minutes to make sure it doesn't stick to the bottom.
• Now, add sugar and cardamom powder. Mix well and cook to perfection.
• Mix in fried nuts and serve warm.
• Because of all the ghee and frying rice, the rice grains will be very fluffed and separate and not become mushy, unless you add a lot of water or overcook this recipe.

Serving
This is traditionally made on occasions as a perfect ending of a feast. Enjoy !!!


At this point, I also want to apologize to my fellow bloggers as I haven't been as regular in checking everyone's blogs as I was before. I am trying my best, but something it gets difficult to check every post. But, that is not an excuse, I will give it my best, I promise :)


That's all for now. Take care till next post.

Rajasthani Lahsan-Pyaaz-Kairi ka Achar - राजस्थानी लहसन-प्याज-कैरी का आचार (Garlic - Onion - Raw Mango Pickle)

Hello Friends,


How are you all? Today, I am here with an authentic Rajasthani/Marwari pickle that I learnt from a friend's mom who is visiting her these days. She had made it for her daughter and gave me a little to taste and I fell in love with it and wanted to learn it right away. Took the details, prepped my ingredients and then she helped me make it. Isn't it sweet. 


If you are a fan of pickles and spicy ones and you love garlic or onions, you will love it. Do give it a try.


Rajasthani Lahsan-Pyaaz-Kairi ka Achar - राजस्थानी लहसन-प्याज-कैरी का आचार (Garlic - Onion - Raw Mango Pickle)

Ingredients
Onion - 9 cups (measure after chopping them)
Garlic - 4 cups (peeled, big ones)
Raw Mango - 6 cups, (measure after grating)
Whole Dry Red Chilies - 2 cups
Spices
Saunf (Fennel Seeds) - 2 cups, dry roasted and coarsely ground
Peela Sarso (Yellow Mustard Seeds) - 1/4 cup, coarsely ground
Kalaunji (Black Caraway Seeds - 1/2 cup
Red Chili Powder - add depending on how spicy you would like it to be, remember that onion and garlic have a little spice on their own
Salt - as per your taste
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 cup or add based on how much color you want
Mustard Oil - 4-5 cups, feel free to use olive oil, but traditionally it is made with mustard oil
Preparation

• Wash, wipe and sun dry your glass jar to store the pickle in.
• Peel and chop onions in big pieces, as shown in the picture above, spread it on a tray or cloth and sun dry for 3-4 hours.
• Peel and sun-dry garlic for 3-4 hours.
• Wash, wipe well, peel and grate raw mango. Measure the quantity and then sun dry it for 3-4 hours.
• Prepare saunf and peela sarso as mentioned in ingredients
• Take a big enough bowl to mix all the ingredients and then mix all the spices in oil first.
• Now, add onion, garlic and raw mango to it and mix well.
• Fill it now in the dried glass jar (make sure to use glass or ceramic jar only). Let it sit on the counter.
• Next day, do a quick taste test to see that salt and spiciness is what you want. Make sure the pickle has enough oil (check my jar and see how much oil it needs). Mix the whole thing once thoroughly with a dry spoon.
• Keep stirring it for next 3-4 days before you indulge in it as onion/garlic specially need to soak that spice and oil in before you can eat them or else it will be like eating raw onion/garlic.
• Enjoy it after 3rd or 4th day !!!
• As it has onion/garlic, my friend's mom suggested me to keep it in fridge after a couple of week, if I still have leftovers (which I will as I made a lot...lol). She wasn't sure how long it will stay outside as it has raw onion/garlic. But, I will let you know how it goes. Just to be sure, I will refrigerate it anyways, don't want to loose all that goodness :)

Serving
Serve it with anything, roti, rice or even simple mathris. In my picture, I actually served it with dosa :)


I am sending this to Flavors of Rajasthan event @ Sonu's blog. The series was original started by Nayna.

That's all for now. Take care till next post.

Palak Gobhi Masala - पालक गोभी मसाला (Spinach Cauliflower Masala Curry)

Hello Friends,


I read somewhere that "Necessity is the mother of all inventions". How true. This is one such curry came out of a Rajasthani Kitchen where there was some cauliflower and spinach ready to be used or go in the trash situation.


It came out well, the combination was appreciated, so now it is a keeper :)


Palak Gobhi Masala - पालक गोभी मसाला (Spinach Cauliflower Masala Curry)

Ingredients
Cauliflower - 1 medium sized (about 2-3 cups)
Spinach - 2 cups (chopped or use baby spinach)
Onion - 1 cup, finely chopped
Tomato - 1 cup, finely chopped
Ginger - 1 tbsp, finely chopped or minced, as you prefer
Garlic - 1 tbsp, finely chopped or minced, as you prefer
Turmeric - 1 tsp
Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp (feel free to substitute it with chopped green chilies)
Coriander Powder - 1 tsp
Cumin Powder - 1 tsp
Amchur Powder - 1/2 tsp
Garam Masala - 1/2 tsp
Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Mustard Seeds - 1 tsp
Salt per taste
Oil - 2 tsps
Preparation

• Boil water in a pot.
• Add cauliflower and little salt and turmeric (a pinch) and let it boil for about 10 min. (par boil). Drain and keep aside.
• Heat a non stick pan and add oil to it.
• Once oil is hot, add cumin and mustard seeds.
• When they start spluttering, add onion and ginger/garlic to it.
• Fry till onion is translucent.
• Add tomato, spinach and dry spice powders (except garam masala) to it along with salt and cook till spinach is all wilted.
• At this point, if you do not like the spinach texture and feel like it, go for pureeing the entire contents of your pan (after it is cooled down a bit).
• If pureeing, pour the pureed spinach and spices back in the pan.
• Whether pureed or not, add boiled cauliflower to it, add about 1/4 cup water, add garam masala, cover and cook for another 10 min.
• If you think there is more water than you would want, remove the cover and let the water evaporate.
• Please adjust any spices mentioned above to your taste.
• Pureeing the gravy in a prior step will give your curry a nice smooth and green color.

Serving
Serve it warm with paratha/roti or hot rice.


That's all for now. Take care till next post.

Flavors of Rajasthan Event - My Entries

Hello All,


I was so happy when I saw this event announcement called Flavors of Rajasthan @ Sonu's blog. The series was original started by Nayna.

Here are some of my yummy contributions to this event. I have about 90+ Rajasthani recipes, now couldn't list all, but here are a top few. Enjoy !!!

1. Choorma (चूरमा)
2. Methi ki Launji (मेथी की लौंजी)
   
3. Panchmel Dal - पंचमेल दाल (Five Lentils Dal)
   
4. Baati - बाटी  (Wheat Balls - Rolls)
   
5. Gatte Ki Sabzi - गट्टे की सब्जी
   
6. Dahi Papd Ki Sabzi - दही पापड़ की सब्जी
   
7. Malai Mirch - मलाई मिर्च (Green Chillies in Heavy Cream) 
   
8. Ghiya and Chana Dal Ki Sabzi - घीया और चना दाल की सब्जी (Bottle Gourd and Gram Dal Curry)
   
9. Mooli Ki Bhunji - मूली की भूंजी (Fried Asian GiantWhite Raddish)
   
10. Dhaniye Ke Beej Ke Laddoo - धनिये के बीज के लड्डू (Coriander Seeds' Sweet)
    
11. Pyaaz Ki Kachori - प्याज की कचोरी (Onion Filled and Fried All Purpose Flour Balls)
    
12. Besan Laddoo - बेसन लड्डू (Chick Pea Flour Sweet Balls)
    
13. Kesariya Thandai - केसरिया ठंडाई (Saffron and Nuts Milk Shake)
    
14. Rajasthani Pakoda Kadhi - राजस्थानी पकोड़ा कढ़ी (Chickpea and Cilantro Fritters in Yogurt/Chickpea Gravy)
    
15. Lahsan ki chutney - लहसन की चटनी (Spicy Garlic Chutney)
    
16. Jaipur Mewe Ka Pulao - जयपुरी मेवा पुलाव (Jaipur Nuts Pilaf)
    
17. Sabz Jaipuri - सब्ज़ जयपुरी (Vegetable Jaipuri)
    
18. Kuttu Ke Aate Ki Poori - कुट्टू के आटे की पूरी (Fried Bread of Buckwheat Flour)
    
19. Bajre Ki Roti - बाजरे की रोटी (Millet Flour Flatbread)
    
20. Jau Ki Ghaat - जौ की घाट (Barley and Yogurt Raita / Drink)
    

There are many many more Rajasthni Recipes, you can check them by visiting here.


That's all for now. Take care till next post.

Rajasthani Dal Pakora - राजस्थानी दाल पकोड़ा (Rajasthani Lentil Fritters)

Hello Friends,

Another Blogging Marathon week. It is BM # 6 and I am doing Regional Specials again and will be posting 7 days of Rajasthani Delicacies. Today is Day 6 and here is my Rajasthani Special for the same.

Here is another delicious and addictive street side food or appetizer/snack that we get in Rajasthan. In Jaipur and other cities of Rajasthan, we don't even call it "Pakoda", but it is rather just called as "Dal Ke". It is a mix of 5 different lentils/pulses/beans and spicy and super yummy !!! They are crispy on the outside and soft in the inside. They are very filling too and I don't even have to tell you how protein packed they are :)


I thought of adding this later. For some of you, who do not know what chawli dal is, here is a pic that I took.

Sorry guys, took the picture in hurry, so not one of the best pics.

Rajasthani Dal Pakora - राजस्थानी दाल पकोड़ा (Rajasthani 
Lentil Fritters)

Ingredients

Peeli Moong Dal (Yellow Split Moong Bean) - 1/4 cup

Sabut Moong (Green Whole Moong Bean) - 1/4 cup

Dhuli Urad Dal (Split Black Gram) - 1/4 cup

Chawli/Chori Dal (Adzuki Beans) - 1/4 cup

Chana Dal (Split Bengal Gram) - 1/4 cup

Green Chilies - 3-4, finely chopped or ground, as you prefer

Ginger - 1 tbsp, minced or ground, as you prefer

Garlic - 1 tbsp, minced or ground, as you prefer

Saunf (Fennel Seeds) - 2 tbsp, crushed slightly

Dhaniya (Coriander) Seeds - 2 tbsp, dry roasted and crushed slightly

Cilantro - 1/4 cup, finely chopped

Heeng (Asafoetida) - 2 pinches

Salt - as per taste

Oil - for deep frying

Preparation

• Rinse and soak all dals together for 4-6 hours.
• Grind the soaked dal coarsely. If you are grounding green chili, garlic and ginger, you can grind them with dal.
• Mix the rest of the ingredients (except oil) to the ground dal mix.
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a heavy bottomed pan or wok.
• Take a handful or ground batter and slowly slide it in the hot oil to make the fritters. Depending on your comfort level, you can use your hand or a large spoon for this work.
• Deep fry them well till they are golden brown.
• Drain them on paper before serving.

Serving

Serve it with your favorite chutney or sauce. Traditionally, it is served with spicy cilantro chutney.

That's all for now. Do check out what other BM bloggers are doing.


Also, sending this to COOK IT HEALTHY - Proteinicious event of Shobha.

Rajasthani Lapsi - राजस्थानी लापसी (Broken Wheat Porridge)

Hello Friends,

Another Blogging Marathon week. It is BM # 6 and I am doing Regional Specials again and will be posting 7 days of Rajasthani Delicacies. Today is Day 5 and here is my Rajasthani Special for the same.

Rajasthani Lapsi - राजस्थानी लापसी (Broken Wheat Porridge)

Ingredients

Dalia (Broken Wheat) - 1 cup

Ghee (Clarified Butter) - 3/4 cup

Sugar - 3/4 cup

Water or Milk - 3 cups, it is your choice, I used about 3/4 milk and 1/4 water

Almonds and Raisins - 1/4 cup

Preparation

• Heat ghee in a heavy bottomed pan.
• Add dalia to it and roast till golden brown.
• Add milk/water that you are using and cook dalia on low heat till it is cooked well.
• Add sugar to it and let it melt completely.
• Mix in raisins and almonds and take it off the heat.

Serving

Serve it warm as a dessert.

That's all for now. Do check out what other BM bloggers are doing.

Moong Dal Ki Pakodi aur Kadhi - मूंग दाल की पकोड़ी और कढ़ी (Moong Bean Dumplings in Moong Bean and Yogurt Gravy)

Hello Friends,

Another Blogging Marathon week. It is BM # 6 and I am doing Regional Specials again and will be posting 7 days of Rajasthani Delicacies. Today is Day 4 and here is my Rajasthani Special for the same.

Today, I present to my readers a wonderful, rich and creamy kadhi made out of yellow moong dal. The kadhi mix has moong dal in it and so does the pakodis. So, I don't have to say, it is healthy and yummy both. I have used this recipe from Nisha Madhulika's blog, which is a wonderful blog of collection of recipes both in Hindi and English.

Moong Dal Ki Pakodi aur Kadhi - मूंग दाल की पकोड़ी और कढ़ी (Moong Bean Dumplings in Moong Bean and Yogurt Gravy)

Ingredients

Moong Dal (Yellow Moong Bean) - 1.5 cups

Yogurt - 2 cups

Water - 3 cups

Turmeric Powder - 2 tsp

Red Chili Powder - 2 tsp, you can also use chopped green chilies here

Cumin Powder - 2 tsp

Coriander Powder - 2 tsp

Amchur (Dry Mango Powder) - 1/2 tsp

Cumin Seeds - 1 tsp

Heeng (Asafoetida) - 1 pinch

Methi (Fenugreek) Seeds - 1 tsp

Cilantro - 1 cup, finely chopped

Kasoori Methi (Dry Fenugreek Leaves) - 1 tbsp

Salt - per taste

Ghee - 1 tsbp

Oil - for deep frying

Preparation

• Soak moong dal in water for about 2-3 hours and then grind to coarse paste with no water.
• Take about 1 cup of the ground paste and mix it with yogurt (till smooth) and water and keep aside.
• Mix finely chopped cilantro along with red chili (1 tsp), cumin (1 tsp), cilantro (1 tsp) and salt (per taste) to the rest of the moong dal paste.
• Deep fry this mixed batter made above (not the yogurt mix) into small lemon sized balls in hot oil an drain on a paper towel.
• Meanwhile, take a heavy bottomed pan and add ghee to it.
• Once ghee is hot, add heeng, cumin seeds and fenugreek seeds to it.
• As they start spluttering, add the remaining spice powders to the oil itself (turmeric, red chili, cumin, coriander and amchur).
• Fry for about 15 seconds and pour in the yogurt mix to it.
• Boil this mixture while stirring frequently.
• Once it starts boiling, mix in salt, kasoori methi and fried pakodas (fritters) to it and let it boil in medium heat for about 10-15 minutes. Add water if it becomes too thick.
• You will know it is done, when you will see the richness of it and nice aroma comes from it.
• The ingredients mentioned above will make enough kadhi for a family of 4-5 adults. So, adjust your quantity accordingly.

Serving

Serve it with hot rice or roti/paratha for a wonderful comfort meal.

That's all for now. Do check out what other BM bloggers are doing.

Moong Dal Halwa - मूंग दाल हलवा (Moong Bean Fudge)

Hello Friends,

Another Blogging Marathon week. It is BM # 6 and I am doing Regional Specials again and will be posting 7 days of Rajasthani Delicacies. Today is Day 3 and here is my Rajasthani Special for the same.

It is a very traditional halwa that is usually made on festivals or marriages or most commonly Diwali :)

Moong Dal Halwa - मूंग दाल हलवा (Moong Bean Fudge)

Ingredients

Moong Dal (Yellow Moong Bean) - 1/2 cups

Mawa/Khoa (Milk Reductions) - 1/2 cup

Ghee (Clarified Butter) - 1/2 cup

Sugar - 1/3 cup

Mixed nuts - I picked Cashew and raisins (broken), roasted in little ghee.

Preparation

• Soak moong dal in water for about 2-3 hours and then grind to coarse paste with no water.
• Heat ghee in a non-stick pan and fry ground moong till nice aroma comes from it and it stops sticking to the bottom.
• Now, add mawa and sugar to it and mix well, stirring frequently till, it all comes to a halwa/fudge consistency. 
• Once the dal is all cooked, nice aroma will come and the ghee will start separating, which would mean it is done.
• At this point, mix fried cashew and raisins to it or use it as garnishing in individual bowls, as you prefer.
• Alternatively, you can grease a plate, pour the cooked halwa right after you take it off from the heat and then cut in desired shapes. Just easy to serve and good portion size :)

Serving

Serve it as dessert (warm) to end a perfect dinner !!!

That's all for now. Do check out what other BM bloggers are doing.

Rajasthani Gujhiya - राजस्थानी गुझिया (Rajasthani Sweet Pastry Snack)

Hello Friends,

Another Blogging Marathon week. It is BM # 6 and I am doing Regional Specials again and will be posting 7 days of Rajasthani Delicacies. Today is Day 2 and here is my Rajasthani Special for the same.

Usually, Gujhiyas are made on any festival, but specially on Holi. Enjoy !!!

Rajasthani Gujhiya - राजस्थानी गुझिया (Rajasthani Sweet Pastry Snack)

Ingredients
For the outer Layer dough
Maida (all Purpose Flour) - 2 cups
Ghee or Oil - 2 tbsps
Baking Powder - 1 tsp (Optional, I just saw someone adding and added and liked, but traditionally you don't)
Salt - per taste
Warm Water - about 3/4 to 1 cup water
Oil - for deep frying gujhiyas
For Filling
Mawa/Khoa (Reduced Milks) - 1 cup
Mixed Toasted Nuts - 1 cup (I used a combo of Broken Cashew, Pistachio and Almonds)
Ghee - 1 tbsp
Sugar - 1 cup
Kesar (Saffron Strands) - few for garnishing and mixing in the filling.
Preparation

• Mix everything for the dough except water well.
• Add warm water, little by little and mix it into a hard dough.
• Cover and let it rest for about an hour.
• Meanwhile, take a non-stick pan.
• Add ghee and fry mawa (khoa) till it is nice and aromatic (light golden). Make sure it is not too darkened as it will get cooked a little in oil too.
• Take it off the heat and mix everything else for the filling and let it cool a bit.
• Heat the oil in a wok or deep bottomed pan.
• Pinch a small lemon sized ball from the dough and roll it into a circular shape (about 3-4 inches in diameter), depending on the mould you are using. If you are not using a mould, that is fine, then too, you can roll it into a 3-4 inch diameter circle.
• Now, place a big spoonful (about 1-2 tbsps) of filling in the middle. Eyeball the filling as you will know based on your circle, how much it will take comfortable.
• Apply little water on the edges of the circle and now fold the circle with filling in half (just as you see in my picture).
• Make all the dough into gujhiyas like this. 
• Now, slwly slide your gujhiyas in hot oil till (based on your kadahi - wok size, you can make multiples in one batch). 
• Deep fry them in medium heat, so that it is cooked well and to perfection (golden).
• Drain them on paper towel.
• Put them in serving dish and garnish with saffron strands and some nuts. You can also garnish with silver foil, if you have any.
• You can make up to 20 gujhiyas (varies depending on the size and all) from these ingredients.

Serving
Enjoy them as a snack anytime. It is not too sweet, so can be had literally anytime. Even with your evening tea or coffee :)


That's all for now. Do check out what other BM bloggers are doing.

Mawa Malpua (Malpua II)

Hello Friends,


Another Blogging Marathon week. It is BM # 6 and I am doing Regional Specials again and will be posting 7 days of Rajasthani Delicacies.


This time I wanted to start with a famous dessert :)


This is actually a Holi special, or shall I say we like to make it anytime. I learnt this from my SIL. I always used to make it like Malpua - I (which my mom taught me - kind of Bihari style).

Mawa Malpua - मावा मालपुआ (Reduced Milk Dessert)

Ingredients
Maida - 1 cup

Cheeni - 1 cup
Mawa - 1 cup
Warm Milk - to make thick batter (such that it can be spread on a griddle)
Grounded Ilaichi-  4-5
Grounded Kali Mirch - 5-7
Ghee/Oil - For frying

Pistachios and Almonds - For Garnishing

For Syrup
Sugar - 1.5 cups
Water - 3/4 cup

Preparation
Make 1 string sugar syrup with syrup ingredients (basically bring it to boil and let it cook for 3-4 minutes). Let it come to room temp and keep ready.
Mix all the ingredients of malpua except oil (like fritter or pancake batter).
Pour a spoonful of batter on a hot griddle and spread it like you would do for a small uttapam/pancake. 
Make it only that of a poori size (about 3 inches in diameter). 
Pour little oil/ghee on and around it and let it cook on each side for 60-90 seconds on medium heat. 
Once it is done dip malpuas in syrup and remove immediately.
Another way of doing it (if you are lazy like me), you can mix syrup in the batter itself and skip the extra step of dipping it in syrup. I usually make a few by dipping and then become too lazy and mix both and do the rest. The taste surely will be slightly different between both.
You can also deep fry these malpuas and don't really have to do it on griddle. I do it just to consume less ghee/oil. 
Malpuas are usually thick like pancake/uttapam. Make sure that it is cooked properly on both sides and it is not left raw from inside. 
Serve
As the other malpua, this can be eaten hot or cold as you may like. Garnish malpuas with some chopped pista and sliced almonds. It is also traditionally topped with some hot rabri (reduced milk dessert). I personally prefer warm ones :)

That's all for now. Take care till next post.