Gujarati Thali

This healthy and tasty Gujarati meal has been completely inspired from Tarla Dalal ji's recipes. A year back or so, all that I knew was, any Indian cuisine apart from the four southern states, will be termed as "North" Indian cuisine!! I really feel silly about myself to have been thinking that way but now I am happy that I am exploring and getting to know more about various Indian cuisines. So this weekend I planned for a Gujarati dinner. On going through various Gujarati dishes, I came to know how unique it is and the best part is that it consists of a lot of healthy ingredients. Millets are incorporated in the dishes in innovative ways to make them very tasty! I am very happy to share with you all this special Gujarati dinner that I prepared.

Menu:

• Dhokla (Steamed snack)
• Lapsi (Broken wheat dessert)
• Dapka Kadhi (Steamed pakoda gravy)
• Tindoranu Shaak (Mixed stuffed vegetables)
• Dhebra (Spiced wheat and millet snack)
• Bajri no rotlo (Millet flat bread)
• Ram Khichdi (Mixed vegetables in dal chaawal/rice)
• Masala Chaas (Spiced buttermilk)

Eating Healthy can be absolutely tasty too! See you all soon with different and interesting recipes!

Masala Chaas

I first tasted chaas in Rajdhani restaurant and simply loved it! It is an excellent summer chiller and also a good accompaniment during heavy meals as it helps in good digestion. It is a very simple recipe and tastes best when served chilled!

INGREDIENTS:

• Whisked curds - 2 cups
• Cumin seeds powder - 1 Tsp
• Ginger-green chilli paste - 1/2 Tsp
• Salt - To taste
• Black salt - 1/2 Tsp (optional)
• Oit - 1 Tsp
• Cumin seeds - 1/4 Tsp
• Asafoetida - 1/4 Tsp
• Chopped coriander leaves - for garnishing

METHOD:

1. Combine all ingredients except oil, cumin seeds and asafoetida and mix well. Black salt is optional. I did not add as I do not like the flavor much
2. If you feel the mixture is too thick, add half a cup of water
3. Temper the mixture with cumin seeds and asafoetida
4. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves
5. Serve chilled

Ram Khichdi (Mixed vegetables moong dal khichdi)

While hunting for recipes for my Gujarati meal in Tarla Dalal ji's site, I came across this yummy khichdi which is very easy to make. This is a traditional Gujarati khichdi from the land of Kathiyavad. It is infact a complete meal by itself as it is loaded with different vegetables and tastes best with a simple kadhi or even a pappad.

INGREDIENTS:

• Yellow moong dal - 1/2 cup
• Uncooked rice - 1/2 cup
• Ghee - 1 Tbsp
• Cloves - 2
• Cinnamon stick - 1'' piece
• Bay leaf - 1
• Cumin seeds - 1/2 Tsp
• Mixed vegetables, chopped (cauliflower, beans, carrot, peas, potato) - 1 cup
• Onions - 1/2 cup, finely chopped
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 Tsp
• Red chilli powder - 1 Tsp
• Garam masala - 1/2 Tsp
• Salt - as needed

METHOD:

1. Clean, wash and soak moong dal and rice together in enough water for 15 minutes. Drain and keep aside
2. Heat ghee/oil in a pressure cooker and add the cumin seeds, cinnamon, cloves and bay leaf
3. When the cumin seeds start to sizzle, add the onions and saute till they become translucent
4. Add the chopped vegetables, turmeric, red chilli powder, garam masala and saute in medium flame for 4 minutes
5. Add rice, moong dal, salt and saute for a few minutes on a medium flame
6. Add 4 cups of water, mix well and pressure cook for 4 whistles
7. Serve hot with kadhi and pappad

Bajri no Rotlo (Millet flat bread)

Bajri no rotlo is a traditional Gujarati dish which is a millet roti or flat bread. Millets come with a wide range of health benefits and it is very good for weight watchers and diabetic people. This is the first time I have tasted bajra roti and I liked it a lot. I made it along with kadhi and Tindora (Kovakkai) subji but the traditional way of serving bajri no rotlo is with a spoonful of ghee and jaggery (Yumm :P )

INGREDIENTS:

• Bajra flour (Millet flour) - 3 cups
• Water - 1 and 1/2 cups
• Salt - 1/2 Tsp
• Oil - very little for pan frying

METHOD:

1. Mix the flour, salt and water and knead it well into a soft dough
2. Allow it to rest for 20 minutes
3. Divide the dough into small balls and roll them into thick rotis
4. If the dough sticks to your working area, place a cling flim and roll out the rotis over it
5. Pan fry the rotis on both sides with very little oil
6. Serve hot

Accompaniments options:

• Ghee and Jaggery
• Tindora nu shaak
• Kadhi

Dhebra

Dhebra is a traditional Gujarati snack, which is a spiced millet flat bread. Dhebras are either deep fried like pakodas or they are rolled into small tikkis and pan fried. I have tried the second variation here. Dhebras can be made in huge batches and taken as a travel snack and can be had as such or with any pickle of your choice.

• INGREDIENTS:
• Whole wheat flour - 1 cup
• Bajra flour (millet flour) - 1/3 cup
• Sour Curd - 1/2 cup
• Jaggery - 1 Tbsp
• Ginger-garlic paste - 2 Tsp
• Cumin seeds powder - 1/2 Tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 Tsp
• Red chilli powder - 1/4 Tsp
• Salt - as needed
• Kasoori Methi - 2 Tbsp (even finely chopped fresh fenugreek/methi leaves can be added)
• Oil - 2 Tbsp
• Oil - for pan fry

METHOD:

1. Combine sour curd and jaggery and mix very well to avoid any lumps
2. Add in all the spices and mix well. Keep aside
3. Add 2 Tbsp of oil to the flour and mix well till oil is well incorporated into the flour
4. Pour in the spiced curd mixture and make a soft dough without adding water
5. Knead well and drizzle few drops of oil over the dough. Cover and allow it to rest for 20 minutes
6. Divide them into small balls and roll into small thick rotis/tikkis
7. Pan fry them on both sides with very little oil
8. Enjoy the flavorful dhebras as such or with any pickle of your choice! 

Tindora nu shaak (Stuffed Tindora/Kovakkai)

Tindora/Kovakkai is a common veggie at home but what we have been doing usually is to just make it like a dry curry along with onion and tomato. Tindora nu shaak is a Gujarati recipe and it is made by filling each and every tindora with mixed spices. It has a special aroma to it and is a great accompaniment with any rice or roti. Usually tindoras take a long time to get cooked but this recipe follows a pressure cook method which makes it very easy and fast for the tindoras to get cooked.

INGREDIENTS:

• Tindora/Kovakkai - 15
• Oil - 3 Tbsp
• Asafoetida - 1/4 Tsp

For Stuffing:

• Grated coconut - 5 Tbsp
• Coriander leaves - 1/2 cup, finely chopped
• Coriander-cumin powder - 5 Tsp
• Chilli powder - 1 Tsp
• Ginger-green chilli paste - 2 Tsp
• Sugar - 1 Tbsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/2 Tsp
• Salt - as needed
• Gram flour/besan - 2 Tsp

METHOD:

1. Slit the tindoras through their centre upto 3/4th of their length
2. Mix together all the ingredients mentioned under "For Stuffing"
3. Stuff the tindoras with the mixed spices. If there is any more stuffing left over, just add it over all the tindoras and mix well
4. Heat oil in a pressure cooker and add asafoetida and saute for a few seconds
5. Add the stuffed tindoras, very little water and pressure cook for 2-3 whistles

Dapka Kadhi (Steamed Pakoda Kadhi)

A Gujarati meal is incomplete without Kadhi. There are different kinds of alterations that can be done to this humble recipe and when I planned for a Gujarati Thali, I decided to go for a pakoda kadhi. But I didn't want to deep fry the pakodas so when I came across the steamed kadhi recipe in Tarla Dalal ji's site, I bookmarked it and tried it. I do feel that deep frying them would have enhanced the taste but still the steamed version too tasted very nice!

INGREDIENTS:

For Pakoda:

• Yellow moong dal - 1/4 cup, soaked
• Grated Raddish - 1/4 cup
• Ginger-green chilli paste - 1/2 Tsp
• Besan (Yellow gram flour) - 2 Tsp
• Salt - to taste

For Kadhi:

• Yogurt - 1 cup
• Besan - 2 Tbsp
• Cumin seeds - 1 Tsp
• Asafoetida - 1/4 Tsp
• Ginger-green chilli paste - 1 Tsp
• Turmeric powder - a pinch
• Oil - 1 Tbsp
• Salt - to taste

METHOD:

To make pakodas:

1. Soak moong dal in enough water for 15-20 minutes
2. Drain out all the water and grind it into a coarse paste, without adding any water
3. Grate the raddish and squeeze out all the water from raddish
4. Mix raddish along with ground dal and add ginger-green chilli paste, besan, salt and mix well
5. Make small balls and keep aside

To make Kadhi:

1. Whisk curds. Add besan and mix very well so that no lumps are left behind
2. Add turmeric powder, ginger-green chilli paste and mix well
3. Heat oil in a pan, add cumin seeds and when it sizzles, add asafoetida
4. Pour in the curds mixture, salt and 2 cups of water and give it a good stir
5. When it starts to boil, reduce the flame and start adding the pakodas carefully one by one. In case the pakodas crumble, add more besan to it and then add to the kadhi (You could also deep fry them or microwave for 2 minutes before adding it to the kadhi)
6. Allow it to boil for 5-10 minutes until the pakodas are cooked (If you are deep frying them, then they can be added at the end after kadhi boils)
7. Garnish with coriander and serve hot

Kadhi goes well with:

• Khichdi
• Methi Pulao
• Bajra Roti

Lapsi (Broken wheat dessert)

Lapsi is a Gujarati dessert made with broken wheat. Broken wheat can take a long time to cook but here I have done the dessert in a pressure cooker, thus making it very simple and easy to prepare. There are different varieties in which lapsi is made. Usually it requires a lot of ghee and sugar but I chose to use lesser amount of ghee and sugar when I came across the pressure cooker version of lapsi in Tarla Dalal ji's site.

INGREDIENTS:

• Broken wheat - 1/2 cup
• Sugar - 1/2 cup
• Ghee - 3 Tbsp
• Raisins - 1 Tbsp
• Cashew nuts - 1 Tsp
• Cardamom powder - 1/4 Tsp

METHOD:

1. Heat ghee in a pressure cooker
2. Add broken wheat and saute it for 5 minutes on a medium flame
3. Add cashew nuts, raisins and mix well. Cook for about a minute
4. Add sugar, one and a half cups of hot water and pressure cook for 4 whistles on high fame
5. Serve hot, garnished with cardamom powder

Instant Dhokla

Dhokla is one of the most famous snack of Gujarati cuisine. It is a steamed snack which is very flavorful and also healthy. Traditionally the dhokla batter is made through a long fermentation process. But here is a simple instant method to make dhokla and when you have surprise guest at home, you can surprise them back with this instant dhokla along with green chutney and a hot cup of tea! 

INGREDIENTS:

• Gram flour (besan) - 1 and 1/2 cups
• Semolina (Rava/sooji) - 2 Tbsp
• Water - 1 and 1/4 cups
• Oil - 1 Tbsp
• Baking soda - 1/4 Tsp
• Eno fruit salt - 1 and 1/4 Tsp
• Salt - 1 Tsp
• Sugar - 2 Tsp
• Turmeric powder - 1/4 Tsp
• Ginger-green chilli paste - 1 Tsp
• Lemon juice - 2 Tsp

For Tempering:

• Oil - 1 Tsp
• Mustard seeds - 1 Tsp
• Green chillis - 2-3 slit across the length
• Lemon juice - 1 Tbsp
• Water - 1/2 cup
• Sugar - 2 Tbsp
• Coriander leaves - 2 Tbsp, finely chopped

METHOD:

1. Sift gram flour. Mix gram flour, semolina, water, oil, salt, sugar, turmeric, ginger-green chilli paste into a smooth batter of thin pouring consistency. Beat well
2. Add eno fruit salt and baking soda in the centre of the batter and sprinkle few drops of lemon juice over it. Once it starts to bubble, gently fold in the batter. Make sure NOT to over mix it
3. Pour the batter immediately into a greased steamer or dish. Steam it for 10 minutes. If you are using a pressure cooker, make sure not to put on the weights or whistle
4. Remove from fire and allow it to rest for 5 minutes
5. For tempering, mix oil, chillis, mustard seeds, sugar, water and lemon juice and heat it for a minute or two. Pour it over the dhokla and wait for 20 minutes for the dhoklas to become soft
6. Cut into pieces, garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve hot with green chutney!