Nine days, Sublime bites

Dak Fara Badam Ki Chutney
Ingredients
Rice flour 150 gm
Hing (asafoetida)½ tsp
Channa dal (soaked) 4 tbsp        
Salt to taste
Chopped ginger ½ tsp        
Turmeric powder ½ tsp
Green Chilli (chopped) ½ tsp     
Jeera whole ¼ tsp

Method
Add water, rice flour and make soft dough.
Grind channa dal add chopped ginger, green chili, hing and turmeric.
Make small rice flour round patties and stuff with channa dal stuffing (1.5 tsp), fold into half-moon shapes and steam for 18 to 20 minutes.

Badam chutney
Peanut (handful) cleaned, coconut grated, green chili, salt to taste, grind all ingredients together and make smooth paste
In bowl, take sattu flour add chopped ginger, chopped green chillies, dry mango powder, ajwain seeds, kalonji seeds, mustard oil, salt.

Makuni with Tamatar chutney

Makuni with Tamatar chutney
Ingredients:
Whole wheat flour 250 gm
Sattu flour (roasted Bengal gram flour), 4 tbsp
Chopped ginger ½ tsp
Green chilli (chopped) ½ tsp     
Mustard oil 2 tsp
Dry mango powder ½ tsp
Ajwine seeds ¼ tsp
Kalonji seeds ¼ tsp
Salt to taste
Vegetable oil for frying 

Method
Take whole wheat flour, add water and make soft dough
For the stuffing
In a bowl, take sattu flour, add chopped ginger, chopped green chilies, dry mango powder, ajwain seeds, kalonji seeds, mustard oil and salt and knead together.

To make makuni
Divide dough into small portions, make into round shaped balls.   
Place a portion of the sattu mixture (approx two tsp) in the middle, enfold filling and pinch off the excess dough.
Make round shaped dumplings and deep fried on slow fire till golden brown.
For the tomato chutney, roasted cooked tomato 2 nos, chopped green chilli 1 no, chopped ginger fine ¼ tsp, mustard oil ½ tsp, salt to taste and chopped coriander. Remove roasted tomato skin and chopped it, add rest ingredients and grind together or mix well.

— Recipes courtesy Sandip Narang, executive chef, Taj West End

Sabudana khichdi

Sabudana khichdi
Ingredients
Sago 150 gm
Peanuts 50 gm
Green chillies 4-5
Potato 1 medium
Ghee 30 ml
Curry leaves 1-2 sprigs
Cumin seeds 5 gm
Salt to taste
Lemon juice 10 ml
Fresh coconut scraped 10 gm
Chopped fresh coriander 5 gm

Method
l Wash sabudana and soak in water/buttermilk overnight. Roast peanuts in a hot frying pan, peel off the skin and then grind coarsely using a rolling pin. Wash and chop green chillies finely. Peel and wash potato, cut into half cm cubes. Wash and chop coriander leaves. Heat ghee in a pan, add curry leaves, cumin seeds and chopped green chillies. When cumin seeds crackle, add potato cubes.Cook till potatoes are done. Add sabudana, scraped coconut and ground peanuts, sauté for four to five minutes, stirring well. Sprinkle a little water, add salt and lime juice. Mix well. Remove from heat. Garnish with  chopped coriander leaves.
 TIP: Soak the sago in buttermilk instead of water for added flavour

— Recipe courtesy sous chef Arun Gopal, Restaurant:24@43 at Crowne Plaza

Shirikand

Shirikand
Ingredients
Hung Curd 1 cup
Sugar ½ cup
Cardamom powder 1 tsp
Gulab jal 1 tsp
Charoli 1 tsp
Chopped Dry Fruits – Almonds, Pista 1 tbsp

Method
Place a thin muslin cloth on a strainer and pour the curd over it and loosely cover it with the edges of the cloth. Refrigerate and let the curd sit in the strainer for a minimum four to five hours. Add sugar and mix well. Pour the mixture in a sieve to yield smooth Shrikhand. Add elaichi, gulab jal, charoli, dry fruits and mix. Serve chilled.

Sabudana Kheer Recipe

Sabudana Kheer Recipe
Ingredients
(measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml)
l ½ cup tapioca pearls or sabudana for a denser kheer
l 4 cups milk
l 4 to 5 tbsp organic unrefined cane sugar or as required
l 4-5 green cardamoms, husked and crushed in a mortar-pestle to a semi fine powder
l 2 tbsp chopped cashews
l ½ tbsp raisins
l 3-4 saffron strands/kesar (optional)

Method
Rinse sabudana pearls till the water runs clear of the starch.
Take a thick bottomed pan or saucepan to make the kheer.
Add rinsed sabudana pearls and water in the pan.
Later, keep pan on the stove top and begin to cook the pearls.
Meanwhile, heat or warm the milk too. No need to boil it.
After four to five minutes, add milk to the pan and continue to cook.
Add sugar and cardamom powder and simmer till the pearls have cooked well — for about 20-25 minutes on a low to medium flame.
Keep on stirring occasionally.
Switch off the fire and add cashews and raisins.
Garnish the sabudana kheer with saffron strands.
Serve sabudana kheer hot or warm or cold.

Singhada aloo ki puri

Singhada aloo ki puri
Ingredients
2.5 to 3 cups singhare ka atta
2 mashed potatoes
2 green chillies
1 tsp cumin powder
2 tsp oil
Rock salt or sendha namak
Water to bind dough

Method
Cook potatoes with rock salt and mash them.
Add other ingredients, including oil.
Make a well first. Add very little water and knead dough.
Don’t add water unless required.
Knead dough and if it looks dry or lumpy in some parts, then add little water and knead again.
The dough should be smooth and pliable.
Take small or medium sized balls from the dough. Stuff potatoes.
Sprinkle some water chestnut flour on the rolling board.
Roll the balls into small or medium sized pooris.
Heat oil in a kadai for deep frying the pooris.
When the oil is hot, place the poori gently in the oil.
When the pooris are golden, remove from the slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Serve the singhare ki poori hot.

— Executive chef Suvaranjan Banerjee The Lalit Ashok

Honey Chilly Arbi

Honey Chilly Arbi
Ingredient
Arbi 300 gm, corn flour 15 gm, ginger chopped 10 gm, celery 5 gm, oil refined    15 ml, and some oil to fry, chilly flakes 5 gm, tomato ketchup 10 ml, chilly paste 5 gm, salt and pepper to taste, light soya sauce 2 ml, Chinese rice vinegar 1 ml
Method
Boil arbi and peel of skin, cut it into finger sized pieces. Dust the cut arbi with corn flour and crisp fry till golden brown. In a hot oak, add oil, celery ginger, sauté, add chilli paste tomato ketch up, add salt and pepper. Finish the sauce by adding honey and heating it lightly, don't allow the sauce to boil. Assemble the dish by tossing the golden fried arbi into the sauce.

— Recipe courtesy executive chef Rayomund Pardiwalla, Movenpick Hotel and Spa