5 Sindhi Dishes made from the Leftovers
No matter how particular you are about cooking just the right quantities of food, there may be some leftover food at your home, at some point of the time. Generally we just reheat the food and consume as it is but there are times when we relish the leftovers in a different avatar. Here are 5 such Sindhi style recipes requiring a few basic ingredients to give a makeover to your leftovers.
Do tell me in the comments section if you have tried any of these. Also do tell me about your favorite dishes from any cuisine, made using leftovers.
Let’s check the 5 Sindhi dishes from Leftovers:
Saibhaji Tikki :
Most of you must have cooked or tasted the Sindhi Saibhaji; a healthy mish mash of Spinach and other greens, assorted veggies/onions, tomatoes, dal and basic spices. And when Sindhis have some leftover Saibhaji they love to turn the subzi into Tikkis (Kebab/Patty).
Just heat the Saibhaji to reduce excess moisture, if any and add some Gram flour/Semolina (either or both) for the binding. Adjust the seasoning. You can add some chopped onions, coriander leaves, pounded anardana, some amchoor and a little of garam masala to enhance the flavors. Divide into small portions and make round patty/tikkis.
Heat a griddle/pan, spread some Ghee/oil and place the tikkis. Cook on medium heat, flipping intermittently, till the tikkis are brown and crisp. Sprinkle some chaat masala/Amchoor before serving. Tastes best with Mint coriander chutney.
Seyal Phulka
Also called Seyal Maani, this dish is one of the most popular dishes in Sindhi cuisine and it is made using leftover roti/chapati/Phulka. It is made in a few different ways.
Some prefer cooking it in a pounded greens’ mix while others make it in garlic tomato base. Some stuff the green mix in leftover rotis (whole), fold it like a Calzone and cook it under some weight, on a griddle.
I prefer the one made using fresh green garlic (when in season) and tomatoes. You can use regular garlic when fresh green garlic is not available.
Check the Recipe Video of Sindhi Seyal Maani/Seyal Phulka!
You can check more Sindhi food recipes on my Youtube channel SindhiRasoiOfficial. Do like, subscribe and share with your friends and family.
Aur Pya Chanvar
Aur means Mustard seeds and Chanvar means Rice in Sindhi. The ‘tempered’ /stir fried rice dish is popular in many regional cuisines but Sindhis make it with the most basic tempering.
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pan, add a few curry leaves and 1 tsp mustard seeds. When the seeds crackle, add 1 tsp (or as per taste) red chilli powder, 1/4 th tsp turmeric powder and add leftover boiled/steamed rice (around 2 cups). Add some salt to taste and sprinkle a few drops of water. Mix well and cook on medium heat for 3-4 minutes.
I prefer the rice to be softer in texture and hence I add 2-3 tbsp of water and cover the pan with a lid and cook it on low flame for 5 minutes.
Enjoy Aur Pya Chanvar piping hot, with some Papad/Dahi/Pickle.
Dal Jo Chilro
A Chilro is a savoury pancake and is generally made using whole wheat flour or Gramflour (Besan Jo Chilro). But Ma, my MIL, often makes the Cheela (Chilro) from leftover mung dal.
Heat the leftover mung dal well to thicken its consistency . For one cup of thickened dal, you may need 2 tbsp of besan/atta and 1-2 tbsp of suji (Semolina). Besan acts as thickening as well as a binding agent. Semolina too absorbs the moisture and renders crisp texture to the Cheela. You can adjust the proportions of flour and Suji as per your liking. The idea is to make a batter of spreadable consistency. Leave aside the batter for 10 minutes.
Heat a flat pan/griddle and pour around 1 tbsp of oil/ghee. When hot, carefully add this hot oil to the batter. This is to make the Chilro more crisp. Now spread the batter on the pan (divide the batter in two portions if you want thinner cheela). Cook on medium to low flame, flipping gently in between. Do add some more oil/ghee while cooking. Cook it till the surface appears to be brown and crisp. Relish it hot, with some green chutney or Ketchup. Goes well with bread as well as Roti.
Here is the Recipe Video of Cheela made from leftover Dal!
Mithi Dab^al (Sweetened Bread)
If you have few leftover bread slices that are not fresh enough to make Sandwiches or if you have some leftover syrup after the Gulab Jamuns are done and dusted with, then this simpler, dairy free version of Shahi Tukda/ Double Ka Meetha is just perfect to use up the leftovers and to satiate your sweet cravings.
Just cut the bread slices in any shape (Triangle, Circle, Square, Rectangle), deep fry till golden brown and crisp and allow it to cool down a bit. Add the fried bread pieces to warm (and not the hot) syrup, remove on a plate/platter and enjoy. The bread may turn too soggy if you dip hot bread in hot syrup. Also, the bread may not soak enough syrup if the bread and syrup both are very cold.
Drizzle some syrup while serving and garnish with chopped nuts for that extra oomph.
Do share your tips/tricks/recipes to use the leftover food in a delicious way.
