Jams/Pickles Archives | Sindhi Rasoi |Sindhi Recipes

A to Z Of Sindhi Food

Alka Keswani — Mon, 10 Jan 2022 13:46:01 +0000

When I started working on my project about documenting ancient, traditional as well as lost recipes from Sindhi cuisine, a few years ago, the biggest challenge I faced was the lack of accessible information about the same. The limited documents that I could access, were in Arabic Sindhi, a script that I never could learn, despite of trying umpteen number of times, since my childhood. I felt stuck up. So the only way to move forward was to learn the Arabic script and to make sure that I don’t give up this time, I took up a challenge; The AlifBe of Sindhi cuisine i.e A-Z of Sindhi food. You can read more about this project here! It was a roller coaster ride and I ain’t exaggerating! The challenges I faced while trying to understand the basics of the scripts, the consonants (52 alphabets!!!!), the vowels, the formation of alphabets, the corresponding alphabets in Devanagari and Roman Sindhi, to find apt dishes, the recipes etc were immense and as if the stress was not enough, I took a plunge and started creating recipe videos too despite of knowing that I will have to learn shooting a video, to manage recording and cooking at the same time, to edit the video (biggest challenge) and to publish it, on my own.I was a nut case! Though I did end up taking a lot of help from my better half but still I managed to pull most of the things on my own. I feel accomplished! I am still not well versed with the script as the word formation is bit difficult to understand unless you are able to remember how each alphabet appears in any word depending on its position in the word. For Example look at the جهہ (Jh/झ) and its various avatars… I need to put more efforts to learn, to memorise and to understand the nuances of the language and the script but I am feeling hopeful! I cannot move ahead without thanking those who played an important part in this project of mine! A big thank you to Shobha Lalchandani Di, Barkha Khushalani Di, Amrita Lal, Surraya Kapri and Deepak Keswani for being always there to help me understand the script, to clear my doubts and to encourage me to keep marching on. Thank you Asha Chand Di, for your ‘Learn Sindhi’ App as it helped me in practising the alphabets in a fun way. Thank you Deepak Keswani, yet again, for creating easy to use Sindhi Dictionary and Sindhi Keyboard Winding up the project AlifBe with this handy, easy to refer list of all the dishes. Do click on the links provided, to get the recipe. Please note that out of 52 alphabets of Alif Be (The Arabic Sindhi script) I had to skip three alphabets; ظ ,ح ,ث since I couldn’t find any Vegetarian Sindhi dish with the names starting with these particular alphabets. So here we go!!! A to Z of Sindhi Food (AlifBe of Sindhi food): ا (अ/A) as inAhmedabad or as in Atte Ja Ladoon ب (ब/B) as in Baby or as in Besan Ji Aani ٻ (B^) as in B^aaru (child) or as in B^itto Lolo پ (प/P) as in Parrot or P as in Pali ڀ (भ/Bh) as in Bharat or as in Bheendi Khatti ت (त/T~) as in Taiwan or as in Tosha ٿ (थ/Th~) as in Thirsty or as in Thumaro ٽ (ट/Tt) as in Towel or as in Tamate Ji Chutney ٺ (ठ/Th) as in Thakur or as in Thab^ak Vadiyun ث (स/S) as in Simple or as in Saandhano ج (ज/J) as in Japan or as in Jwar Ji Tikki ڄ (ॼ/J^) as in J^ibh or as in J^eth Ji Sesa جهہ (झ/jh) made by combining ج ( J) and ھ (h) as in Jhansi or as in Jhang Pulao ڃ (ञ/J~) as in J^aj`a Ji Roti چ (च/Ch) as in Chair or as in Chetichand Ji Sesa ڇ (छ/Chh) as in Chhattisgarh or as inChhola Dabhal خ (ख़/Khh) as in Khalifa or as in Khhoraak د (द/D~) as in Dehradun or as in Dal Dimma ڌ (ध/Dh~) as in Dharamshala or as in Dhaage Waara Karela ڏ (ड/D^) as in D^aha (Ten in Sindhi) or as in D^othiyun ڊ (ड/D) as in Daddy or as in Dabal Pakora ڍ (ढ/Dh) as in Dhaka or as in Dhodho Chatni ذ (ज़/Z) as in Zaro or as in Kagzi Lemon Pickle ر (र/R) as in Rajasthan or as in Raanh ڙ (ड़/R^) as in लड़का, पेड़, लड़ाई or as in Rabdi ز (ज़/Z) as in Zanzeer or as in Zaefrani Kulfi ش (श/Sh) as in Shimla or as in Sharbat ص (स/S) as in Summer or as in Misri ض (ज़/Z) as in Zaroor or as in Zaroori Masalha ط (त/T~) as in Tara or as in Ta’am ع (अ/A) as in Arab or as in Arq غ (ग़/G̣) as in Gazal or as in Magaz Ja Ladoo ف (फ़/F) as in Faluda or as in Faludo ڦ (फ/Ph) as in Phone or as in Phepho Mirch ق (क़/Q) as in Qatar or as in Qeeme Jo Lolo ڪ (क/K) as in Kashmir or as in Kokum Waari Dal ک (ख/Kh) as in Khajoor or as in Khoyo گ (ग/G) as in Ganga or as in Gyarsi Khado ڳ (ग्/G^) as in G^aaro (Red) or as in G^ach For Mahalaxmi گهہ (घ/Gh) as in Ghee or as in Ghotyal Saag^ ڱ (ङ/ng/G~) as in Singing or as in Singyun Tamate Mein ل (ल/L) as in Love or as in Lor^h م (म/M) as in Mithai or as in Majoon Barfi ن (न/N) as in Nagpur or as in Nasarpuri Seyal Bhaji ڻ (ण/N~) as in Brahman or as in Batan Papdi Chaat و (व/V) as in Varanasi or as in Vataran Ji Lilotari ھ (ह/H) as in Haridwar or as in Hurbe Jeere Mein Patata ء (अ/A/Hamzo/Amdhro) as in Mau or as in Gogrun Ji Khatain ي (य/Y) as in Yam or as in Viyam Ja Khaada

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Gogru Ji Khatain|AlifBe~48

Alka Keswani — Wed, 29 Dec 2021 09:50:57 +0000

You can check the Insta reel about how to make Turnip pickle here! The 48th Consonant of Sindhi Alphabet is ء, called as ‘Hamzo’ in Sindhi. Hamzo or Amdhro as some call it, is often used as a glottal stop. It is, many a times, used as a vowel glide (when two vowels glide into one another), in a word; for example as in ‘Ma-u‘ (Mother in Sindhi), Mitha-i (sweet) etc. So basically a hamzo is placed in between the two vowels in a word that doesn’t ends with ‘A’ as in Alaph (Alif) ! . There are some set rules for using a Hamzo and these rules vary with the languages. A Hamzo in Urdu may be used in a different way than in Arabic Sindhi. A Hamzo, in Arabic Sindhi is not used in the beginning of any word and is generally ‘seated’ on a vowel. Honestly speaking I am still trying to figure out the rules for using this particular alphabet. For now I can say that in Roman Sindhi it is represented by ‘A‘, just like Alif and Ayn! And since no dish exists with the name beginning with a Hamzo, I have picked Sindhi style Gogrun ji Khatain~ for the 48th alphabet of Arabic Sindhi script! Video Recipe of Gogrun Ji Khatain (Turnip Pickle)! Gogrun in Sindhi means Turnips and Khatain~ means something sour/acidic/a pickle! This is a seasonal delicacy since we get Turnips and fresh green garlic only in winters. One can you Onions, spring onions (only the bulbs), carrots etc to make this pickle. In summers this pickle is made without fresh garlic and trust me the flavors are way less intense than the one made using green garlic. It is truly a game changer here! Print Gogrun Ji Khatain|AlifBe~48 Ingredients Turnips 4 Rai dal / coarsely pounded mustard seeds 2 tbsp Salt 1 + 1 tbsp Fresh green garlic 3-4 bulbs and stalks (whole) Red chilly powder ½ - 1 tbsp (As preferred) Turmeric powder ½ + ½ tbsp Water 1+1 glass Method Peel and cut turnips into cubes. Chop the green garlic roughly and pound it slightly. In a pan put the turnip cubes, 1 tbsp of salt and ½ tbsp of turmeric powder and add a glass of water. Boil the turnips till translucent (5-8 minutes). Drain and cool the mix. Or you can allow it to cool and then drain. In a clean and dry bowl, put drained turnips, add 1 tbsp salt, ½ tbsp turmeric powder, ½ tbsp or more red chilli powder, pounded garlic and rai dal . If you don't have the rai dal, just use 2 tbsp of coarsely pounded mustard seeds. Mix everything well. In a clean and dry glass jar (barni) transfer the mixture and add 1 glass of water. Make sure that all the turnips are immersed in the water. Mix well and cover with the lid. Shake the jar once or twice in a day, for 4-5 days. Depending on the climate/weather, the pickle may take 4-7 days to mature. When the rawness of garlic is gone, the pickle is ready to consume. The shelf life of pickle is 8-10 days. If refrigerated, it may stay good for two weeks. Always make this pickle in small batches. The tangy water is not only delicious to slurp but it is also gut friendly. 3.5.3251 And as always, here is a short video tutorial about how to write Hamzo in Arabic Sindhi!

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Chap Chatni~ SweetTamarind Dip

Alka Keswani — Sat, 19 Jun 2021 13:50:55 +0000

Chap Chatni (Chap-p chutney)… the name itself evokes a wave of nostalgia; of the times when sneaking out of the school gates to buy eatables during the recess (lunch break) was common. The carts loaded with seasonal Indian berries (Remember Ber/ Hiramoti?), cucumber, raw mangoes, fresh tamarind, starfruit etc would be buzzing with the kids buying stuff in a hurry. Of course there were Vada paos, Samose, Barf gola (Chuski), lemonade etc that our moms never approved of but were still bought with our ‘barely existing pocket money’! You can read more about the childhood memories of food sold outside schools, here! Another thing that my mom would warn us against, was Chap Chatni. The furious red colored, tangy and sweet, lick-able chutney sold out side the school gates that kids were crazy about, was prohibited for us. Not only outside the school gates but at the beaches of Mumbai one can find vendors selling the chatpata stuff! The vendor would plonk a spoon full of it on the piece of newspaper and the kids would literally scoop it with the finger and lick it. Chap Chatni ( Roughly meaning ‘lip smacking’) is basically a tamarind dip with basic rustic flavors. It is a kind of chatpata preserve; thick, glazy, chunky, tangy and sweet. Something that would make the Sindhi kids of the yore drool and feel nostalgic, Chap Chatni is easy to make and if, like me, you totally avoid adding nasty food colors to your food, there is a simple tip for that too! Print Chap Chatni~ Sweet Tamarind Dip A simple tangy and sweet Tamarind dip or chutney! Ingredients ½ cup packed Tamarind ½ cup Sugar 1 tbsp Jaggery 1 small Beetroot or Red food color ½ tsp Ghee Salt as per taste ¼ tsp red chilli powder A pinch of Roasted cumin powder and Amchoor (Optional) 1 and half cup of water Method Pick Tamarind, remove seeds and hard shells/fibres, if any! Rinse a few times with water and soak tamarind in a cup of hot water for 30 minutes. Mash soaked tamarind with back of a spoon. Rinse and peel beetroot and cut it into 2/4 chunks. In a pan, add ¼ tsp of Ghee and allow it to melt. Add the soaked tamarind along with the water and beetroot chunks and add the remaining half cup of water. Bring it to a boil. Lower the flame and keep mashing tamarind with the back of ladle or use a pavbhaji masher. Avoid mashing beetroot. Add sugar and jaggery and continue cooking, mashing and mixing the contents. We do not want a complete paste but a little chunkier consistency. Remove beetroot at this stage. If using food color then add it at this stage. The chatni is ideally deep red in color so you can use the food color accordingly. I didn't add any food color. As soon as you can see some glaze (10-15 minutes of cooking ), add a little of salt and chilli powder. You can add a pinch of roasted cumin powder and amchoor too for that extra spicy kick. The Chap Chatni was had as it is, but it could be relished as a dip with pakode or as slathered on bread. If you want the dip to me more tangy and less sweet, then reduce the quantities of sugar/jaggery. 3.5.3251

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Kagzi Lemon Pickle for Alifbe~23

Alka Keswani — Fri, 28 May 2021 07:01:04 +0000

The 23rd letter in Sindhi Alphabet (AlifBe) is ذ i.e ज़ in Devanagari and in Roman Sindhi it is Z as in Zebra ! Ideally this Z i.e ذ is used in words that are not of Sindhi Origin. This Z is known as ‘Zaal‘ and is used in words like ‘Zaro‘(means ‘little’) or Kaagaz (Paper). Since no Sindhi Vegetarian dish starts with this particular Z (There are 3 more ‘Z’s in Arabic Sindhi) I was about to skip this one . But I realised that there is one traditional Sindhi pickle called ‘leemun Ji Khatain~’ (Lemon/lime Pickle) made using Kagzi Leema or Kagzi Nimbu (Citrus aurantifolia) and the Z in Kagzi is the one we are discussing about, today i.e ذ I know this is cheating but then there is no Sindhi dish starting with ذ So let us make peace with ‘Kagzi Leemun Ji Khatain~‘! Kagzi Lime are very juicy, very acidic, and have a thin and smooth skin and are commonly used to make Pickles. This pickle could be made with lemons too (with thick rinds)! You can add ginger, garlic cloves and Bhavnagri chillies or any less hot variety of chillies in this pickle! Print Kagzi Lime Pickle for Alifbe~23 Kagzi Nimbu pickled in lemon juice and salt Ingredients 15 Kagzi limes 3-4 tbsp Himalayan rock salt (or 3 tbsp of table salt) 2-3 Bhavnagri or any thick variety of Green Chillies Few slices (or Juliennes) of ginger (Optional) A sterilised glass jar Method Rinse Kagzi limes with water and pat dry with a kitchen towel. Cut around 8-9 Limes in wedges. Discard the seeds. In a clean, sterilised jar put the lime wedges and add salt (I used coarse Himalayan pink salt). Squeeze the remaining limes (strain to discard seeds) and pour the juice in the jar. I squeeze limes directly in the jar. You can place a tea strainer over the mouth of the jar to catch the seeds I generally add Bhavnagari or thick green chillies (the one used for making Mirchi ke pakore), cut into bite sized pieces to this pickle along with some ginger slices. You can add few garlic cloves too.These are optional but taste very good in this pickle. Close the lid of the jar and give it a shake. Covering the mouth of the jar with a muslin cloth is not compulsory in this case. I did it coz I love the look of it while capturing the pictures 😉 Place the jar in sunlight for 1-2 weeks. Shake the jar twice in a day! You can start eating chillies in few days and lime wedges after two weeks or so. I prefer to consume limes that are allowed to mature for a month or more. If stored in airtight jar, in a cool and dry place, the pickle can last for 6 months and beyond! 3.5.3251 And if you are interested in learning how to write and read in Sindhi, then please do check this video on my YouTube channel!

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Saandhano For AlifBe Of Sindhi Food ~10

Alka Keswani — Fri, 12 Mar 2021 09:59:54 +0000

In my first post of AlifBe series I have mentioned that the 52 letters of Sindhi Alphabet, known as AlifBe or Alaph Ambhu, could be divided into sixteen basic shape groups. A short recap: ا (अ/A) is the only alphabet in first shape group! ا as in ‘Attack’ or ا as in Atte Ja Ladoon The following 9 alphabets come under the second basic shape group characterised by a boat shaped base with varying numbers and positions of dots. Also kindly note that different literary authorities follow a slightly different sequence of these alphabets. ب (ब/B) as in Baby or as in Besan Ji Aani ٻ (B^) as in B^aaru (child) or as in B^itto Lolo پ (प/P) as in Parrot or P as in Pali ڀ (भ/Bh) as in Bharat or as in Bheendi Khatti ت (त/T~) as in Taiwan or as in Tosha ٿ (थ/Th~) as in Thirsty or as in Thumaro ٽ (ट/Tt) as in Towel or as in Tamate Ji Chutney ٺ (ठ/Th) as in Thakur or as in Thab^ak Vadiyun ث (स/S or C) as in Simple or Circle or as in??? Well, we will cover that in a while! In Arabic Sindhi there are 3 letters for the sound S/C as in Cylinder. These are ث , ص, س . Out of these three, two alphabets i.e ث and ص are used only while writing Arabic or Urdu words in Sindhi script while س is used to write words of Sindhi origin. In Roman Sindhi and in Devanagari, these 3 alphabets are denoted with letter S and स (respectively) only. So we will cover the three ‘S’ i.e ث,ص and س in a single post by picking this س, which is commonly used for words of Sindhi origin. And the dish for ث ,ص and س is Saandhano or सांधाणो which in Sindhi means Pickle/s! In Sindhi, generally sour pickles are known as Khatain/Saandhano/Aathano while the syrup/sugar based (preserves) are called Murba or even, Chutney! So basically Saandhano is a pickle i.e a vegetable or fruit preserved in either vinegar or mustard oil or even in brine. And the Saandhano that I am sharing today is a simple Saandhano; carrot pickle, popularly known as Gajrun ji Khatain (Gajrun= carrots) or Saandhyala Gajroon as Saandhyal in Sindhi means something that is preserved or protected. Print Saandhano For AlifBe OF Sindhi Food ~10 Saandhano is Pickle in Sindhi and today I am sharing a very popular pickle recipe called Saandhyal Gajroon or carrots pickled in mustard oil and spices. Ingredients Red carrots 400 gms ( 2 plump carrots) Rai dal * 1 tbsp Turmeric powder ½ tbsp Red chilli powder ½ tbsp Salt as per taste Mustard Oil ¾ cup Fresh green garlic 3- 4 stalks with bulbs Method Heat mustard oil till smoking hot and allow it to cool completely. Rai dal* is easily available in kirana shops but if you wish, you can simply pound mustard seeds or grind coarsely, using a spice jar. Rinse well and pat dry fresh green garlic, remove any yellow or wilted stalks and chop roughly. Pound the chopped bulbs and stalks in a mortar pestle till coarse. Collect in a clean, dry bowl. Use 4-5 garlic cloves, minced well, if fresh garlic is not available. Rinse carrots with water and pat dry using a fresh kitchen towel. Top and tail and peel carrots. You can cut carrots in cubes, batons or wedges or can cut each into 2 inch piece and give a criss cross cut all the way till ¾ th of each piece. The idea is to make a space to stuff spices inside each piece of the carrot. Take the bowl with pounded garlic and add salt, chilli-powder, turmeric and mix it well. Take 2 tsp of mustard oil from the ¾ cup of oil that was heated and cooled and mix it in the garlic-spices mix. Now take a little of this spice mix and stuff each piece of carrot. Place all the stuffed carrots in a clean and dry glass jar and pour remaining of mustard oil. Unlike mango pickle, you need not cover whole carrots with oil. But on the flip side, the shelf life of this pickle is lesser than the pickles that are submerged in oil. Shake the jar well, few times a day, for 3-5 days. In a hot and humid weather the pickle is ready to eat in 4-5 days. The shelf life is 2-3 months, provided it is stored well. To increase shelf life you can add more oil to cover the carrots or can add some vinegar but it does alters the flavors and texture of this pickle, to a certain extent. So it is better to make this pickle in small batches. 3.5.3251 To help those who wish to learn Sindhi Language, I am trying to create small animated videos to facilitate understanding of formation of Sindhi alphabets. Do watch, like, share and subscribe to the Channel.

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