Ekadashi food 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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Gyarsi (Ekadashi) Khadho For AlifBe~38

Alka Keswani — Mon, 13 Sep 2021 06:55:45 +0000

Gyarsi Khadho or the Sindhi Ekadashi food is my pick for the AlifBe of Sindhi food~ 38. The 38th alphabet in Persio Arabic script is گ in Sindhi, ग in Devanagari and ‘G‘ as in Ganga, in Roman Sindhi. Gyars: Gyars (Giyaras/ Igyas) is observed on the eleventh day of Hindu Lunar month. In each lunar month two Gyars (Ekadashi) are observed. Like many other communities, even Sindhi people observe the Ekadashi fast. Upvas or fasting as we call it, is an essential part of any culture. There are various ways to observe a fast and there are various types of fasts. Be it Chaliha, Lent/Shrove Tuesday, Roza/Ramadan, Karva Chowth, Teej, Navratri, Paryushan or any other religious or spiritual fast, the beliefs may vary, the rituals may be poles apart but the crux remains more or less the same i.e to connect with the Supreme power and to connect with your own-self in a disciplined way. For many Hindus, Upvas is a synonym of fasting or to abstain from food. For religious folks, Upvas or Upa (near/close)+ Vas (to stay/ live) is the time to get closer to his or her deity while for many spiritual people, upvas means to connect with their own self, to introspect, to control their desires, to stay in solitude and to become a better version of his or her self. Of course not everyone understands the true essence of Upavas and for many it just means indulging in a different way. We tend to look for tempting recipes using pseudo grains when grains are not allowed, we feast on fancy ‘satvik’ food cooked with ingredients that our ancestors never knew about, restaurants and eateries offer ‘fasting’ meals to ‘satiate’ your taste buds, the markets are flooded with all sorts of feasts to break your fast. I feel so amused! Well, I am not the one who believe in the moral policing and I am as much guilty as many of us would be, when it comes to feasting on a fasting day. We surely need to mend our ways! Coming to Gyars or Ekadashi, the day is considered to be a sacred day to worship Lord Vishnu and the Sindhis abstain from consuming meat, grains, beans/pulses, cereals, table salt (sendha namak is used instead) and spices except black pepper and cumin (many even avoid cumin seeds). Leafy greens and vegetables are also avoided in the Gyarsi (Ekadashi) food, by majority of Sindhis observing the fast. For those who observe Ekadashi, the Gyarsi breakfast generally consists of fruits or Kirng (Kin~g) i.e samo porridge. The porridge made from samo seeds could be sweet or savory (cooked with salt and black pepper). It is generally paired with shallow fried potatoes flavored with sendha namak and freshly pounded black pepper. Lunch consists of Gyarsi Bhaji and Dhodho. Video Recipe of Gyarsi Bhaji and Dhodho: Gyarsi Bhaji: A soupy, tangy curry is cooked with roasted samo flour (Bagar/ Varai) known as Sauri (sauvri) to which potatoes and boiled lotus stem are added. The curry is flavored with salt, pepper and tamarind juice. It is paired with Gyarsi Dhodho i.e a patted roti made from Sauri flour to which mashed boiled potatoes are added for the binding. Scroll down for the recipe of Bhaji and Dhodho! If in the season, Lahori Gajar i.e boiled/roasted or syrup sweetened sweet potatoes are also had on Ekadashi. Coconut, sago wafers, dates, peanuts are consumed as snacks or many consume sabudana khichdi in the evening. The above picture is shared by Mrs Urvashi Dama. This is Gyarsi platter and a particular dish that intrigued me was Kuttu Je Daro (dar-ey) Ja Dhokla or the Dhokla made from broken Buckwheat (groats), a traditional dish popular in some Sindhi subcastes (Do Nasarpuri Sindhis make this commonly?Please share any information you have). In the above picture you can see steamed Kuttu Dhokla and also the fried Dhokla. Urvashi Ji was generous enough to share the recipe of this lesser known dish. If you wish to get her recipe, just leave a comment in the comment section! Though Rajgira and Kuttu (Amaranth) puri and pakode are also had by some but many avoid the greasy puri pakoda. These are more popular with those who observe only one Ekadashi in whole year i.e Vadhi Gyars (Prabhodhini Ekadashi) and for many of us it is an occasion to relish Rajgiri and Kuttu (Buckwheat) puri/ pakora, the tempting Gyarsi patties and the tangy, off white colored Beeh alu curry sold in the shops and eateries in Sindhi populated areas on Vadhi Gyars. Print Gyarsi (Ekadashi) Khadho For AlifBe~38 Ingredients For Curry (Sindhi Gyarsi Bhaji/ Gyarsi Beeh patata) 3 medium sized Potatoes 100-150 gm Lotus stem ¼ cup Sauri flour 1 small tamarind ball Salt (preferably sea salt or rock salt ) 1 tbsp Black pepper powder 1 Green chilli (optional) 2 tbsp Oil 2 cups Water For Dhodho (Flat bread) Makes 3 200 gms ( 2 and half cup) Sauri (Bagar.varai/Samo) Flour Salt as per taste 1 tbsp Black pepper (crushed or powdered) 2 tbsp Oil (optional) 2 Mashed boiled potatoes Water as much needed Oil and ghee to cook roti. Method Soak tamarind in 1 cup of water for about 15 min, mash it properly, and discard the fibre and seeds. We will use the tamarind water only. Scrap off the peel of lotus stem and cut in slants (1-2 cm thick). If the stem is very thin in diameter, you can cut it in 2 inch long pieces (not slanted). Clean the stem thoroughly if their is any mud inside the pores. Use running water and tooth picks to clean pores. If you buy the stem that is closed at both the ends, there wont be any mud inside. Boil lotus stem along with water and few drops of oil, in a pressure cooker. You can use some raw papad instead of oil to hasten the cooking process. A good quality Beeh (Lotus stem) will soften in 2-3 whistles of pressure cooker. When pressure subsides, open the lid of cooker and drain lotus stem. Keep aside. Heat a pressure cooker and add 2 tbsp oil. Add add sauri flour. Roast it till slight change in colour is observed. Add water, salt, black pepper powder and potato cubes along with boiled lotus stem, tamarind water, green chilli (if using) and mix properly. Close the lid of cooker and wait for 2 whistles. Later, check the consistency of gravy and adjust accordingly. This curry is supposed to be soupy. It tends to thicken with time. This Sindhi Gyarsi (Ekadashi) Beeh patata are relished with gyarsi dhodha To Make Dhodho Take 200 gm of sauri flour , and mix salt, pepper, mashed potatoes and 2 tbsp oil (optional) Please Note: Adding oil will make Dhodho crisp while skipping oil will make Dhodho softer. Potatoes are added for the binding. So do not skip potatoes. Instead of using boiled potatoes you can use few chunks of potatoes from the Gyarsi Subzi. Mix everything well. Adding little water at a time, knead a soft dough. Grease your palms with little oil, take a portion of the dough and pat it between your palms (refer the recipe) video to flatten the dough ball as much as possible. Now grease a hot griddle (tawa) and gently pat the flattened dough rolling in circular motion with palm of your hand, till a thickness of paratha is achieved (since this is bit tricky, an easy way out is to take a clean polythene bag or butter paper and lay on kitchen platform. Now sprinkle some flour on this polythene sheet and place the dough, and then gently pat it in circular motion till a thick roti is formed and carefully pick it up and place on greased and hot griddle) Pour a little of oil and let the Dhodho cook on medium flame till small brown patches appear. Toss and cook on other side too. Repeat for the remaining dough. Enjoy it hot with gyarsi bhaji or with dahi The dough tends to get loose and difficult to handle with time. Hence make sure to cook the flatbread as soon as you knead the dough. 3.5.3251 And if you wish to learn how to read and write Arabic Sindhi, then you can watch these short videos that I make for letter formation!

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Kirng Upma|Thick savory porridge using Samo seeds rice

Alka Keswani — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:53:24 +0000

Kirng or Samo seeds rice is often used in India to cook ‘fasting foods. Also known as Bhagar or Moraia , Samo seeds are a kind of wild rice (seeds), hence named as ‘Jungle rice’. Botanically known as Echinochloa colona, it is actually a weed growing in rice fields. Samo is widely used in India, to prepare rice, sweet porridge and Upma. The samo flour is also used to make unleavened flat breads and is generally consumed during fast, when one needs to avoid grains like rice and wheat. I cooked it as a regular upma, replacing semolina with samo seeds. Also, I have used onions in this preparation, but you can use chopped vegetables instead, if you need to avoid onions. ( Indian ‘vrat ka khana‘ is generally satvik, wherein ingredients like garlic and onion are to be avoided). Also, for Ekadashi food, many avoid use of green chillies too, so in that case you can use black pepper powder, but the flavors might turn out to be bland. Print Kirng Upma|Thick savory porridge using Samo seeds rice Rating 5.0 from 1 reviews Prep time: 5 mins Cook time: 15 mins Total time: 20 mins Serves: 2 Thick savory porridge made from roasted Samo seeds rice or Jungle rice Ingredients Samo ¾ th of a cup Onion 1 medium Mustard seeds 1 tsp Curry leaves 5-6 Salt as per taste Green chillies 2 Oil 2 tbsp Hot water around 2-3 cups (more or less) Coriander leaves Roasted peanuts, a handful (optional) Freshly squeezed lime juice Coriander Method Check the samo seeds for grit or tiny worms. In a pan with thick bottom, dry roast the seeds till slightly toasted. Do not let it turn brown. Empty the pan and then add around 2 tbsp of oil. When the oil is hot, add curry leaves, followed by mustard seeds and allow seeds to splutter. Add chopped onion and saute till translucent. Add the toasted samo seeds, chopped green chillies and mix well. Add some chopped coriander leaves and mix again. Add hot water and salt, and allow the mixture to come to a boil. While adding water, beware of the spluttering of the mixture. Cook on medium to low flame, stirring it intermittently, till the mixture is thick and is cooked well. Samo needs more water and more time to cook, as compared to semolina. Add some more hot water if samo is not yet cooked properly. Garnish it with fresh coriander leaves and squeeze a freshly cut lemon/lime over it. Fluff with a fork and serve right away!. Notes 1)To make a smooth upma, some people grind samo seeds to make the grains less coarse, while others prefer to cook for longer duration.2)You can add around half cup of beaten curd to the samo preparation, along with water. 3)My mother used to add turmeric powder to the upma, to make yellow coloured upma. Since she always added some tamarind paste to it, the colour would change to muddy white. Hence the turmeric was added to give it a lovely yellow hue, masking the unappetizing pale brown colour of the upma.4) Some believe that toasting seeds will result in coarse textured upma. You can skip the toasting and add raw soma seeds to the translucent onions. 3.2.1753

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Gyarsi Dhodho-Bhaji~Ekadashi Fasting Food

Alka Keswani — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 05:45:53 +0000

Sindhis are observing Vadhi Gyars or Ekadashi fast today. A heavy Dhodho (Flatbread) with potato curry could not be a fasting food for me, but it tastes delicious for sure! Ekadashi means the eleventh lunar day (Tithi) of the shukla (bright) or krishna (dark) paksha (fortnight) of every lunar month in the Hindu calendar (Panchang) (Wikipedia) Sindhis observe Vadhi Gyaras or Badi Ekadashi (Prabhodhini) with exuberance, avoiding grains for the whole day. Evenings are generally spend on arrangements for Tulsi ji shaadi (Tulsi Vivah), followed by the rituals of Tulsi marriage and singing prayers and songs and sharing food. At some places even kartik Katha is read. Sauri or Bhagar/Varai flour is made from samo seeds (Mario seeds) i.e the seeds of a grass Echinochloa Colonum, and is eaten on the fasting days when grains are prohibited. Rajgira (amaranth), water chestnut flour (Singhare ka atta) and Buckwheat flour could be also used to make deep fried Puri or fritters (pakora). Kharkun (dates), dahi, ratauli/Lahori gajjar (sweet potato), either roasted or boiled and sweetened with sugar syrup is also had along with coconut, sago seeds (sabudana) etc. Kirng patata i.e Samo seeds porridge (savory as well as sweet) served with shallow fried potatoes (flavored with just salt and black pepper powder) is preferred for breakfast and the road side carts are found selling Gyarsi Chaap ( Tawa fried potato patty, made from mashed boiled potatoes, salt, pepper along with arrowroot starch to bind the potatoes) served with potato and lotus stem curry. Kirng/Kirung Patata A typical Sindhi ekadashi food is Gyarsi or Ghyarsi Dhodho bhaji, which consists of potato and lotus stem in watery curry, relished with Dhodho made from Sauri flour. Print Gyarsi Dhodho-Bhaji~Ekadashi Fasting Food Rating 5.0 from 1 reviews Prep time: 10 mins Cook time: 30 mins Total time: 40 mins Serves: 2 Potato and lotus stem curry with sauri flour flat bread cooked during Ekadashi fast. Ingredients For Curry Potatoes 2 Sauri flour 1 tbsp Tamarind extract 3-4 spoons or as required Salt (preferably sea salt or rock salt ) Black pepper powder ½ tsp Green chilies 1-2 Oil 2 tsp water 2 cups For Dhodho (Flat bread) Makes 2 Sauri Flour 1 cup Salt Black pepper (crushed or powdered) ½ tsp Oil 2 tsp Mashed boiled potato 1 Water as much needed Method Soak tamarind in half cup of water for about 15 min, mash it properly, and discard the pulp Now in a pressure cooker add 2 tsp oil, and mix a tbsp of Sauri flour and roast it till slight change in colour is observed. Add water (mix well to avoid lumps), salt, black pepper powder and potato cubes (You can add boiled kamalkakdi too) tamarind water, green chillies and mix properly. Close the lid of cooker and wait for 2 whistles. Later, check the consistency of gravy and adjust accordingly. This curry is supposed to be watery This preparation is relished during Fast of Ekadashi along with gyarsi doda To Make Dhodho Take a cupful of sauri flour , and mix salt, pepper, mashed potato and little oil. Add a little amount of water and make soft dough. Divide it into two. Now grease a hot griddle (tawa) and gently pat the dough rolling in circular motion with palm of your hand, till a thickness of paratha is achieved (since this is bit tricky, an easy way out is to take a clean polythene bag or butter paper and lay on kitchen platform. Now sprinkle some flour on this polythene sheet and place the dough, and then gently pat it in circular motion till a thick roti is formed and carefully pick it up and place on greased and hot griddle Pour a little of oil and let the Dhodho cook on medium flame till small brown patches appear. Toss and cook on other side too. Repeat for remaining dough. Enjoy it hot with gyarsi bhaji or with dahi The dough tends to get loose and difficult to handle with time. Hence make sure to cook the flatbread as soon as you knead the dough. 3.5.3251 Edited on 21st Nov 2015

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