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Summary of Sindhi Cuisine and a good news to share !

Alka Keswani — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 11:34:09 +0000

The work is still in progress…but I just cant wait any more to share this sweet news with you all.. a sweet moment to cherish , made me and my family feel ecstatic, came in the form of an article ‘Unfeignedly Sindhi‘ penned down by yours truly, that is published in the July Edition of the Magazine ‘ Food and Nightlife ‘. I am thrilled to get rave reviews from the people of great caliber…..I feel obliged. Thanks everyone, for the wishes that came pouring in, all these days… its a feeling well beyond description. The magazine is available in Mumbai and Delhi. Besides, it is available online too. The article on Sindhi Cuisine, was published in July Issue of the magazine, on page number 14/15. Click here to read the article on the magazine website. And for those who are unable to access the link, you can read the article in text form right here, though it is an unedited version, but then, the matter remains more or less the same. Hope you will enjoy reading the Summary of Sindhi Cuisine. I do not claim to be an expert, when it comes to Sindhi Cuisine, so goof ups of facts, if any, be kindly ignored/ reported (Please soften your tone before lashing out..lol)/brought to notice/ mentioned in comments. I am open to your views, suggestions, add-ons and basically any thing that you would like to share about Sindhi cuisine, it’s food history, cultural background….any thing, just anything. Let the rest of the world have a glimpse of Sindhi Food and culture…share it here….let the Sindhi food be counted in the popular cuisines of the world. Without further ado, lets hop over to the article….. Unfeignedly Sindhi ! Sindhi, a culture having its roots in Sindh (Now in Pakistan), proudly belongs to ancient Indus valley civilization as discovered from the Moen-jo-Daro excavation. The culture rich, the art unbeatable, the Sufi music unmatched and the Cuisine simply invincible, at least for true blooded Sindhis ! Sindhi Cuisine , apart from having unique flavors of its own, have the unmistakable mark of other dynasties like Mughals, Arabs, Turkhans, Soomras etc that influenced Sindhi cuisine while they ruled the Province. The mighty Koftas, the scrumptious Biryanis, amazing Gosht (meat) Curries, got infused in Sindhi cuisine during that era. Post partition in 1947, Hindu Sindhis got scattered around the world, and since then, a long battle to keep ourselves rooted to our culture while simultaneously absorbing the culture of our surroundings, is being fought. As various other cuisines of India, Sindhi cuisine is also a vibrant one , sizzling and dazzling with lots of flavors, a wonderful amalgamation of Delish sweets, perfectly tangy curries, mildly flavored gravies, rich and wholesome biryanis, wide array of seasonal vegetables, awesome variety of Flatbreads, and not to forget the world famous Sindhi Papad and Sindhi Pickles. To begin with, a royal breakfast preferred by Sindhis, is ought to be The Dal Pakwan, the crisp fried Maida flatbreads, served with simple Chanadal, garnished with chutney and chopped onion. Apart from this, Bori (Kutti or crushed koki tempered with hot oil, and sweetened with sugar), Sindhi Koki, a wholewheat flour flatbread, kneaded with onion, chillies, dried pomegranate seeds, cumin and a generous amount of oil, double cooked on griddle ,or Lolo (sweet flatbread) Dodo (Flatbread with millet flour, jowar, bajra etc), stuffed parathas with Curd are most popular.Juar (jowar) or Bhaat (crackedr wheat) porridge, are favorites of elders of the family. And bread dunked in chickpea curry called Chola dhabhala or the two lentils cooked together called Dal moong are still the most sought after breakfasts in many Sindhi families. Sindhis love simple Dal chaawal- subzi -roti combo.They have some popular style of cooking like Daagh (curry with browned onions), Seyal (cooking food with onions or ginger garlic as base, with little or no water), Tamatey mein (In tomato gravy), saye masaley mein (with Green base, that of coriander leaves and fresh garlic) and Dhaas vegetables (Stuffed vegetables like Okra, Apple gourds, Capsicum etc).Though seasonal vegetables, and plenty of lentils /pulses, are included in daily cooking, but when fresh vegetables are unavailable, Sindhis tend to make use of Besan, and hence Chilra (Gramflour savory pancakes), Chilra kadhi, Aani ji bhaji (Besan dumplings in Onion tomato base) are immensely popular. And not to forget a Sindhi specialty called Sindhi Kadhi , which is a tangy tamarind and gram flour based curry, flavored with some spices and Vakhar like cluster beans, okra, drumsticks etc.This is again generally made for guests and is served with hot plain boiled white rice and sweet boondi. Amritsari wadis cooked along with potatoes, is one spicy curry you cannot afford to miss, and so is Sindhi Saibahji, the yummiest concoction of spinach with fenugreek leaves, sorrel leaves, beans, potatoes, carrot, eggplant, okra, chana dal etc. Though now paneer rules menu of marriage buffets and festival food, there was a time when Beeh (Bhein) i.e Lotus stem hold the Numero Uno position.During marriage ceremonies decades back, relatives and neighbors were offered the beehpatata and Degh Waara chaanwara. Huge Iron or aluminum pots or containers were kept in open spaces, on logs of wood, or coal (sighri) or stove,and a generous quantity of rice and curry was cooked on it. It was called Degh. A spicy curry of lotus stem, potato, peas, cooked in the base of onions, tomatoes and eggplants, when served with Simple pulav,will make you slave of Sindhi degh . Even today this curry is cooked and distributed at Langars in various temples ,on religious occasions. Sindhi Sanna Pakoda (Double fried Gram flour fritters) are famous as most crispy snacks, while Alu tikki, Batan papdi (A Sindhi Chaat), Mirchi Pakora, Bhein Tikki, Spinach Pakoda , are other guilty pleasures. Sindhi Papad has a unique taste, not too spicy nor bland…just perfect. And so are the pickles…the regular oil based as well as Mustard seeds and water based pickles called as Paarianh waari Khatairn have many loyal followers. Yet another typical Sindhi style pickle is Kadhookas (grated ), pickle made from raw shredded mangoes, seasoned with salt, turmeric, red chillies, nigella seeds,cloves of garlic, mixed and lumps of these mixture are tied in small white muslin cloth gathadis (like dumplings), pickled and enjoyed later. It’s called Gathadi aka Bheendi. Summers are spend pickling, Turnips, onions, carrots,chillies, lemons , raw mangoes etc. While Sweet pickles like Raw mango Muraba, Awran jo Murbo (Awla ) and grated mango pickles are the hot favorites amongst Sindhis. Festivals like Chetichand, Diwali, Holi, Akhand Teej ,Thadree,etc are celebrated with typical Sindhi Sweets like, Tosha, Praghuree, Geear, Khuskhus Halwa(Seero), chabhu Halwo etc. While Sherbet and Thaadal (Thandai) are most popular beverages. And to wind up, Sindhis satisfy their “Sweet cravings” with Gaajar ka halwa (Gajru’n jo seero), Maajun, Mohanthal, Gulabjamun, Rabri , Dried grated coconut mithai (Narel ji mithai), Singhar (Sev) Mithai, Falooda icecream etc. The probably only places that you could still enjoy Sindhi food are few eateries like Kailash parbat and Bhagat Tarachand , or else on the streets of Sindhi dominated areas like Ulhasnagar, Chembur, Bhopal etc.The vendors selling dal pakwan, Sindhi Patties with chola and Dal moong are common sights at such places during early mornings. Sadly the trend of fast food and exposure to national and international cuisine is drifting many youngsters away from the lovely Sindhi cuisine.The ‘Chips’ and ‘ french fries’ generation hardly cares for Sindhi Kheecha, papad. The biscuits and cookies overshadowed the humble Dal Nakul, that was initially offered to the guests. Mocktails and canned juices pushed into the corner, the home made Rose sherbet, chandan (sandalwood) sherbet .The artificially coloured, branded Mithai, killed the trend of sharing Maajoon, Khus khus jo seero, ladoo etc with near and dear ones. Packaged junk snacks diverted kids from the good old, pabhoree ( fresh lotus seeds), Jamun (berries) , saawa phota (fresh green peas), Dhadhri (tiny fresh green pods ) etc which used to be the after school time snacks for the kids, eons ago.

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Vegetarian Fish

Alka Keswani — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 05:57:08 +0000

Few days back I was STUDYING with my kid and preparing him for his exams.And all the mothers (ok.. fathers too) know how many questions are bounced at us by our little wonders, during such study sessions So while revising his Gk syllabus he asked me what does goats eat….I replied Grass Pat came another question….Then why its mutton is called NON-VEG ?? Ahem ..I was boggled for few seconds,then I composed myself and answered him that Goat is veg. (herbivores) but people who eat its meat are called Non-vegetarians. And if you think he was satisfied with this answer and that he didn’t bombarded me with more questions then probably you haven’t yet came across a six year old lad 🙂 Amused by the topic he started, my mind wandered to one of the email that I got from a visitor of my blog and I, like a weirdo started searching for the mail with eye catching recipe named “Vegetarian Fish “. This is a recipe from Uncle Basantlal Nagdev, who has posted more than 100 recipes on Orkut, and many of his creations are lying in my (email) Inbox too. After trying this recipe, be assured that Iwill experiment with more of his recipes and will gradually share them with all of you So for now, here is the Recipe of FISH which is made from Arbi (Kachaalu), it looked like fish (well umm …almost), tasted like fish and come to think of it that my kitchen too smelled FISHY Print Vegetarian Fish|Arbi snack Rating 5.0 from 1 reviews Prep time: 15 mins Cook time: 40 mins Total time: 55 mins Serves: 2-4 A unique Arbi/ kachalu or taro root snack that taste like fish. Ingredients 250 gms. Arbi (Kachalu /Taro/Colo cassia root),boiled and mashed. 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste ½ tsp green chilly paste 3 tsp. tamarind (imli) paste or freshly squeezed lemon juice of 1 lemon (or more) Salt as per taste Black peppers to make eyes of fish ½ cup fresh bread slices (crumbled) Rava (Sooji) to coat the "fish" Red chilly powder, Amchoor powder and /or chaat masala to sprinkle Method Boil Arbi with enough of water and 1 tsp of salt till 2 whistles of pressure cooker (or if in pan, boil them till cooked) Peel and mash the arbi and add bread crumbs, salt, ginger garlic paste, green chilly paste and tamarind paste or lemon juice Mix very well, if the mixture is sticky, apply some water or oil Take a small portion of this mixture and shape it into FISH LIKE (or you can give any shape you like) Place black peppers in place of "eye" Coat with Rava and shallow fry till light golden.Sprinkle some "chaat masala", red chilly powder and amchur (dry mango powder) Enjoy this Veg. Fish with rings of onion, tomato slices, chutney/sauce. 2.2.1 Ps:Uncle Ji i hope i had done justice to your creation and not made a mess of it 🙂 Other recipe of Arbi Kachalu Other Guest recipes: Daag Bhat Dhaas Karela Mirani Khichdi

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Samosa~The most famous Indian Snack

Alka Keswani — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 02:16:06 +0000

Indians need no introduction for this awesome snack,which is the most sought after, deep fried , crisp Maida cone, stuffed with scrumptious potato filling. If the name doesn’t activate the hunger spot in your brain, then you supposedly are not fit to be called a Foodie ! There are many versions of this lovely snack,varying from stuffing of veggies to Mawa , potato to keema , but obviously a potato filling is hands down winner (at least for me) ! So lets straight away head to the ingredients required and the method to make Samosas. Print Samosa~The most famous Indian Snack Prep time: 30 mins Cook time: 30 mins Total time: 1 hour Serves: 4-5 The most famous Indian snack, Samosa, the potato stuffing filled pastry cone, deep fried to the perfect crispness. Ingredients For stuffing Potatoes ¼ kg Salt as per taste Ginger a little bit Garlic 4-5 cloves Green chillies 2-3 or as per taste Dry coriander seeds (akha dhaniya) 1 tsp Fennel seeds (saunf ) 1tsp Cumin seeds 1 tsp Garam masala powder ½ tsp Boiled peas(optional) as many preferred Oil 2 tsp Chopped coriander leaves for garnishing For Maida cone All purpose flour (maida) 200 gms Cumin seeds ½ tsp Ajwain (carom /caraway seeds) ½ tsp or more Oil about 5-6 tsp ( using ghee yields more flaky pastry,but vegetable oil will also do) Salt as per taste Red chilly powder ¼ tsp (more or less will do) Water for kneading dough (luke warm) Oil for frying Method For stuffing Boil potatoes till just done. Let them cool and then peel and chop them into tiny chunks or you can mash it too (I prefer chunky bites) Boil peas (optional) and keep aside Dry grind ginger, garlic, fennel seeds, coriander seeds or if needed add just few drops of water In a pan or kadai, take 2 tsp of oil and add cumin seeds Let cumin change its colour to a darker shade and then add grounded paste Mix it properly and saute for few seconds but don't let it burn Add chopped/mashed potatoes and salt, garam masala powder and some chopped coriander leaves too you can add boiled peas too now Mix it properly and let the flavours blend on low heat for 2 minutes.Le it cool, then this stuffing is ready to be filled in maida pastry For maida Cone (pastry/covering) Take about 200 gm of all purpose flour and add salt, carom seeds and cumin seeds Add oil and mix it properly by rubbing in between palms of your hand so as to coat the oil to the flour This helps to make the layer crispy and flaky after frying Now add lukewarm water bit by bit and knead a stiff dough Let the dough rest for at least half hour Pat the dough with rolling pin to make it soft and manageable Now take a small portion (about ping ball size) and roll it in oval shape .The final ROTI should be thinner than the usual phulka Now cut this rolled roti into half and take one portion.It will look somewhat like a semicircle Now roll this into a cone shape and press the overlapping sides a bit so that it can hold the stuffing Carefully stuff it with the potato filling pressing down the filling slightly so that even the narrow bottom of cone is stuffed Now apply some water with your finger to the inner side of open ends of maidalayer and press it gently together so that the samosa is sealed. Repeat the procedure with other half semicircle roti and then with all the remaining dough. Now heat the oil for frying in a pan or kadai Drop the samosa carefully but take care that oil should not be too hot or else the layer will not be smooth (bubbles will appear on surface of maida layer) Fry them on medium to low flame until crisp brown 3.2.2265 2.2.1

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