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Traditional delights to savour on Holi
Talk about Holi celebrations and all we can think of are the sweet and rich gujiyas, rasmalai, malpua and chaats like dahi vada, vada pav, pakode and chole bhature. Falling on March 23 this year, the north Indian festival is celebrated with much enthusiasm and cheer in various pockets of Chennai. Here we share a few typical recipes that are prepared specifically on the day of colours.

Chennai
GUJIYA
Ingredients:
Refined flour: 100 gm
Ghee: 25ml
Luke warm water: 30ml
For The Stuffing
Ghee: 1 tbsp
Coconut, grated: 3 tbsp
Jaggery syrup: 3 tbsp
Cardamom powder: A pinch
Cashew nut (Chopped): 1 tbsp
Method:
- Make a tight dough out of refined flour, ghee and water. Set aside for 30 minutes.
- Heat ghee in a pan add grated coconut, jaggery syrup, chopped cashew nut and cardamom powder. Cook till the mixture comes together. Mix well and allow to cool.
- When the mixture cools down, add chopped cashews, cardamom powder, raisins. Now the stuffing is ready.
- Knead the dough again and roll in to small lime sized balls. Cover the dough balls to prevent from drying. Take one dough ball at a time and roll out into 3 to 3.5 inch diameter round. Lift the rolled poori and place it over the gujiya mold. Fill it with 2 tsp of the stuffing and apply some water on the edges. Close from the edges, seal the mold and remove extra dough from the edges. Open the mold and place the prepared gujiya over a plate.
- Heat some ghee in a wok. When the ghee is hot, fry the gujiyas on low to medium flame until they get golden brown from both sides. Take them out.
KESAR RASMALAI
Ingredients:
Cow milk: 3 litres
Vinegar: 50ml
Sugar: 600gm
Condensed milk: 200ml
Saffron: 1 gm
Rose water: 30ml
Cardamom: 6 nos
Method:
- Boil the milk in a medium flame. Add vinegar, now let the milk curdle. Now strain the contents of the pan through a muslin cloth.
- Hang the muslin cloth, and allow the whey to drain.
- Now make small dumplings of the soft cheese and gently flattened it by pressing them with your palm. It should be roughly the size of a coin.
- Take sugar and water in a heavy bottomed vessel and cook to form a thin syrup. Now gently add the flattened milk solids to this syrup.
- In a thick bottomed pan heat milk and sugar until milk is reduced to two thirds the original volume, now add saffron strands, cardamom powder and rose water to it. Remove the solids from syrup and add to reduced milk and sugar mixture.
- Allow to steep in room temperature and let it chill in the refrigerator for 3 hours before serving.
Recipe: Sujan Mukherjee, Executive Chef, Taj Coromandel
DAHI BATATA PURI
Ingredients:
Small puffed puris: 24 nos
Boiled, peeled and chopped potatoes: 1 cup
Spicy mint (pudina) chutney: ½ cup
Sweet chutney: 1 cup
Fresh and chilled beaten curd: 3 cups
Chilli powder: 2 tsp
Chaat masala: 2 tsp
Roasted cumin seed powder: 2 tsp
Black salt: 2 tsp
Se 8 tbsp
Finely chopped coriander – for garnishing: 4 tsp
Method:
- Crack a small hole in the centre of each puri and arrange 6 puris on a plate.
- Stuff each puri with ½ tbsp of potatoes and top with 1 tsp pudina chutney, ½ tbsp of sweet chutney and 2 tbsp of curd.
- Sprinkle ½ tsp of chilli powder, ½ tsp of cumin seeds powder, ½ tsp of black salt, ½ tsp of chaat masala and 2 tbsp of sev evenly over the puris and serve immediately garnished with 1 tsp of coriander.
- Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make 3 more plates.
VADA PAV
Ingredients (TO SERVE 4)
Pa 8 squares
Boiled and mashed potatoes: 1 ½ cups
Green chillies, chopped: 2 nos
Grated garlic: 1 ½ tbsp
Mustard seeds: 1 tsp
Asafoetida (hing): ¼ tsp
Curry leaves: 6 to 8
Turmeric powder: 1 tsp
Veg Oil: 1 tbsp
Besan (Bengal gram flour): 3/4 cup
Baking soda: a pinch
Salt: to taste
Veg Oil: for frying
Garlic chutney: to slather on the pav before serving
Process:
FOR VADA FILLING
- Pound the green chillies, ginger and garlic in a mortar and pestle.
- Heat oil, add the mustard seeds. When they crackle, add asafoetida, curry leaves and sauté for a few seconds.
- Add the pounded mixture and sauté again for a few seconds. Add the potatoes, turmeric powder, salt and mix well. Remove from the fire and cool.
- Divide into 8 equal portions. Shape into rounds.
FOR THE OUTER COVERING
- Combine all the ingredients in a bowl and make a batter using approximately 1/3 cup of water and besan.
- Dip each round of the vada filling into the batter and allow it to coat the mixture well.
- Deep fry in hot oil, till golden brown. Drain on absorbent paper and keep aside.
SERVING
- Slice each pav into half and spread some dry garlic chutney inside.
- Place one vada in between 2 pavs and serve.
Recipe: Chef Ranveer Singh Rana of the eatery Indiska Magic, hosting the Chowpatty Chaat Festival
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