Lilva Kachori

Some of you already are aware of my Friday fasts. Yes, I religiously fasted for 11 Fridays and worshiped Ma Laxmi, Goddess of wealth. These 11 peaceful Fridays were for thanking God for what I have, thanking God for giving me the ability to spread my knowledge as a science teacher and as a food blogger, thanking God for the wonderful family and to shower our family with good health and happiness. My husband used to feel super excited about my Friday fast. In Hindu culture, worshiping God is accompanied by offering a homemade sweet dish which is called as Prasad. So now you know why my husband was super excited... yes, I would usually make a sweet offering of his choice. He would so look forward to Friday evening dinner and a delicious dessert :)

11th Friday being the last day of my fast, I prepared the entire dinner as an offering and invited few of my friends over for Prasad. Kheer, puri, chana, aloo ki sabzi, lemon rice, and of course a gujarati farsan, lilva kachori.

Lilva means green...Tuvar/toor lilva are fresh whole tuvar beans before they are dried and split to become tovar/toor dal. In India, winter is the season when they are harvested fresh and made Undhiyu with. Undhiyu is a traditional delicacy of Gujarati meal. I had never known that whole fresh toor could be used in recipes other than Undhiyu. I noticed famous Gujarati food brands like Swad, Garvi Gujarat, and Deep Foods sell Lilva Kachori in the packets in the frozen section of Indian store. That is when I thought I could make these kachoris at home. Believe me, these are just simple, crisp kachoris, but with the filling make of green tovar/toor.

Ingredients to make 10-12 small kachoris

For the filling:

3/4 cup tuvar lilva or green peas or edamame

1/2 cup shredded coconut

1 tsp. cumin seeds

1 tsp. red chilli powder

Handful of chopped cilantro

Juice of fresh lime

salt to taste

For the covering:

1 cup maida/all purpose flour

1 tbsp. ghee/clarified butter

1/4 tsp. umin seeds

1/4 tsp. carrom seeds/ajwain

1 tsp. salt

Water to make stiff dough

• Use fresh or frozen tuvar lilva. Add some water and microwave for 4-5 minutes or till done. You could also use green peas or edamame to make kachoris and cooking them in the microwave. When cooked, remove excess water and slightly crush them with a fork. let them cool for sometime.
• Add coconut, cumin, red chilli powder, salt, cilantro, lime juice.
• Mix well and keep the filling aside.
• In a bowl mix maida/all purpose flour, salt, ghee, cumin seeds, and carrom seeds. Add little water at a time to make a stiff dough. Knead the dough for 2-3 minutes. Cover and let the dough rest for 15 minutes. 
• Knead the dough for a minute and divide the dough into 10-12 equal parts.
• Taking one part of the dough, roll it into a 3-4 inch diameter disc.
• Place 1 tbsp. filling in the center of the disc. Bring all the sides together and press to fuse the dough well.
• Keep the kachori aside while you make more. 
• It is advisable to flip kachoris every few minutes to avoid from getting moist and sticking at the base.
• It is okay for kachoris to dry out so that they get crisp on frying.
• After all the kochoris are ready, heat the oil till it is slightly hot. Kachoris need to be fried on low heat flipping it so that they get crisp and delicious.
• Serve with cilantro chutney or date and tamarind chutney.
• Enjoy!!

 Here is step-by-step pictorial recipe:

Use fresh or frozen tuvar lilva. Add some water and microwave for 4-5 minutes or till done. You could also use green peas or edamame to make kachoris and cooking them in the microwave. When cooked, remove excess water and slightly crush them with a fork. let them cool for some time.

Add coconut, cumin, red chilli powder, salt, cilantro, lime juice.

Mix well and keep the filling aside.

In a bowl mix maida/all purpose flour, salt, ghee, cumin seeds, and carrom seeds. Add little water at a time to make a stiff dough. Knead the dough for 2-3 minutes. Cover and let the dough rest for 15 minutes.

Knead the dough for a minute and divide the dough into 10-12 equal parts.

Taking one part of the dough, roll it into a 3-4 inch diameter disc.

Place 1 tbsp. filling in the center of the disc. Bring all the together and press to fuse the dough well.

Keep the kachori aside while you make more.

It is advisable to flip kachoris every few minutes to avoid from getting moist and sticking at the base.

It is okay for kachoris to dry out so that they get crisp on frying.

After all the kochoris are ready, heat the oil till it is slightly hot. Kachoris need to be fried on low heat flipping it so that they get crisp and delicious.

Serve with cilantro chutney.

Enjoy these crisp and delicious kachoris!

Papaya Nu Sambhariyu

My husband was super excited when I bought a firm raw papaya that I found at the Indian store last week. He new I would make papaya nu athanu/sambhariyu, an accompaniment with jalebi and fafda :) As soon he woke up, he was in the kitchen to help me make the breakfast. So last Saturday we had a special Gujarati brunch of fresh jalebis, crisp savory fafdas, and some delicious raw papaya chutney/sambhariyu.

Raw Papaya Sambhariyu is a sweet and spicy dry chutney made of sliced or grated papaya. This condiment is very popular amongst Gujus and usually sold at a Gujarati farsan/snack shop. Every shop has their technique of making this chutney, and all taste delicious with the main ingredient, raw papaya.

Ingredients to make Papaya Nu Sambhariyu
1 small firm raw papaya
4 tbsp. oil
1/2 tbsp. mustard seeds
Few Green chillies chopped
1 tbsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. haldi/tumeric
1 cup besan/chickpea flour or 2 cups crushed Khaman Dhokla

• Peel papaya, cut into half, deseed, and thinly slice it.
• Cut few green chillies.
• In a pan heat 4 tbsp. oil. Add mustard seeds and fry green chillies for a minute. 
• Add sliced papaya, salt, and tumeric powder. Mix well. Cover and cook for 5-7 minutes till papaya is slightly tender. Do not overcook and make it mushy.
• Add a cup of chickpea flour and 1 tbsp. sugar mix well and cook for 3-4 minutes. (When this recipe is prepared in farsan shops, usually left over broken khaman dhokla is mixed in once raw papaya is cooked. So you could add 2 cups of crushed khaman dhokla instead of chickpea flour.)
• Serve prepared sambhariyu with fafda and Jalebi.

Click here for the recipe of Fafda

Click here for the recipe of Jalebis

Fafda

Gujus love to eat... yes, we love to eat farsans and sweets. Guju meal is incomplete with sweets. And when it comes to tea time, we love gathiya, chakli, chivda, khakhra, farsi puri, and much more. :) Gujus also love their breakfast on the day of special occasions and festivals which would be hot Jalebis with crispy-soft fafdas, and the side of papaya chutney.

This recipe and my first ever trial of fafda is inspired by my mom... she so loves and craves for fafdas that every weekend my dad brings freshly made, hot fafdas from a very popular Farsan shop in Mumbai. Yes you would typically find a long queue of people outside the farsan shop wanting to get their packets of hot jalebis and fafdas. So you can imagine how delicious and popular this snack is!! :) While talking to my mom I started craving for these and thought of making some at home with some jalebis. My mom and I brainstormed the ingredients and discussed the recipe and the result is right before you. Finally approved by my dad, my mom and I are officially called 'Fafdawala of the family' :)

Fafda is a deep fried long strip made of chick pea flour. It is crisp to touch, but soft and melts in the mouth. In combination with sweet delicious jalebis, they are just out of the world. I like to observe things around me. Especially observing farsan wala preparing jalebis and fafdas. I remember as a little child I would go to the market with my mom and I would stand near the fafda stall observing the technique of stretching each fafda dough and frying it to perfection. And now I feel so proud of myself! :) Fafda making is really easy. Do not be discouraged by the hand stretching technique. Give it a try... I am sure you will love it!

Ingredients to make15-20 Fafdas
1/4 cup besan or chickpea flour
1/4 tsp. papad kharo
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. coursely ground pepper corns
1/4 tsp. ajwain/carom seeds
3 tbsp. oil
3 tbsp. water
Oil for frying

Method:

• In a small pan,  dry roast papad kharo for 30-45 seconds and remove in a bowl.
• Mix 3 tbsp. oil with 3 tbsp. water in a pan and slightly warm the liquids.
• Mix, besan, papad kharo, salt, pepper, ajwain in a bowl.
• Add warm liquid mixture and mix to make a dough. If the dough feels very soft, add some dry besan flour and mix well. If it is too hard add few drops of water. The dough should be firm but not hard. It should be soft and malleable enough to stretch with the heel of your palms but firm enough to maintain the shape.
• Take a tsp. size of dough and form a 2 inch long rope. On a flat wooden surface place he dough lengthwise and stretch it using the heels of your palms. Using a sharp thin knife blade quickly scrape the dough from the board. Add the dough strip to hot oil to fry. Fry both sides till it slightly changes color. Do not allow it to get dark. Check the video below.
• Serve fafdas with papaya nu sambhariyu and fried green chillies.

In a small pan,  dry roast papad kharo for 30-45 seconds and remove in a bowl.

Mix 3 tbsp. oil with 3 tbsp. water in a pan and slightly warm the liquids.

Mix, besan, papad kharo, salt, pepper, ajwain in a bowl.

Add warm liquid mixture and mix to make a dough. If the dough feels very soft, add some dry besan flour and mix well. If it is too hard add few drops of water. The dough should be firm but not hard. It should be soft and malleable enough to stretch with the heel of your palms but firm enough to maintain the shape.

Take a tsp. size of dough and form a 2 inch long rope. On a flat wooden surface place he dough lengthwise and stretch it using the heels of your palms. Using a sharp thin knife blade quickly scrape the dough from the board. Add the dough strip to hot oil to fry. Fry both sides till it slightly changes color. Do not allow it to get dark.

Here is a quick video to make fafda

Click here for the recipe of Papaya Sambhariyu

Click here for the recipe and video to make Jalebis 

Enjoy this perfect Guju snack!!