New Delhi: Republic Day 2021 is just around the corner, and people are gearing up to celebrate the special day by enjoying a patriotic movie or watching the parade.
However, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic has meant more time at home for everyone. People have turned to cooking, reading, and other activities, in order to deal with the health crisis, which brings a fresh supply of stress and anxiety every day.
So while you enjoy a patriotic movie or parade on your TV sets, we bring you a list of five tri-colour recipes to satiate your taste buds, suggested by Ex Radisson Chef Anil Dahiya who has 26 years of experience in the field. So, let the tricolour feast begin:
Tri-Colour Burfi Recipe:
Ingredients: 250 grams cashew nuts, 150 grams almonds, 750 grams sugar, 300 grams ghee, 1 cup milk, 10 green cardamoms powdered, 1/4 tsp saffron powder, 1/4 tsp green colour powder, 1/4 tsp orange or red colour powder.
Method:Soak cashews and almonds separately for half an hour, then drain and peel almonds. Put the nuts in a mixer grinder to form a thick paste. Add milk and sugar and grind again. Split the paste into three separate bowls post which mix the red colour to the first part.
Add one-third of the ghee and cardamom powder. Heat the paste in a pan and stir until it leaves the sides of the pan. Pour the paste into a ghee coated plate and spread well. Add half of the remaining ghee and cardamom powder to the second mix and repeat the same process.
This paste will remain white in colour. Pour the paste when done over the red paste and spread without mixing. Add green food colour, remaining ghee, and cardamom powder to the third part. Prepare the paste with the same method and pour over the second layer. Spread it evenly and garnish with chopped almonds and cashew. Allow it to cool and once cooled, cut into square or diamond-shaped pieces.
Tiranga Halwa:
Ingredients: For spinach halwa: 2 cups spinach (boiled, stained, and pureed), 1 tbsp pure ghee, 1 tsp crushed cardamom, 4 tsp sugar-free sugarlite, 2 cups milk
For cucumber halwa: 2 medium-sized cucumbers peeled and rinsed, 2 tbsp khoya, 3 tsp ghee, 1/2 tsp cardamom powder, 1 1/2 cup milk, 4 tbs sugar-free sugarlite.
For carrot halwa: 2 small carrots peeled and rinsed, 1/2 tsp cardamom powder, 1 1/4 cup milk, 1 tbsp ghee, 4 tbsp sugar-free sugarlite, few mixed dry fruits finely chopped.
Method: Melt the ghee in a pan and add spinach puree. Saute for few minutes on low heat and mix milk, sugar, and cardamom.
Stir till spinach starts leaving the sides of the pan. Mix the remaining ingredients and stir continuously on low flame. When done, transfer to plate. For cucumber halwa, grate the cucumber and squeeze out all water. Melt the ghee in the same pan and add the grated cucumber.
Saute for 2-3 minutes and mix the remaining ingredients. Keep stirring while gradually adding milk to it. When milk dries and cucumber seems done, remove from heat and transfer to the same plate as spinach mix, making a layer on top of it.
For the carrot halwa layer, grate carrots and squeeze out all water. Heat the ghee in the same frying pan and saute carrots for 8-10 minutes on low flame. Mix milk and sugar. Continue to stir while adding the remaining ingredients. When the carrots are done, remove them from heat and layer above the first two layers. Garnish with chopped dry fruits of your choice and serve.
Tiranga Rice Dhokla:
Ingredients: 4 cups idli batter, 1 cup spinach puree, 1 tsp ginger paste, 2-3 green chillies paste, 1 tbsp gun powder Idli molagai podi, 1/2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder, 1 small ginger paste, 2 tsp cooking oil
For garnishing: 4 tbsp Grated coconut, freshly chopped coriander leaves
For seasoning: 1 tsp mustard seeds, a few curry leaves broken bits, 1 tsp oil
Method: Pour the batter into a big bowl, add salt, and divide into 3 equal parts. For the orange batter, mix one portion of batter, gun powder, and chilli powder. Leave aside one part for the white batter. For the green batter, mix the remaining third portion of batter, spinach puree, ginger paste, green chilli paste, and a pinch of salt. Now mix all the ingredients mentioned for a green layer, stirring well.
Keep a good amount of water in a big vessel on high heat. Grease any flat steel plate and transfer the prepared green batter to a greased plate and steam it over the vessel of water. When done, pour white batter and steam.
Then add a third layer and steam. Dhokla will be done in 15 minutes.
Remove from heat and cool. Cut into desired shapes and plate it. Heat oil in a small saucepan and make the tempering of seasoning ingredients. Pour the seasoning over Tiranga dhokla and garnish with grated coconut and chopped coriander.
Tri-Colour Fruit Cream:
Ingredients: Vanilla flavoured ice cream – 4 scoops or whipped cream, some nuts to garnish, mixed fruits 1 tbsp optional, a cherry on top, fresh fruits – kiwi, orange, or papaya.
Method: Take a tall glass and add kiwi at the bottom and add in a scoop of softly whipped cream, or vanilla ice cream. Add vanilla ice cream, on top, put orange fruits again. Garnish with nuts and top it with a cherry or mint. Serve immediately.
Tricolour Sandwich:
Ingredients: 6 bread slices, butter for spreading
For the green layer: 2 tbsp mint chutney, 1/2 cup grated paneer cottage cheese, salt to taste
For the orange layer: 10 orange cherry tomato, 2 tbsp mayonnaise, salt to taste
Method: Chopped orange tomato and set it aside. Butter the bread slices and set them aside. For the green layer, mix mint chutney, paneer, and salt in a bowl well and set aside. For the orange layer, mix tomato, mayonnaise, and salt in a separate bowl well and set aside.
On a buttered slice of bread, spread the green mixture and top with another slice of bread. After that, layer with the carrot mixture and another slice of bread and serve.
So now that we have got you all covered, enjoy this Republic Day by gorging on these absolutely delicious recipes.