For this month's South Vs North Challenge - SNC, the host Manjula of Desi Fiesta challenged the southern group with a tough platter - The Rajasthani Thali. Though I have done Dal Baati Churma at one go, when I read about the Thali for our challenge at Desi Fiesta, I was so afraid. I thought I wam going to miss it but some how I amnaged to do all the recipes Manjula has given and after photographing I was sort of relieved. But still drafting this post was a huge task and I have been postponing this for nearly 10 days. Today I had to do it as the final day of this month is nearing. Fortunately when I made this thali, my hubby came home early and relished it. He enjoyed all the dishes and was telling me that I have taken him to North India. The whole credit goes to Manjula who has given us the motivation to complete this. My most favourite dishes in the thali are panchmel sabzi and boondhi chaas.The lassi was so rich, I couldn't have more than 1/4 cup. We actually had to split up the thali for the whole day as eating it at one go was impossible. There are so many varieties in it. Any how we had a great time and thank you Manjula for the challenge.
First I will give you a list of dishes I prepared for the challenge:
- Goond Ki Ladoo
- Moong Dhal
- Baati
- Bajiri Roti
- Makki Ki Roti
- Panchmel Ki Sabzi
- Dhana Moong Wadi
- Gatte Ki Kadhi
- Matta/ Boondhi Chaas
- Kesar Malai Lassi
And here comes the recipes:
Click on the names for the recipe link.
Goond is an edible gum extracted from bark of a tree. They provide heat to the body and so it is consumed during winters. They are available in the form of crystals and you need to deep fry them in ghee before adding to the ladoo mixture. Wheat flour and sugar are the other ingredients used and I added some chopped pistachios for a crunchy texture. It was absolutely delicious. I also shared it with my neighbour and she liked it so much and the next day she made it at her home which pleased everyone there. If you couldn't find goond, then omit it and you will get delicious wheat ladoos. Click on the name for the recipe link.
Baati is made with wheat flour and is usually served with daal. I have posted recipe for panchmel daal previously but this time it is a simple moong dhal which was also delicious. For perfect flaky baati you need to first mix the flour and ghee until crumbly and use very little water to bring together the dough.
Moong Dhaal is made with green gram and is very easy to prepare. Cook the dhaal and add the tempering for a delicious accompaniment for the ghee dipped baatis.
This was the most delicious of all the dishes I prepared for the thali. Panchmel sabzi is a combination of five vegetables cooked together with spices to create a fabulous sabzi. The five vegetables can be of your choice. I used capsicum, cluster beans, potatoes, cucumber and beans. This also goes very well with rice.
Bajra is a nutritious and gluten free millet. These rotis go very well with curries. As this flour is gluten free, you need to use hot water to make the dough. Otherwise you will not be able to roll out rotis. Once hot water is added the dough becomes a little bit softer and will hold together. Even then rolling out the roti is a tough work. You need to do it with patience.
Jowar is a nutritious and gluten free millet. These rotis go very well with curries. As this flour is gluten free, you need to use hot water to make the dough. Otherwise you will not be able to roll out rotis. Once hot water is added the dough becomes a little bit softer and will hold together. Even then rolling out the roti is a tough work. You need to do it with patience.
Mangodis are small nuggets made out of moong dhal. This is usually available at stores but making mangodis at home is also easy. As in Tamil Nadu we don't get mangodis, I opted to try it at home. For the step wise processes click on the link. The mangodis absorb all the water in the curry. So I couldn't get the gravy consistency. I added a tbs of besan along with water to make a paste and added it to the curry to get the gravy consistency. It was a nice accompaniment to the rotis.
Gatte are gram flour dumplings which have a special place in Rajasthani cuisine. Curries, kadhi and pulao are some of the dishes in which gatte are incorporated. Besan along with some spices is made into a stiff dough. It is then divided and rolled into logs. These logs are boiled in water and the cooked logs are cut into bite sized pieces. these are the gatte and these are used in this kadhi to make a delicious side for rice. Kadhi is an yogurt based gravy which goes very well with rice. I have also provided the step wise pictorial for the preparation of gatte. Make the gatte and have a wonderful meal..
Chaas is made with buttermilk and is a traditional drink of Rajasthani cuisine. Boondhi is added 1 hour befroe serving and the chaas is refrigerated. During meals this cool chaas is served. The boondhis will become soft because of the soaking and it will be delicious. Though I refrigerated this chaas, I added some crisp boondhis while serving to give a nice crunch to the drink. I also made the boondhi at home and the combination of boondhi and tangy buttermilk was fabulous.
Lassi is a perfect cool beverage served during meals. This lassi is rich because of the cream and saffron. It is very easy to make and is perfect for this scorching heat. Though saffron essence is used, I used saffron strands instead. It made the lassi flavourful and colourful. I used curd instead of cream as I thought it would be very heavy after a heavy meal. The tang form the curd paired very nice with the lassi.
More Thalis at my space:
Labels: RAJASTHANI, THALI
