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Tag: Gudi padwa

  • Puran Poli

    Puran poli is the festive sweet bread of Maharashtra, made for Holi, Gudi Padwa, Ganesh Chaturthi and Pola, the bullock festival. Chana dal is cooked with jaggery until it becomes a thick, fragrant paste called puran, which is wrapped in a very soft dough and rolled thin. Karnataka has obbattu, Gujarat has vedmi, but the Maharashtrian poli is known for being paper-thin.

    The dough is made very soft and pliable with plenty of oil, often with maida mixed into wheat flour so it stretches without tearing. Inside, the puran is sweet, smooth and perfumed with cardamom and nutmeg. Each poli is roasted dry on a tawa until speckled and then brushed with ghee.

    It is eaten warm with a generous pour of ghee or with a cup of milk. The dal water is never thrown away: it becomes katachi amti, a thin, spiced dal served alongside. Making puran poli is a family effort and a skill passed down through generations. Leftover polis are often eaten the next morning.

    At a glance

    RegionMaharashtra
    CuisineMaharashtrian
    DietVegetarian
    CourseDessert
    Prep time40 minutes
    Cook time60 minutes
    Total time100 minutes
    Serves6
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyHard
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientschana dal / jaggery / wheat flour / ghee

    Ingredients

    For the puran

    • 1 cup (200 g) chana dal, soaked 2 hours
    • 3 cups water
    • 1 cup (200 g) grated jaggery
    • 2 tbsp sugar
    • 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
    • 1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
    • 1 tsp ghee

    For the dough

    • 1 cup (120 g) fine whole wheat flour
    • 1/2 cup (60 g) maida
    • 1/4 tsp turmeric
    • A pinch of salt
    • 1/4 cup oil
    • Water as needed

    For rolling and roasting

    • Rice flour for dusting
    • Ghee to serve

    Method

    1. Make the dough: mix flours, turmeric and salt, add water gradually and knead to a very soft, sticky dough. Pour 2 tbsp oil over it and knead for 5 minutes until it absorbs. Add the rest of the oil, cover and rest for at least 1 hour.
    2. Pressure cook the soaked chana dal with 3 cups water for 3-4 whistles until it mashes easily between your fingers but is not mushy.
    3. Drain the dal in a colander for 10 minutes, saving the water for katachi amti.
    4. Put the dal and jaggery in a heavy pan on medium heat. The jaggery will melt and make it loose. Stir continuously for 15-20 minutes until it thickens; it is ready when a spoon stands upright in the centre.
    5. Add sugar, cardamom, nutmeg and ghee. While still hot, pass the mixture through a puran yantra or mash smooth with a masher. Cool completely, then divide into 12 balls.
    6. Oil your hands, take a lemon-sized piece of dough, flatten it into a cup and place a puran ball (about twice the dough's size) inside. Bring the edges up, seal and pinch off excess dough.
    7. Dust generously with rice flour and roll gently, without pressing hard, into a thin 8-inch circle. Rotate often and dust again if it sticks.
    8. Roast on a medium-hot tawa for about 1 minute until light brown spots appear underneath, flip and roast the other side. Do not add ghee while roasting. Brush with ghee and serve warm.

    Tips

    • If the puran is not cooked thick enough, it will ooze out while rolling. Do the spoon test before turning off the heat.
    • A very soft, well-oiled dough is the key to thin polis; rest it for at least an hour.
    • Polis keep for 2-3 days and can be warmed on a tawa.

    Serve with

    A spoon of ghee, warm milk, or katachi amti on the side.

  • Shrikhand

    Shrikhand is the strained-yogurt dessert of Maharashtra and Gujarat, made by hanging curd until it becomes chakka, a dense, cream-cheese-like mass, then beating it with sugar and flavourings. It is the centrepiece of Gudi Padwa lunches in Maharashtra and appears at weddings and festivals across both states. Amrakhand, with mango pulp, is the summer variation.

    The texture is smooth, thick and spoonable, cool on the tongue and gently tangy beneath the sweetness. Saffron gives a pale gold colour, cardamom and a little nutmeg add warmth, and chopped pistachios or charoli bring crunch. Good shrikhand is never grainy; passing it through a sieve after sweetening is what gives that silky finish.

    Shrikhand-puri is the classic pairing, with the hot, puffed puris used to scoop up the cold dessert. It is also served as a side in the festive thali next to batata bhaji and masale bhaat. Made at home it keeps well chilled for four days. Elaichi, kesar and mango versions are also sold in tubs across Maharashtra.

    At a glance

    RegionMaharashtra
    CuisineMaharashtrian
    DietVegetarian
    CourseDessert
    Prep time20 minutes
    Cook time0 minutes
    Total time20 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyEasy
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientscurd / sugar / saffron / cardamom

    Ingredients

    • 1 kg fresh full-fat curd (yields about 450 g chakka)
    • 3/4 to 1 cup powdered sugar, to taste
    • A generous pinch of saffron soaked in 2 tbsp warm milk
    • 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
    • A small pinch of grated nutmeg
    • 1 tbsp chopped pistachios
    • 1 tbsp charoli (chironji) or sliced almonds

    Method

    1. Line a large sieve with a clean muslin cloth and set it over a bowl. Pour in the curd, gather the corners and tie into a bundle.
    2. Hang the bundle from a tap or place the sieve with a weight on top in the refrigerator for 8-10 hours, or overnight, until the curd is thick and no longer drips. It should hold its shape like soft paneer.
    3. Scrape the chakka into a bowl. Add the powdered sugar and mix with a spatula until the sugar dissolves completely; the mixture will loosen at first.
    4. Push the mixture through a fine sieve or a puran yantra with the back of a spoon. This step removes any lumps and makes it silky.
    5. Stir in the saffron milk, cardamom and nutmeg. Taste and add a little more sugar if needed.
    6. Fold in half the nuts, transfer to a serving bowl and top with the remaining nuts. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.

    Tips

    • Hang the curd in the fridge, not on the counter, or it will turn too sour in warm weather.
    • Use powdered sugar rather than granulated so it dissolves without leaving grains.
    • Keep the drained whey; it is excellent for kneading chapati dough or in kadhi.

    Serve with

    Hot puris and batata bhaji, as part of a Gudi Padwa thali.