Chai Shai Aur Batein –Super Food- Rajgira

Now I have never known Rajgira nor knew Rajgira flour is known as Amarnath atta. So when Shital Kakad announced Ragjira as the superfood for this month’s potluck at Chai Shai aur Batain, I quickly clicked GoogleMaster to learn something more about this...

Amaranth or rajgira means “immortal” or “everlasting” in Greek because it contains more than three times the average amount of calcium and is also high in iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium and it is the only grain which contains Vitamin C. Rajgira also has far more lysine, an essential amino acid, which the body does not manufacture, compared to other grains. Lysine is needed to metabolise fatty acids, absorb calcium, and is essential for strong, thick hair.

Source: https://www.indiatimes.com/health/healthyliving/health-benefits-of-rajgira-amaranth-240859.html

But what to make when I do not know how it will behave? And what to make?

Rabia Patel, my friend,  made my task easier by asking me to make a #sindhicuisine Daal Pakwaan that she loves to eat.

Baas..that made things easier..kyun ki now I was set to make just pakwaan of Rajgira.

Doing research with family and friends also helped. Consulting with them, I learnt how it can be used...

"for making puris..add mashed potatoes” said one friend. 

“You could add rava flour to make it crispy” said another..

That gave me idea that it might be tricky to roll out puris, finally I decided on adding maida on instruction of my cousin sister.

 “Lets experiment” said my cousin who had come to spend some time with me. She made a dough taking equal proportions of maida and Rajgira atta..added 1tsp cumin seeds and salt. We added ghee to make a smooth dough. First two puris were soft and thick..whereas pakwaan are normally thin and crispy..and therefore, we rolled out thinner circles making dents with the fork

Voila!! We had crispy puris....

They were dark brown..but quite tasty.

Everybody raves about dhal pakwaan, but a novice will wonder what is so great about it? Its just chana dhal and crispsy puris...But the actual taste, my friend,  is in the accompaniments..it is best enjoyed with mint chutney and onions soaked in tamarind sauce..that is the taste that you enjoy..sweet, spicy and sour dhal with crispy puris...

So, this was my contribution for the potluck this week with #homechefs at '#ChaiShaiaurBataain hosted by Shital Kakad at her beautiful cook studio 'ShitalFoodCottage

Sharing the recipe toh banta hai...here is how I make it

For Puris

Mix 1cup Rajgira Flour and 1 cup maida

Add half tsp salt

Add half tsp cumin seeds

Mix and make stiff dough add just half cup water

Roll out thin circular shapes

Prick it with fork or knife

Deep fry till crisp

For dhal

Soak 2cups channa dhal for 2 hours

In a pressure cooker, stir fry 1 tsp cumin seeds in 1tbsp of ghee

Add 1 pinch of hing

Add the soaked dhal

Add salt and 1tsp of turmeric powder

Add 1 cup of water and pressure cook with 2 whistles.

Garnish with red chilie powder, cumin powder, pomegranate powder and chopped coriander leaves.

For mint chutney

Mix a small bunch of corainder leaves and mint leaves

Add one small onion, few cloves of garlic, 5 or 6 green chilies, salt to taste

Grind to a smooth paste

Add 1tbsp of lime juice

For tamarind sauce

Soak tamarind for an hour, squeeze out the pulp.

Add finely chopped onions

Add salt, sugar, cumin powder

For serving

Top the dhal with onions in tamarind sauce, mint chutney and enjoy with crispy Rajgira puris.

The brownie point was the live demonstration by chef of Punjab Grill Official @amiteshvirdi who shared his nuggets of knowledge with us.He has good knowledge of cooking and is also obsessed with every ingredient that he uses, His live demo on sweet potato and bitter gourd was truly loved by all

The potluck event at ShitalFoodCottage was a success because everybody's dish was commendable, You can find their recipes at Shital kakad s blog