“Singhare Ki Kachori” Dahi Aur Moongfali ki Chattni ke Saath (Navratri Fast Special)

This is that time of the year when our hearts are filled with new aspirations and hope for the coming days and a new beginning to look forward. There is always something warm and bright about this time of the year, when everything has a special glow!

Yes, I am talking about the Navratra festival. Navratri just like the name suggests is a celebration of nine days to worship Goddess Durga in nine different forms. Navratri is celebrated twice a year - once in the month of Chaitra (April-May) and again in the month of Ashwin (September-October). It is celebrated in the country differently in different states.

By the way, I owe this piece of knowledge to my mum in law. Thanks to her for expanding my horizon and for telling me some wonderful stories about the origin of Navratri festival. I am religious but not a staunch follower of religious customs. I only practice what I can do genuinely with 100% dedication and belief. However my in-laws are very religious; especially my mum in-law. She is an avid follower of all important Hindu rituals but that doesn’t mean she is orthodox.  She practices what she preaches and she is able to maintain balance between the extremities of being orthodox and following one’s inner belief.

In the festive occasion of Navratri, fast is observed by people for seven or eight days, depending upon when they want to conduct the Kanchika Pujan (when young girls are worshipped). The devotees, who have observed fast, would get up early in the morning, take bath and offer prayers to the deity .Most people nowadays perform partial fasting which is logical and practical in today’s fast paced world.

I strongly believe that by integrating the practice of fasting with Navratris, people are willy-nilly made to follow a tradition of cleansing, detoxifying, and resting their bodies. Although this is not all bad. In fact it is a good way to relax your body and mind by way of detoxification.

Today’s recipe is a very simple recipe eaten during fasts. Some might like to call it as “Singhare ki poori” but I would prefer to call it as “Singhare ki kachori” because it tastes incredible with the dip made out of Yogurt and roasted peanuts.

“Singhare ka Atta” or Water chestnut flour is usually a "vrat" or a fasting item. It is made from dried, ground water chestnuts. The nuts are boiled, peeled, dried then ground into flour. The nuts are also eaten raw. My mum in law makes this at home. Now days you can buy (Water chestnut flour) it from super markets but we prefer to make it at home to ensure the purity of the ingredients.

There is an element of fun and devotion attached to such fasting rituals. The devotees feel a sense of satisfaction by performing such meticulous rituals.

The dish is simple but you feel a sense of divinity while feasting on it :) Hope you all world like it.

Preparation Time: 10-15 min

Cooking Time: 10-15 min

Serves: 4-5

Ingredients for Singhare ki Kachori:

Water chestnut Flour: 2 cups

Boiled Potato: 4 finely mashed

Salt/Rock Salt (sendha Namak): As required

Green Chillies: 2 finely chopped

Finely Chopped Coriander Leaves: 1/2 cup

Grated Ginger: 1 ½ tsp

Cumin Seeds: 2 tsp

Black Pepper Powder: 1 tsp

Lemon Juice: 2 tsp

Refined oil or Clarified Butter: For Frying

Ingredients for Yogurt and Roasted peanut dip

Hung Yogurt: 2 Cups

Crushed Dry Roasted Peanut Powder: ½ cup

Green Coriander Puree: ½ cup

Green Chilli: 2 finely chopped

Roasted Cumin Powder: 1 tsp

Powdered Sugar: 1 ½ tsp

Salt: As required

Method:

1.       Knead all the ingredients mentioned above for the kachoris. Mix all the ingredients before you add water as potato will also help in binding the dough together. Add water slowly as this flour is different from regular flour and required less water.

2.      Make small balls out of the dough and gently roll in into roundels (giving them kachori shape) using rolling pin or using your palm.  

3.      Deep fry the kachoris till they turn golden from both the sides.

4.      The tip to make perfect kachori is to knead the dough just before frying and to add water slowly as per requirement. Don’t try to use pre made dough as it will stick to your hand and will be difficult to shape them.

5.      Now it’s time to make the dip(Chutney). Thoroughly mix all the ingredients for the dip and adjust seasoning by adding salt. It should have a perfect combination of sweet, salty and spicy flavor.

Having the kachoris with yogurt is a good option to cut out the richness of the deep fried water chestnut patty. The trick is to eat it when it is hot. It doesn’t taste good when it is kept for long.

So eat it when they are just out of the wok and enjoy the sizzling kachoris. Happy Navratri to all my friends and fly!