Karwa Chauth Special Meethi Mathri | Sweet Indian Fried Flaky Crackers

By -
Karva Chauth is one of the most awaited festivals in Northern and parts of Western India after Deepavali; a pious festival during which the married women fast for a whole day praying for the well-being and long life of their husbands. The fast gets started early in the morning just before sunrise and gets opened only after offering a small prayer to the moon. During the fasting duration, women abstain themselves from eating or drinking anything, even water.

The preparations of this vivacious fest generally gets started about a week in advance; decked up markets with stalls selling anything and everything ranging from cosmetics, bangles and jewelry to traditional sweets and delicacies. Women queued up at Henna stalls waiting to get beautiful designs tattooed on their hands is truly a sight to behold. Needless to say, if someone visits Northern India during the time of Karva Chauth and Deepavali, he is sure to be smitten by the awe and grandeur of the mesmerizing festivities. While writing all this, oh I am just missing all the fun of such beautiful traditions and celebrations of India. Although, a Diwali Village and market has been set up here in Singapore too, but it lacks the exuberance and vibrancy of what we are used to seeing in India.

It was only yesterday that I stopped by at the Diwali Village in Little India (Singapore) on my way back from office; I was there to get "Fenis" and 'Sweet Mathris" that we traditionally eat during the sargi or the pre-dawn meal. It was literally a huge market with shops selling all the puja items, diyas, crackers and off-course few sweets. I was lucky enough to lay my hands on some fenis but could not find the sweet mathris which are a kind of must for the Karva Chauth fast as per our customs and beliefs. And yes, luckily again it was an off day for me today being the Saturday, so, I had some time in hand to prepare these mathris at home for the fasting on Sunday. And after actually making them, I realized they are not at all hard to prepare and the outcome is off-course much better than the store-bought ones. To satiate my innovative self, I also sprinkled them with some icing sugar and powdered pistachios, which made them look so beautiful and exotic.

If you also living out of India and are not able to lay your hands on mathris for your fast, I bet you can easily make them at home like I did. Just follow the recipe below and don't forget to thank me later :)




    
Ingredients

Maida (All purpose flour) - 2 cups
Desi ghee (clarified butter) - 1 tbsp
Vegetable oil - 1 tbsp
Water (luke warm) - for kneading, about 1/4 cup
Oil - for frying
Icing sugar (optional) - 1 tbsp
Powdered pistachios (optional) - for sprinkling

For Sugar Syrup

Sugar - 1 cup
Water - 1/2 cup
Lemon juice - 1 tsp






Method

1. Mix desi ghee and vegetable oil in maida. Rub well with your hands. You must get a bread crumb like texture.
2. Knead a semi-soft dough of this mixture using a little luke warm water at a time.
3. Cover with a damp cloth and keep aside to rest for half an hour.
4. Once the dough has rested, divide it into 8 equal portions.
5. Roll out each portion into 5 to 6 inch diameter disc.
6. Prick each disc with fork all over. In the meanwhile, keep oil to heat in a wok.
7. Once the oil is little hot, slide one disc and fry on low flame for 8 to 10 minutes, until the mathris get good golden brown color on all sides. Continue same for the remaining mathris.
8. Dish them out on absorbent paper.
9. Now make sugar syrup by boiling sugar and water together until the syrup attains a two thread consistency.
10. Add in lemon juice so that it does not crystallize.
11. Now dip each mathri in the syrup one by one for about a minute.
12. Take out on a big thali or plate and place in such a way that they don't stick to each other.
13. Sprinkle with some icing sugar and powdered pistachios.
14. Let these completely cool after which you can store them in air-tight container for about a month.






      



CAN'T MAKE NOW?? PIN HERE FOR LATER...




Comments

Post a Comment

Thanks for stopping by. Your comments, suggestions and feedback are always welcome.

Regards

Popular posts from this blog

Paneer Dhaniya Adraki Korma | Cottage Cheese in Coriander-Ginger Flavored Yogurt Sauce

By -
Image
Loaded with goodness of ginger and coriander, "Paneer Dhaniya Adraki Korma" is simply a gastronomic treat for all paneer lovers. This simple yet exotic delicacy can be made in just a few minutes and definitely counts amongst few special recipes that can be served in dinner parties, get-togethers or festive meals. Needless to say, kids love it because of mild spices and a rich texture. A keeper recipe for sure, do try my version of it once and I promise, you would not be disappointed. Paneer Dhaniya Adraki Korma Ingredients Paneer (Cottage Cheese, cubed) - 250 grams Thick curd/yogurt (nicely whisked) - 1 cup Fresh cream - 1 tbsp Coriander paste - 1 tbsp Ginger paste - 1 to 2 tsp Refined flour - 1 tsp Chopped coriander - a handful Green chilies (chopped) - 1 tsp Salt - as per taste Black pepper corns - 3 to 4 Cloves - 2 to 3 Bay leaf - 1 Cumin seeds - 1 tsp Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp Coriander powder - 1 tsp Black pepper powder - 1/2 tsp Garam masala po
Read more

Best Homemade South Indian Sambar Recipe

By -
Image
A hearty stew made with yellow lentils, vegetables and heaps of aromatic spice powder, Sambar is a staple served with all the meals at every South Indian household. The flavorful lentil curry tempered with aromatic curry leaves, mustard seeds and whole dried red chilies makes for a delectable accompaniment whether having hot idlis , vada, dosa or even plain steamed rice. It won't be incorrect to say that while sambar is majorly known for its tongue-tickling taste, it is also packed with a lot of health benefits; toor dal lends it that much needed dosage of protein, the vegetables provide it with all the essential vitamins and minerals and lastly, addition of hing and tamarind loads it with immune-boosting properties. Having said that, every household has its own recipe of making sambar. Some like it to have thick, others a bit runny. Some like the chunkiness of vegetables whereas others like their sambar to be smooth. Some like it on a tangier side, others with just a hint
Read more

Instant Moong Dal Idli Recipe | How to Make Instant Moong Dal Idli

By -
Image
Idli is one of the healthiest Indian breakfast options by far. These soft, pillowy and melt-in-mouth lentil cakes are traditionally made by fermenting rice and urad dal batter overnight; however, the entire process could be quite cumbersome and involves a little amount of planning ahead. Therefore, instant versions of idlis come very handy when you want to have something quick and yet wholesome and healthy in the breakfast . And especially when it comes to me, I am a big fan of instant recipes, be it instant sprouted moong dal dosa , instant rava & oats idli or instant dhokla , you would find me making these items very frequently as they are not only very quick to make and save you a hell lot of time in the kitchen but, at the same time are quite tasty as well as wholesome. Moong Dal Idli Recipe | How to Make Moong Dal Idli Talking about the instant moong dal idli , as I said it is a very quick and easy recipe and doesn't require an
Read more

Perfect Instant Homemade Bhatura Recipe | How to Make Bhatura

By -
Image
Bhatura is a leavened, puffed deep fried bread made from Maida or All Purpose Flour. A popular recipe from the Punjabi cuisine, it is mainly served with spiced chickpea curry such as Pindi Chholey and Amritsari Chholey . Traditionally, bhatura is made using fermented dough, which is rested for minimum of 6 hours and has a peculiar tang to it. However, when you are short of time and crave for this delicious Chole Bhatura combo, these instant bhaturas come to your rescue. Quick and easy to prepare, they use Eno Fruit Salt as the leavening agent and trust me, that lends the bhaturas with that perfect crispness on outside and perfect fluffiness on the inside. If you can't lay your hands on eno, alternatively, you also have the option to use baking powder and baking soda. Without wasting any time further, let's start with the recipe. Perfect Instant Bhatura Recipe | How to Make Bhatura INGREDIENTS Maida/All Purpose Flour - 2 cups Sooji/Semolina - 2 tbsp
Read more

Burani Raita Recipe | Spiced, Garlic Flavored Yogurt

By -
Image
Burani Raita is a famous Indian accompaniment to spicy biryanis and pulaos. A Hyderabadi specialty, it uses some thick yogurt that is mixed with few pounded cloves of garlic and some basic spice powders like red chili and roasted cumin, which lend it that much-needed hint of spicy kick. Not to mention, when it comes to making the Burani Raita, it is no more than a five minutes process and makes for an ideal side dish to go along with any kind of rice preparation or even chapati & sabzi combination. Ideally, this utterly flavorful and aromatic raita only has to it, some pounded raw garlic, however, I have given it a slight twist by topping it with some fried garlic bits and some red chili oil for extra flavoring. This step is totally optional and you can skip it altogether by sticking to the traditional way of making it. So, not wasting any time further, lets move on to the recipe.... Burani Raita Recipe | Garlic Flavored Spiced Yogurt INGREDIENTS Thick y
Read more

Chirote Recipe | Chiroti Recipe

By -
Image
With nation celebrating the beautiful festival of 'Ganesh Chaturthi' with all pomp and show, the much awaited season of festivities in India has formally come to a kick start. Lined up from now, are some of the most popular festivals of India - Dussehra, Diwali, Chhath Pooja, Bhai Dooj and Christmas. I have already begun with the preparations for all these celebrations; first on my list is this  beautiful, delicious, flaky and crusty, " Chirote " or " Chiroti ". A traditional Maharashtrian sweet delicacy, it is made using refined flour, deep fried and coated with powdered sugar. For those who love their snacks to be uprightly sweet, can also dip it in sugar syrup. Melt-in-mouth and highly addictive, I promise you will not be able to resist yourself from eating more than one in one go. Looking for the recipe? Here you go .... Chirote Recipe | Chiroti Recipe Ingredients Maida/all purpose flour - 1 and 1/2 cups Ghee - 2 tbsp + 3
Read more

Dhaba Style Besan ki Phulki wali Kadhi

By -
Image
Kadhi is a popular delicacy from the Indian cuisine that is made using gram flour and yogurt as a base. Having said that, the recipe of this luscious and beautiful curry differs from region to region and from every household to household. Coming from the Punjabi family, for us, Kadhi Pakoda has always meant a sour and spicy kadhi, which essentially has the soft onion or palak/spinach fritters dunked into the luscious gramflour-yogurt gravy. And I guess, most of the Punjabi households make the kadhi in a similar manner...  However, if you have ever had kadhi at a dhaba or a street-side restaurant, you would have noticed that the pakodas added in the kadhi doesn't make use of onions, spinach or any other vegetable.  The pakodas are more like phulkis (plain and soft gramflour dumplings), which are spiced with just a handful of spices and some ginger for the rustic flavor. Despite of that the kadhi is simply delectable and the spicy tadka with whole lots of crushed dhaniya seeds ma
Read more