5 Easy Traditional Recipes For Chhath Puja 2021

Chhath Puja 2021 celebrations have already started. Women observing fast on the day of Chhath Puja worship and worship the Sun God. During this festival, women should wake up early to offer water and flowers to Lord Surya and then observe a fast for the well being of their children. Various dishes like Laddu, Thekua and Kheer are prepared as prasad for this festival. We bring to you some traditional food items from Bihar specially with their recipes. You can definitely make this recipe to celebrate Chhath festival!

Here are 5 easy traditional recipes for Chhath Puja 2021:

1. Thekua

Thekua is the most popular offering during Chhath Puja. It is dry sweet and is made from wheat flour, dry coconut, chasni (melted sugar) and ghee. Thekua is mostly prepared on the second day of Chhath Puja and then it is offered to the Sun God.

Component:

• Whole wheat flour – 1 3/4 cups
• Semolina – 1/4 cup
• Dry Coconut – 1/4 cup
• Ghee (butter) – 3 tbsp
• Saunf (Saunf) – 1 tbsp
• Cardamom Powder – 1/2 tbsp
• 10-12 cashew nuts, small pieces
• Grated Jaggery – 3/4 cup
• Water – 1/2 cup (110 ml)
• Oil for frying thekua

Instructions:

1. Put 3/4 cup grated jaggery in a bowl and add 110 ml water to it. Keep stirring it on low flame till the jaggery dissolves in the water. Keep the jaggery syrup aside to cool completely before using.
2. Take a large mixing bowl and add 1 and 3/4 cup wheat flour, 1/4 cup semolina, 1/4 cup dry coconut, 1 tsp fennel, 1/2 tsp cardamom powder, 2 tbsp chopped cashews . Mix all the dry ingredients well.
3. Add 3 tablespoons of ghee to the bowl and mix it evenly until it becomes powdery.
4. Add jaggery syrup to the wheat flour mixture gradually, little by little and knead into a stiff dough.
5. Cover the dough completely with a wet cloth or cling film and keep it for at least an hour.
6. Knead the dough once again and make a dough by pressing it slightly with your hand. Then flatten them by pressing them with the palm. Mark the leaf with the help of toothpick or you can make any design as per your choice. Repeat the whole process and make thekua shape with the rest of the dough.
7. Put a pan on the fire and let it dry completely. Add enough oil to deep fry the thekua well.
8. Heat the oil on medium heat.
9. Put thekuas one by one in the oil and fry them on medium-low flame. Do not overheat the pan.
10. Fry them evenly till they become golden brown. Keep turning them from time to time so that they get cooked evenly.
11. Drain off the excess oil from the thekua and keep it in a tissue-lined plate. The tissue will absorb the excess oil.
12. Allow thekua to cool completely and store in an airtight container.

(Also read: 5 things you must know about Thekua – a popular Chhath recipe)

2. Pumpkin Bhati

This wonderful vegetable is most liked in Chhath. It is made with kaddu/lauki (bottle gourd) with Himalayan salt or rock salt and cooked in ghee. This delicious curry is served with fried poori or rice, making it the perfect dish to break the fast.

Component:

• Pumpkin – 500 grams
• Red chili powder – 1 tbsp
• oil for frying
• salt – as per taste
• Coriander Powder – 1 tbsp
• Turmeric Powder – 1/3 tbsp
• Fenugreek seeds – 1/4 tbsp
• Mustard seeds – 1/2 tbsp
• Dried mango powder – 1/4 tbsp
• Sugar – 2 tbsp
• Coriander leaves – fresh, finely chopped

Instructions-

1. Keep a pan on high flame.
2. Pour oil
3. When the oil is hot, reduce the gas and add mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds and a pinch of asafoetida, turmeric powder, coriander powder, ginger green chili paste and red chili powder.
4. Mix them well.
5. Add 1/2 cup water. Mix them well and fry for 1/2 minute.
6. Add grated pumpkin pieces and salt. Knead well.
7. Close the lid and cook on medium flame for 8 minutes.
8. Check after 8 minutes by pressing it with a spoon. The pieces will break easily if it is over cooked. Grate the pumpkin by pressing lightly so that the gravy becomes thick.
9. Add black salt, sugar, mango powder and mix well.
10. Add green coriander and mix well. And turn off the flame.
11. Garnish with coriander leaves and enjoy the delicious taste with rice.

(Also read: Chhath Puja 2021: Make traditional jaggery pudding for Chhath Puja Kharna Prasad)

3. Green gram

Hara chana (or green gram) is another delicious dish that you will find in a Chhath-special thali. Green gram is soaked in water overnight and then prepared the next day Ghee Along with some green chilies and cumin.

Component –

• Green gram – 1 cup (150-165 grams)
• Tomato – 1 pc
• Green chili – 1 pc
• Coriander Powder – 1 tbsp
• Cumin – 1 tbsp
• Ginger (1 inch
• Rock salt – as per taste
• Turmeric – 1 tbsp
• Ghee – 2 tbsp
• chopped coriander

Instructions-

1. Heat ghee in a pan.
2. Add cumin, grated ginger and chopped green chilies and stir well on low flame
3. Add finely chopped tomatoes and cook on low flame for 5 minutes.
4. Add turmeric and coriander powder along with rock salt and mix well for 2 minutes.
5. Put green gram in the kadhai and mix it well and keep the kadhai covered. Cook for 4-5 minutes.
6. Add some water to the pan and cook on low flame for another 10 minutes.
7. It is ready to eat garnished with green coriander.

4. Rasiyav (Rice pudding) with Puri/Roti (Chapati)

rasiyaav Basically rice kheer, but instead of sugar, it contains jaggery (or jaggery). It is prepared almost like regular kheer with rice, water and milk. This sweet completes the Chhath Puja meal. It is specially offered to the Sun God before serving for consumption. It is best paired with dal puri/puri/roti.

Component:

• Rice 50 grams (1/4 cup)
• Ghee – 1 tbsp
• cardamom – 3-4 pcs
• Milk – 1000 ml
• Sugar – 4-5 tbsp. adjust to taste
• Chopped nuts – 3-4 tbsp
• Rose water, saffron and kewra – 1 tbsp (optional)

Instructions-

1. Wash the rice until the water runs clear.
2. Then soak the rice in enough water for 20 to 30 minutes. Once 30 minutes is done, drain the rice using a colander and keep aside.
3. Heat a heavy bottom pan on medium heat. Then add 1 tsp ghee to it and then add soaked and filtered rice.
4. Add 3-4 crushed green cardamom pods.
5. Roast the rice with ghee and cardamom, stirring continuously for 1 to 2 minutes, till the aroma comes.
6. Then add milk to the pan and mix well. Set the heat to medium-high.
7. Let the milk come to a boil, it will take about 10-12 minutes. Keep stirring occasionally so that the milk does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
8. After the milk comes to a boil, reduce the flame and let the kheer cook on low flame for about 25 minutes. Stir every 2 minutes. The milk will thicken and the rice will be completely cooked. If you want thicker kheer, then cook it at the same time for another 15 minutes.
9. Add sugar and mix. Also add nuts as well.
10. Cook the kheer for another 5 minutes. The sugar should dissolve completely. Don’t worry if your kheer is not looking very thick at this point of time. It will continue to thicken as it cools.
11. Remove pan from heat. Mix in rose water, kewra and saffron (if using). Garnish with more nuts and serve the kheer hot or cold.
12. You can also cool it before eating or eat it hot.

(Also Read: Chhath Puja 2021: 10 things you should know about this festival)

5. Kasar Ke Laddu

Apart from thekua And rice kheer, another type of sweet is made. It is very easy to make and it is ready in few minutes. This powder is made from rice, jaggery powder, ghee and fennel. Kasar Ke Laddu is one such prasad made on Chhath Puja which is made on the day of Sandhya Arghya.

Component –

• Powdered rice – 1 kg
• Jaggery powder – 500 grams
• Ghee – 1/2 kg
• Fennel – 1/2 cup

Instructions-

1. Put coarsely ground rice in a large pot.
2. Add fennel, jaggery powder and ghee to it and mix all the ingredients well.
3. Take it by pressing lightly with your hands and make small round balls out of it.
4. Your Kasar Ke Laddu is ready.
5. You can eat this laddu for many days.

About the author: Hiranyami Shivani is the co-founder of Chhonk – a cloud-kitchen startup that serves home-cooked Bihari food.

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