Untangling Indian Dals and Other Terminology

Anyone who has tried to understand which "dal/dahl/daal" is which, will find there is a surfeit of misinformation abounding on the web. While looking through my cookbooks, and some recipes online, I have come across differing names for some of the lentils, beans, dals and other legumes. When trying to find them to buy, there is even more confusion. There are a lot of different lentils and beans and seeds that are used in Indian cooking. I do not propose that I am a total expert, but I have spent a lot of time on this subject, researching to try and get to the root of which is which, and what names the varying lentils and beans may be called by, in order to use the proper one when using a recipe.

My Indian Cookbook by Amandip Uppal

My search came down to a crunch about a week ago, when I decided to try making "Tadka Dal," a recipe right out of the cookbook called "My Indian Cookbook," by Amandip Uppal (found on Amazon, here). I was given this book by friends, and at first I thought how very simple some of the recipes seemed. Most Indian recipes look forbidding, with the vast array of ingredients, spices and other flavoring agents. This is why I have amassed an amazing array of spices over the years, and a fair bit of knowledge in how to use them. Amandip Uppal's recipes, the ones I have tried, to date, have been really delightful. Her Naan bread is so amazingly soft, I found it hard to believe. So when I decided to try this recipe for Tadka Dal, I ran into a snag, since I was missing one of the "dals" called for. I set about remedying that situation right away, but in the meantime, I made it with just two of the three dals called for. It was delightful. But then I wished I'd had the third, missing dal, to have tried it out for flavor.

Okay, What is Dal, Daal or Dahl?

Dal is the term used to denote any split, peeled lentil, bean or other dried legume. If the particular lentil, bean or dried legume is left whole, it is not called "dal." 

Dal is also the term for a thinner, slightly soupy dish cooked from these aforementioned split, peeled, lentils, beans or other dried legume, as well as whole cooked legumes. Confusing, as I said! I created a table, which is large, but hopefully will help unravel some of the confusion. I am sorry if some of the type is rather small, but it is a large table.

Table of Lentils, Peas and Dals

Not all Chickpeas are Created Equal

Another thing came out of my search to identify some of these lentils, beans, peas and other legumes. I had not realized that when an Indian recipe called for "besan" flour (which I knew was chickpea flour), it did not mean the kind of chickpeas / garbanzo beans we in the U.S use for hummus. Instead, there is a much smaller "chickpea" called Desi Chickpea / Kala Chana / Bengal Gram / Black or Brown Chickpea. With that many names for one single kind of chickpea, it is no wonder there can be massive confusion. Once this small Desi Chickpea is peeled and split, it is called Chana Dal, Desi Channa Dal or Split Yellow Gram! Good gracious! And it is this little split and peeled Desi Chickpea that is generally used to make the "besan" flour, but until just a couple of days ago, I did not know this.

Brown Desi Chickpeas vs Garbanzo Beans for size

I came upon this little fact when I tried following a recipe for some Carrot & Chickpea Pancakes (also from "My Indian Cookbook," by Amandip Uppal) made with besan. I thought "I have dried chickpeas/garbanzos, and my grain mill will grind them into flour - no problem." So when I went to make the breads, the recipe called for something like 5 tablespoons of water. At that point, there was absolutely no way this mixture was the soupy mixture the recipe showed it to be - something like crepe batter. After adding about 7 or 8 more tablespoons of water, it finally approached the right consistency. And it was after this that I read that if using our large, regular chickpea (kabuli channa) flour, that you would need a lot more water to get the right consistency. Aha! Now that I know, I also have the split, peeled Desi chickpeas, so I can make proper "besan" flour.

Carrot & Chickpea Pancakes from "My Indian Cookbook" - also called Besan Chilla (or Besan Puda)

Terminology Difficulties

The next thing I came across that had me stumped for a bit is the term "Tadka," sometimes also called "Tarka." 

I have read a lot of recipes that have this term applied to it. And I have found recipes for various lentil, or lentil combination dishes that are all called "Tadka or Tarka Dal." Okay. So, why, if the lentils are different, and the other ingredients vary radically from one recipe to another, are they all termed Tadka Dal? 

My Dal Fry or Toor Dal with Tadka

I made that recipe from "My Indian Cookbook" (mentioned above), that Amandip Uppal called Tadka Dal, using two of the three types of lentils called for. It was wonderful. Once I ordered the remaining dal that I had not owned (Toor Dal, or split, peeled pigeon peas), I felt that I would like to make something with just these split peeled pigeon peas alone, to gauge the flavor. I found a recipe using just Toor Dal on www.vegrecipesofindia.com for something called "Dal Fry." I made it and was instantly enchanted by the flavors. I ate it for lunch, and after the veritable orgy of flavors in my mouth, I stopped to think: "Hmmm. Looking back, it seems that the ingredients for the Tarka Dal of a few days previous, and this Dal Fry were remarkably similar. What?" I got out both recipes to compare, and aside from one recipe calling for three different dals, and the other calling for only the one, the remaining ingredients were nearly identical! So, what in the world is the difference? How can they be the same?

My first thought was that "Fry" in the title "Dal Fry" is a purely English word. So, what would this recipe be called if not for the word "fry?" I went hunting online, and finally figured out the problem:

Tadka, Tarka (or Chaunk or Dhungar) means fried flavoring agents.

These various dals, whether little Masoor Dal (red lentils), Toor Dal (split peeled pigeon peas), Desi Channa Dal (split, peeled Desi chickpeas / brown Desi chickpeas) or other, when these are cooked in water, have very little flavor of their own. It is far easier to cook them without salt, so they will absorb water more quickly, leaving one with a pot of well cooked, possibly mushy lentils (often a desired state), but with little to no flavor. The Tadka comes in when adding flavors to this resultant mush to give it flavor. This "Tadka" can be as simple as a few kinds of spice such as mustard seeds, cumin seeds and maybe a Garam Masala, fried in some ghee and then added to the cooked lentils, along with salt, for flavor. It can be as complex as you wish. The recipe from vegrecipesofindia.com used quite a lot of things, first frying mustard and cumin seeds, adding onion, garlic, ginger, curry leaves, and on and on, creating quite an excellent mixture, that was then added to the cooked, mushy, bland pigeon pea mixture.

The result was nothing short of amazing, in my estimation. This recipe was so good that I said to my husband that I could eat it breakfast, lunch and dinner! My husband liked it, but said he wouldn't go quite as far as I would, such as eating it for breakfast! Yet, I have done just that, for the past two mornings. I - LOVE - this dish. And I really love the flavor of the Toor Dal. Despite all the added flavors, it was quite distinct from the Tadka Dal of those few days prior, despite having nearly the same flavoring ingredients. Before this dish, my most absolute favorite dal dish was one made with Masoor Dal, the little "red" (more like orange/salmon color) lentils. This new dish totally eclipses that first one, and that says a lot.

I changed very little in the "Dal Fry" recipe from Veg Recipes of India (click the link for that recipe). I had read elsewhere that more often amchur powder is used in place of the lemon juice called for in the recipe. Amchur is dried green mango powder, used often as a souring agent, sometimes alongside tamarind, another souring agent. I used amchur rather than lemon juice and slightly less chili powder, because if my husband was going to taste it, he cannot abide anything so hotly spiced. 

Another Misleading Bit of Information

When looking for Toor Dal, and sometimes Chana Dal, many people said they were the same as yellow split peas. NOT.

Yellow Split Peas, left - Split Desi Chickpeas (Chana Dal), middle - Split Pigeon Peas (Toor Dal), right

Yellow split peas (split peas would be termed "matar dal") take far longer to cook at upwards of 2 hours (with no advance soaking) and are a fair bit larger than Chana Dal (split brown chickpeas / Desi chickpeas) or Toor Dal (split pigeon peas), both of which can take about a half hour of cooking, with no pre-soaking.

A note on many recipes calling for lentils: In my experience to date, while most Indian recipes call for the use of a pressure cooker (which I do not own), I truly cannot quite grasp why a pressure cooker is necessary. It barely takes a half hour, even without pre-soaking any of these split lentils/peas/beans to cook through. Many of the small ones, like the little red lentils (masoor dal) take about 15 to 20 minutes. What I do is set the lentil to cook in plain water first. Get it to a boil, reduce heat, then cover and let cook - and then I proceed with any measuring, chopping and frying called for in the recipe. Once that is taken care of, the lentils are generally cooked through. It's all about timing and organization. 

I truly hope that this blog may help some who are new to these terms and the many and varied legumes. I have been experimenting with Indian cooking for nearly 20 years and have myriad Indian cookbooks and such an abundance of spices unique to Indian cooking that they warrant a whole, dedicated drawer of their own. I love the foods, the spices and flavors that come of combining so many and varied ingredients. India is a whole world unto its own and has such varied cultures just among their own states. I am endlessly fascinated with their culture and their foods. I taste something new, such as the Toor Dal with Tadka, and I feel like I just ate the best comfort food, ever. Despite a Slovak background, when I eat Indian foods I feel like I've come home.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Learning About Falafel

I had heard of falafel for a very long time. With all the foods I have made and eaten, I had never yet tried falafel, and yesterday I wondered to myself why that might be? I have no good response for that question in my mind, so I did what I usually do. I  went online and looked up falafel, and read, and read some more, and then more. All in all I spent about 3½ hours reading about falafel, what they are, how they are made, the differences between recipes, the "right" and "wrong" ways of going about making them.

Falafel in flatbread with hummus, cucumber and arugula

While 3½ hours online does not an expert make, still, I learned quite a bit. Though I had heard the word falafel, knew it was a food, and even that I believed they were fried, that is about the sum total of my knowledge until yesterday. What they were made of was a total unknown. So, here are some things I learned:

• Falafel are made from a base of chickpeas and/or fava beans.
• While many use canned chickpeas, they do not provide the correct consistency, thus necessitating the addition of flour (wheat, chickpea or other), baking soda, and sometimes even egg to bind the mixture enough to shape.
• Falafel are traditionally made into round balls and deep fried.
• Falafel are eaten as street food in many Middle Eastern countries.
• The word "falafel" can refer to the little fried balls themselves, or to the "sandwich" made of them using pita bread.
• Falafel are high in complex carbohydrates, proteins and fiber and contain no cholesterol until they are fried.
• Falafel are often served alongside hummus.
• Falafel are often served with a yogurt sauce, or even tzatziki. 
• Falafel are served similarly to gyros, folded into a warm pita or flatbread, with cucumber, tomato and a tzatziki type sauce.

Since my husband and I have been eating a healthier diet of late, the concept of falafel, made with mainly chickpeas (which we both like - we love hummus) and the addition of other good things like parsley, cilantro, mint and some spices, these sounded like a good thing to try. The only sticking point is the deep-frying part. I absolutely hate to deep-fry things. I don't like heating up that much oil. And then what to do with it once I'm done? The likelihood of me deep frying anything else within a 5-year period is slim to none. So, the oil is all wasted.

At that point, I started looking for recipes to bake falafel. And while there are many recipes out there for baked falafel, I was getting the distinct impression that even if they are just pan fried in a little bit of oil, they taste better than baked. I decided to try it both ways and see how things come out. As it turned out, I ended up pan-frying the whole lot, so I never even got to testing the oven baked concept. But this will not be the last time making them. We both were completely enchanted with them!

While most of the recipes call for using a yogurt type sauce and/or hummus as sides to the falafel, one place jumped out as different by using a red sauce. I kept in mind the main ingredients but did not write down the recipe. All I knew is that roasted garlic and roasted red bell pepper were involved, and those two ingredients had me salivating. I went ahead and made a sauce, and I am absolutely sure it will be great with falafel, I am also sure it would be great on a lot of things. Omelets come to mind! Or burgers, or even fries! It's that good! I'm foreseeing a lot of this sauce being made in the near future also!

Roasted Garlic & Red Pepper Sauce

Makes about ¾ cup

Roasted Garlic & Red Pepper Sauce

4 or 5 roasted cloves garlic
1 large red bell pepper
1 large shallot
1 Roma tomato
1 teaspoon tahini
1 teaspoon ground sumac
¼ teaspoon Aleppo pepper
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon salt

If roasted garlic is not already made, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut of the top portion of a whole head of garlic. Set it into a piece of foil large enough to enclose the head of garlic. Drizzle a little olive oil over top, seal the package and set into a small, oven proof ramekin and bake for 45 minutes. Once baked, simply squeeze out the garlic.

Preheat the broiler. Set the bell pepper onto a foil lined baking sheet and place under broiler so that it is about 3 to 4 inches away from the broiler element. Allow the skin of the pepper to completely blacken before turning it so another side is exposed. Once it has blackened all around, remove the pepper to a zip-top bag and seal, allowing it to steam for a few minutes. Once cool enough to handle, remove all skin, then remove seeds and membranes and place the roasted pepper into a blender container, along with the garlic.

Once the pepper is done, cut up the shallot into some few pieces and set onto the same foil lined pan and roast until it smells sweet and there are a few little darkened patches. Add the shallot pieces to the blender with all the remaining ingredients. Blend to a smooth puree. You should have approximately 1½ cups. Pour this into a non-stick skillet and cook down to about half, leaving a thickened ¾ cup of sauce. The sauce will keep for about 5 days in the fridge.

Typically, falafel are served in pita breads. For some odd reason, the stores here had not carried pita breads, but only flatbreads. Now, just the other day, suddenly there are pita breads in the section with cheeses, so they are chilled. The breads themselves were hard as rocks, so needless to say, flatbreads it is for this first try!

Falafel, sprinkled with salt

Falafel

Makes about 30 to 35 two-inch patties

1¾ cups dried chickpeas
1 small onion
4 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon salt
1 jalapeno, seeds removed
½ cup parsley
½ cup mint leaves
1 cup cilantro
2 teaspoons cumin, ground
2 teaspoons coriander, ground
½ teaspoon black pepper, ground

The day before making falafel, place the chickpeas in a bowl and cover by at least 3 inches with water. Cover the bowl and leave them to soak for 18 to 24 hours. Once ready, they should break apart between two fingers. Once ready, drain the remaining water and place the soaked chickpeas in the container of a food processor, along with all the remaining ingredients. Process, stopping to scrape down frequently, until the mixture is like coarse sand, leaving some texture, not a paste. Refrigerate the mixture for at least 2 or 3 hours.

Once ready to cook, you may deep-fry them, of course, but they were just perfect made in a skillet with oil added as needed. If you own a little cookie scoop, one that scoops about a tablespoon of dough, this worked perfectly. The falafel are small, but very easy to manage in the skillet. Scoop out a tablespoon-sized portion, flatten in your hand, then set into the hot skillet with enough oil to fry them easily.

Scoop, flatten and fry the falafel

Fry the patties on medium to medium-low heat. They can take about 2 or 3 minutes per side, at this size. If larger, they may take longer. The patties should be dark brown on the outsides and cooked through, but still tender, in the centers.

At this point, the falafel may be eaten with hummus, or with a yogurt and tahini sauce, or wrap them in pita or flatbread with the additions of cucumber slices, tomato slices and lettuce. Another addition seems to be pickled turnip, but I have yet to try that.




My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Chiles Rellenos at Last

Most in the U.S. know chiles rellenos (or "stuffed peppers") as being stuffed with gooey melted cheese. I cannot say if this is "the" Mexican way to make them, or if it is something Tex-Mex that came about with time, or even if they make them this way in Mexico at all.

What I can say with certain knowledge is that in the 12 years I lived in Guatemala, I never once came across a chile/pepper filled with cheese. Instead, the ones in Guatemala were filled with a meat and vegetable mix. The peppers and the individual vegetables were made "en escabeche", or slightly "pickled" with vinegar. Generally served on or between fresh corn tortillas, they were sometimes also served with a simple tomato sauce.

Chile Relleno on Corn Tortilla with Tomato Sauce

The first time I ate a chile relleno was the very first time I went to Guatemala. My Dad went with me, to see where I would be going to live when I married my (then) fiancé, and meet his family. My fiancé's family took us all over the place, sightseeing in that beautiful country. One of the many places we went was to a market (I believe in Escuintla), and seeing the native men and women selling their wares. Most everything was available in the market, from every vegetable and fruit to meats, breads and tortillas and also cooked foods. I was given a chile relleno, slapped between two corn tortillas. The corn tortillas at that time were always, always, always made fresh and patted out between capable native hands and cooked on a comal of some sort over open fire more often than not. 

Guatemalan Type of Green Pepper

I had never had a chile relleno of this kind before. I had eaten what passed as a stuffed pepper in the U.S., when I was briefly at the university. These chiles rellenos bore no resemblance to those I ate at school. I also had never eaten corn tortillas and really never had tasted anything like these freshly made ones. The whole experience was new flavors and textures and smells, and I really loved it. So my love affair with chiles rellenos began 47 years ago. And in all that time, I only ever tried making them once, and they tasted nothing like I remembered, and somehow . . . I just never revisited that recipe.

Traje from Patzun

About a year ago when I was revising my cookbook of Guatemalan recipes and recollections of my time in that lovely country, I realized that I had not ever made these chiles rellenos (pronounced "CHEE-lehs rre-YEN-ohs") and needed to rectify this oversight. And here I am, a year later, finally getting to it. I have revisited and made a lot of the Guatemalan recipes in my book, mainly to get photos taken of the foods, and of course, since I loved these foods, it is a real trip down memory lane. My daughter went with her Dad to Guatemala a little over a year ago for a visit, and I asked her to bring me back a piece of the traditional woven material that the native women use for their skirt. It is called a "corte" and is wrapped around and around, then held in place by a "faja", or a long piece of material used as a belt. I used the material she brought me as a tablecloth to photograph my chiles rellenos, in my photos above and below. Immediately below right is a photo from the internet, showing how the typical dress or "traje" is worn.

I have a lot more cooking experience under my belt (figuratively AND literally!) at this time, so looking over my "recipe" as it stood, I realized there were a lot of things just not even listed. My memories of every chile relleno I ever ate, and there were many, had meat (cooked ground beef), and a vegetable mixture that consisted of onions, likely also garlic, carrots, potatoes and green beans. All these vegetables were chopped very small and cooked. The flavor of the lightly pickled vegetables did not jump out screaming "pickled in vinegar". Instead, it was an underlying note of piquancy that made them taste so fantastically good.

As with most recipes from Guatemala, there are a lot of steps, and multiple cooking methods involved, all to finalize this one recipe. The peppers can be poblanos, or they can be green peppers. The difference is that the "green peppers" in Guatemala were never the thick bell peppers we know in the U.S., but instead a thinly fleshed and somewhat crinkly pepper, lighter green than our green bell peppers. The peppers used for chiles rellenos are first charred and blistered, then peeled and set to marinate in a half and half mixture of white vinegar and water for at least a couple of hours or up to a day. The vegetables are cooked or sauteed, either separately or all together until soft, then these also have a half vinegar / half water mixture added. The meat is cooked separately and lightly browned. Egg whites are beaten to stiff peaks. The yolks are also beaten until lemon colored and slightly thickened. A little flour can be added to help the mixture hold together. The yolks are folded into the whites. 

Peeled chiles in vinegar water, vegetable mixture in vinegar water, combining beaten eggs, finished chies rellenos

The assembly is tricky for the novice. I consider myself novice at this particular assembly, since I've hardly done it with this application. Once ready to assemble, if there is any liquid left in the vegetables, it should first be drained off and the meat and the vegetables are combined. This mixture is placed inside the chiles. This is not easy with the peppers being so very soft. Keeping the vegetables inside while stuffing the peppers, and even worse when trying to coat the stuffed peppers with the egg mixture, is difficult, without practice. I had NO practice. It was treacherous. Once filled and coated in the egg mixture, they are fried until all the egg coating is lightly browned. The insides are already cooked through, so it is only a matter of the outer egg being cooked through. These can be served either warm or at room temperature.

Guatemalan Style Chiles Rellenos

Makes 10 large peppers 

Chile Relleno with Tomato Sauce

10 Poblano chilies or green bell peppers
¾ cup white vinegar
¾ cup water

VEGETABLE MIXTURE:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, minced
2 - 4 cloves garlic, minced
2 handfuls fresh green beans, sliced thinly across
1 large carrot, peeled and finely diced
1 medium or 2 smaller potatoes, peeled, finely diced
1 teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf
2 - 3 sprigs fresh thyme
few grinds fresh pepper

MEAT:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound lean ground beef
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 teaspoon salt

COATING:
6 eggs, separated
2 - 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, optional

More oil for frying

Combine the vinegar and water in a measuring cup. This mixture will be divided between the peppers and the other vegetables. Set aside.

Set the peppers of choice under the broiler or over a flame and blister until blackened and skins are noticeably loose. Place the blackened peppers into a zip-top bag or other sealed container to steam for 10 to 15 minutes. Once cooled enough to handle, peel off all the skins. If possible (for authenticity), try to keep the stem in place while making a slit in one side of the peeled pepper and removing the seeds. Once all peppers are peeled and prepped, return them to the bag or container and pour over them 1 cup worth of the vinegar and water mixture. Set the container aside for 2 or three hours, or refrigerate overnight. Turn the container often for even marinating.

Heat a large skillet and add in the 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add all the vegetables, the salt, bay leaf, thyme and fresh black pepper. Cook over medium low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are all softened and cooked through. Place the vegetable mixture into a large container with lid and pour the remaining vinegar and water mixture over top. Stir to combine. Seal the container and let stand for 2 to 3 hours or refrigerate overnight, mixing or turning often for even marinating.

Wipe out the skillet, and over medium heat add in the 1 tablespoon of olive oil and then the ground beef with the bay leaf, thyme and salt. Cook, breaking the meat apart in very small bits, until the meat is lightly browned and completely cooked through. Set the meat aside until needed, or refrigerate overnight.

When ready to assemble the chiles rellenos, bring the peppers, the vegetable mixture and the meat to room temperature (if refrigerated). Remove the bay leaf and thyme sprigs from both meat and vegetable mixtures, then combine the meat with the (drained) mixed vegetables and set aside. Separate the eggs, placing the yolks into a small bowl and the whites into a large, scrupulously clean bowl. With a hand mixer, first beat the whites until they are at stiff peaks. Now, separately, beat the yolks until light and lemon colored. They will be noticeably thicker. Fold the yolks into the whites until a nice, even color. If desired, sprinkle the flour over top and fold in. 

Assemble all the peppers: Remove the peppers from the vinegar mixture and set to drain on paper toweling. Set one pepper in front of you and spoon in some of the meat and vegetable mixture. They do not need to be tamped down, but just gently filled. Set them aside once filled and repeat with remaining peppers. 

Heat a large skillet with more olive oil. Gently lift one of the filled peppers with clean hands and set into the beaten egg mixture. Spoon more of the mixture over top to encase the whole stuffed pepper. Lift out and set into the hot oil. Once the egg coating is well browned on one side, turn the pepper so the opposite side is browned. Do not over crowd the pan. It is far easier to turn them with plenty of space between. Repeat with each of the peppers. Set aside onto a baking sheet with rims once cooked and set into a very low oven to keep them warm.

Serve with fresh corn tortillas and a Simple Tomato Sauce, if desired.



My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.

Interesting Dessert with Carrots

Some would immediately say "Ewww", yet we do eat carrot cake! With spices added, and a little sugar, lots of things become not only palatable, but downright delicious. And so it is with this, another Indian recipe for Gajar Burfi, or in other words, a carrot fudge.

Gajar Burfi or Carrot Fudge with Edible Silver Leaf

I have encountered many interesting blogs with Indian recipes, and one of them is www.vegrecipesofindia.com. I have not made too much from this site, but it is a veritable treasure trove, if you love Indian food. Since I have an Indian Dinner scheduled next week, I was looking for a dessert - not Gulab Jamun, since I served that to two of the guests last time! The stricture of "no nuts" was a trifle limiting, since so many desserts and other Indian foods use nuts as a matter of course. And then I came upon this recipe for Gajar Burfi. As usual, I looked at a slew of other recipes for this same dessert, and settled with this one as it sounded easy enough. 

Before making it for guests, however, I thought it expedient to at least try it out and see if it was something that tasted good. My husband is a little sketchy on carrots. He will eat them if they are in something like a vegetable soup, or shredded into a stir fry, but not so much blatantly on their own! I am not sure if he will eat this or not, but I am going to hazard a guess that he just might, if he can get past the thought of eating CARROTS for dessert. ;-)

Gajar Burfi or Carrot Fudge

So with that in mind, I set about making half of the recipe - partly as I didn't have enough of the whole milk powder on hand to make the whole recipe, and partly because....what if we don't like it? So, the recipe is pretty much straight from this blog site mentioned above and I would encourage looking through that site.

The recipe is detailed in very large step by step photos on this website, so mine will be just enough to give the idea. Truly, it is a simple recipe. The whole milk powder is not available everywhere - certainly not in this town, to my knowledge. Amazon is my go-to place. The recipe uses a small amount of ground cardamom, but I do encourage you to invest in the whole cardamom seeds and grind them yourself rather than get pre-ground powder. I have tried both, and the powder, which is often the seeds ground along with the husks in the interest of cost, just barely has any flavor in comparison. And who would have known that carrots and cardamom would go so well together? 

One thing about Indian recipes: they rarely will tell you how much a thing makes, or what size of pan to use. When I started this recipe this morning, I greased a 7 x 7-inch pan, thinking this would work for half the recipe. As I got closer to the end of cooking I realized this was far too large a pan. I couldn't find anything else on short notice but a 6-inch diameter round cake pan. Even that is larger than I would have liked for this half recipe I made. So, I believe the 7 x 7-inch pan would accommodate the whole recipe (as written below) just fine, giving a slightly thicker final product. My burfi turned out rather flatter than I'd hoped, and with the round pan, I cut it into wedges rather than squares. All that said, the bit I ate was out-of-this-world good!

This is what to do:

Gajar Burfi or Carrot Fudge

Gajar Burfi (Carrot Fudge)

Makes one 6 x 6 or 7 x 7-inch square pan

2 tablespoons ghee
4 cups finely grated carrots
pinch of salt 
1 cup whole milk powder
⅓ cup sugar
½ teaspoon ground cardamom seeds
pistachios (or raisins) for garnish

Grease a 6 x 6 or 7 x 7-inch square pan or tray and set aside.

In a saucepan with a heavy bottom, melt the ghee and add in the grated carrots and the pinch of salt. Use a silicone spatula to toss and stir the carrots over medium to medium low heat for 7 to 9 minutes. The carrots will cook and also dry out considerably in this time.

Take pan off heat and dump in the powdered milk, stirring quickly to combine with the carrots. Return to the heat and add the sugar and cardamom, stirring quickly and scraping the bottom often. There will be some sticking, but most can be avoided by keeping focus on the mixture. The sugar as it melts will loosen the mixture somewhat, but it quickly dries out and the carrots will come together into one mass. Turn the mixture into the prepared pan and smooth it to the edges.

cooking carrots      |  whole milk powder added  |      sugar goes in      |      cooked to a ball      |     turned into pan to mold

Allow to cool, then cut into squares (or wedges if you've used a round pan). Garnish with chopped pistachios or with (white) raisins to serve. 

I believe that the half recipe I made would nicely serve 3 people, with two small, thin wedges constituting a serving. So this whole recipe as it stands above would serve 6. If you are more conservative in your serving portions (I have no willpower!), then the recipe might serve 12.

Then of course, in the interest of making a good thing better, since the main course for my dinner next week is a Royal Biryani, I felt I should invest in some edible silver leaf (varq or vark) to adorn the dish, as is often shown in cookbooks. It so happens that I ordered it over the weekend and it arrived this morning! I got it out, believing (and rightfully so) that it might require a bit of a learning curve to set the silver leaf in place, I got out one of the sheets and experimented. The first photo above shows my very first time with silver leaf! (From Amazon, of course!)


My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.