Description
Indian carrot halva- This is a delicious vegetarian dessert, which comes from North India. And although this version of halva is completely unusual for us, it still turns out to be no less tasty. Nuts in its preparation, by the way, are still used. In this case, it's cashews. If we consider Indian cooking in general, it will become obvious that many traditional Indian desserts are prepared from fruits and vegetables. Therefore, it is not surprising that their halva is made on the basis of carrots.
The preparation of this dessert consists in the fact that carrots, with the addition of nuts and raisins, are boiled in sugared milk until thick. Such halva is served, either simply by putting it on a plate, or by forming it into sweets using special molds and decorating with a whole nut on top. Believe me, the aesthetic side of this dessert and the taste are just on top. As for the cooking time, it will take about an hour, no more. Not much for a tasty and healthy dessert!
It is very simple to prepare such an Indian-style carrot sweetness at home, which we will tell you about in this recipe with step-by-step photos.
Ingredients
-
(large, 5 pieces) -
(2/3 st.) -
(1 st.) -
(1 tablespoon) -
(2 handfuls) -
(50-60 g)
Cooking steps
First you need to prepare the main ingredient of our recipe - carrots. We will clean it, wash it, and then rub it using a coarse grater.
Place a frying pan on the fire and add ghee to the frying pan. When it melts, we will send carrots to it. We will fry it on low heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring constantly. Then pour milk into the pan.
Stir the carrots and milk, and then add sugar to these products ( you can use not white refined, but brown cane - it will turn out much more useful). We simmer the carrots in a pan until all the liquid has evaporated from it, and the sweetness itself has thickened. If you simmer halva over low heat, then this process will take about half an hour.
Now we need toasted cashew nuts and raisins pre-washed with water.
We send the two previously mentioned ingredients to the pan with carrot halva.
Mix the contents of the pan and simmer it for about five more minutes ( still on low heat).
Let the Indian carrot halva cool slightly and serve it on the table. If desired, sweets can be formed from such halva. This version of the dessert will be appropriate for the festive table, when its aesthetic component is also important.
Enjoy your meal!
Indian sweet halva differs from what we are accustomed to understand by this word, because it is prepared not only from seeds and nuts, but also from cereals, fruits and even vegetables. To give you an idea of what Indian halva is, I chose two recipes (fruit and vegetable) that I liked. Both recipes are microwave safe.
Halva from apples.
Ingredients(for 2 servings):
Large apples - 3 pcs.,
Sugar - 1 tbsp. a spoon,
Condensed milk - 3 tbsp. spoons,
Butter - 1 tbsp. a spoon,
Nuts - to taste
Food coloring or cinnamon.
Peel the apples and grate on a fine grater. Drain the juice, add sugar and condensed milk to the gruel.
Mix everything, transfer to a bowl for the microwave and cook at the highest power for about 10-15 minutes. The apple mixture needs to be stirred from time to time. Puree is considered ready when it becomes thick and viscous from liquid. In the finished halva, add a spoonful of oil, dye and put in the microwave for another 5 minutes.
Serve apple halva sprinkled with nuts.
I also cooked pear halva according to the same recipe, it turned out even tastier than apple halva. Only pears can not add sugar.
Carrot halva.
Surprisingly very tasty!
Ingredients(for 2-3 servings):
Grated carrots - 1 cup
Milk - 1 glass,
Sugar - 1/4 cup
Butter - 2 tbsp. spoons,
Nuts (cashews, pistachios, almonds) - to taste.
Grated carrots, combine with milk and sugar in a microwave dish and cook on high power for about 15 minutes.
We focus rather not on time, but on the state of halva - it should become thick. At the end, add oil and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Sprinkle the finished halvah with nuts.
The children and I ate all these sweets with pleasure. Halva can be prepared from any fruit and their combinations. I came across a recipe even from a watermelon. Fruits can be filled with milk and sugar, or condensed milk, or powdered milk and juice. In Indian cuisine, there are also quite extreme halva recipes: from beets, dates, and even from potatoes.
Having become acquainted with what halva is made of, you will be able to expand your knowledge in the matter of creating your favorite delicacy and learn about the impressive beneficial properties of the product. Oriental sweetness, especially if you cook it with your own hands, will become a worthy dessert for a cozy home tea party.
Why is halva useful?
Halva, the benefits and harms to the body of which are due to the elements and vitamins contained in the base component, can become not only a delicious dessert for the sweet tooth, but also a dish that has a beneficial effect on the body as a whole.
- Sunflower sweetness is a source of B vitamins, thanks to which it has a beneficial effect on the nervous and cardiovascular systems. The content of all kinds of proteins, dietary fiber, vitamins E, D is highly valued in the product.
- Walnut or peanut halva, in addition to the high content of vitamins PP, D, B2 and B6, is a source of folic acid, promotes cell regeneration and rejuvenation.
- Sesame and tahini halva is an excellent antioxidant and a source of many vitamins and elements that together help slow down the growth of cancer cells and prevent their formation. By using sweetness, it will be possible to strengthen the body, fill it with energy.
- Any kind of halva is contraindicated in diabetes mellitus, exacerbations of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, and obesity.
What is halva made of?
Halva, the composition of which may vary depending on which product is taken as the basis for the preparation of sweets, is prepared from natural products. With the right technology and without the addition of preservatives, the oriental delicacy is excellently stored for up to two months.
- Peeled sunflower seeds, nuts or sesame seeds are used as a basic component to create a dessert.
- Another constant ingredient used to make halvah is sugar, honey or caramel.
- To give the base of the delicacy the desired texture and color, soap root extract is added to it.
sunflower halva
Homemade halva will undoubtedly turn out tastier and healthier than purchased counterparts. It does not contain preservatives, various stabilizers and other harmful impurities that are often added to the industrial product. The composition of home-made sunflower halva is extremely simple and accessible to everyone.
Ingredients:
- peeled sunflower seeds - 0.5 kg;
- flour - 0.5 cups;
- sugar - 1 cup;
- water - 75 ml;
- oil - 150 ml.
Cooking
- The seeds are roasted in a dry frying pan until creamy.
- Transfer the seeds to a blender and grind to a soft puree.
- The flour is sautéed in the same pan until creamy, poured into the crushed seeds and pierced again with a blender.
- Caramel-colored syrup is made from water and sugar.
- Oil is poured into the caramel in a thin stream, after which the mixture of seeds and flour is mixed in.
- Pour the mass into a mold, allow to cool and freeze in the refrigerator.
Tahini halva - what is it made of?
Halva, the recipe of which will be described below, is prepared from peeled sesame seeds, which are pre-soaked in boiling water for at least two hours. For the final cleaning, the seeds are washed in a saline solution, due to which the shell settles to the bottom, and the kernels float to the surface, after which they are collected, washed and roasted. It will be possible to avoid such a process, which is difficult to perform at home, by using ready-made tahini paste.
Ingredients:
- tahini paste - 4.5 tbsp. spoons;
- honey - 3 tbsp. spoons.
Cooking
- Combine honey and tahini paste, mix.
- We shift the mass into a mold, send it to the refrigerator for several hours.
- After it hardens, it is cut into portions, optionally sprinkled with sesame seeds and nuts.
Indian halva
The following recommendations are for those who wish to learn how to make halva according to an Indian recipe. This technology differs from any usual eastern one and is performed with semolina or with the addition of grated carrots, boiled with milk to a homogeneous paste-like mass. In addition to nutmeg, sweets are often seasoned with cardamom and other spices.
Ingredients:
- semolina - 250 g;
- milk - 750 ml;
- sugar - 300 g;
- butter - 200 g;
- raisins - 70 g;
- orange peel - 2 teaspoons;
- orange juice - 3 tbsp. spoons;
- nutmeg - 0.5 tsp;
- walnuts or cashews - to taste.
Cooking
- Melt the sugar in a heavy-bottomed container and slowly pour in the boiling milk.
- Warm the mixture until the crystals dissolve, add orange zest and juice, raisins and nutmeg.
- Fry the semolina in oil for 15 minutes, transfer to the milk mixture.
- Allow the mass over low heat, stirring until moisture is absorbed, remove from heat, allow to cool slightly.
Uzbek halva - recipe
Further about what Uzbek housewives make halva. The basic component in this case is flour, which is initially sautéed in ghee, and then brewed with milk and heated to thickness and plasticity. As a breading for balls formed from the resulting mass, you can use sesame seeds or chopped nuts.
Ingredients:
- flour - 130 g;
- milk - 500 ml;
- sugar - 200 g;
- melted butter - 130 g;
- walnuts and toasted sesame seeds.
Cooking
- Melted butter is heated in a saucepan, flour is added, sautéed until creamy.
- Heat milk to a boil, add sugar, pour into a container with flour, stirring.
- Allow the mass for 15 minutes, allow to cool slightly, roll the balls.
- Before serving, it is sprinkled or dipped in sesame seeds or nuts.
sesame halva
Oriental halva made from sesame seeds will be appreciated by the sweet tooth. The recipe can be performed without adding cocoa, replacing it with a portion of flour or milk powder. The final result will depend entirely on the degree of grinding of sesame seeds and on whether the grains were fried before use.
Ingredients:
- sesame - 300 g;
- dry milk - 200 g;
- sugar - 100 g;
- butter - 200 g;
- cocoa - 2 tbsp. spoons.
Cooking
- Sesame seeds are dried if desired and browned a little in a dry frying pan, after which they are ground in a coffee grinder or blender.
- Melt the butter, add the sesame mass, heat, stirring, cool.
- Milk, sugar and cocoa are combined in a bowl, sesame seeds and butter are added, mixed, transferred to a mold and tamped.
- Once chilled in the refrigerator, it will be ready for tasting.
Turkish halva
Homemade halva, the recipe of which will be presented next, is one of the most popular desserts in Turkish cuisine. Semolina sweet is prepared with the addition of Turkish mastic, which will give the dish a characteristic piquant taste and aroma. It is impossible to replace the additive with anything, if one was not available, it is better to prepare a delicacy without her participation.
Ingredients:
- semolina - 500 g;
- milk - 1 l;
- sugar - 500 g;
- butter and margarine - 130 g each;
- Turkish mastic - 3 pcs.;
- pine nuts - 70 g.
Cooking
- Melt butter and margarine, add semolina and nuts, fry for 30-40 minutes until pinkish.
- Milk is boiled with the addition of sugar and mastic, poured into semolina with nuts, heated for a couple of minutes, stirring.
- Leave sweetness under the lid for 40 minutes, after which it is served with cinnamon, ice cream or pistachio flour.
Halva in chocolate
A true delight for those with a sweet tooth or those who have a special respect for chocolate will be chocolate halva or sweets cooked in chocolate icing. In this case, the basis of the dessert is roasted peanuts until the aroma appears, which can be replaced with other nuts or seeds if desired.
Ingredients:
- peanuts - 300 g;
- cocoa butter - 50 g;
- honey - 50 g;
- sugar - 40 g;
- chocolate - 150 g.
Cooking
- Roast peanuts, grind in a blender, add honey, oil, mix and lay out in molds.
- Send blanks to the refrigerator until solidified.
- Melt chocolate, dip halva in it, let it freeze on parchment in the cold.
Peanut halva
Like any, a peanut treat is incredibly tasty, satisfying and nutritious. Before use, nuts must be fried in a dry frying pan or in the oven, after which they are peeled, which can give the delicacy unwanted bitterness. Vanilla sugar can be replaced with vanillin or another additive of your choice.
Ingredients:
- peanuts - 2 cups;
- sugar - 200 g;
- flour - 250 g;
- water - 1/3 cup;
- vanilla sugar - 1 package;
- oil - 1 cup.
Cooking
- The flour is sautéed until creamy in a dry frying pan.
- Grind peanuts in a blender, mix with flour, butter and vanilla.
- Boil water with sugar, pour in caramel syrup to peanuts with flour, stir, transfer to a form with parchment, leave under pressure to harden.
Samarkand halva - recipe
The following recipe will help you find out what Samarkand halva is made of. The main ingredients in this case are walnuts or any other nuts and fried flour. Optionally, the composition is supplemented with sesame seeds or other components to enhance the taste, filling it with a new aroma and piquancy.
Ingredients:
- walnuts - 250 g;
- sugar - 250 g;
- water - 2 glasses;
- flour - 250 g;
- sesame and butter - 100 g each;
- vanilla sugar - 1 package.
Cooking
- Syrup of medium density is boiled from water and sugar, boiled for 7-8 minutes, stirring.
- The mass is allowed to cool slightly, after which chopped nuts, sesame seeds, butter, vanillin and sautéed flour are added.
- Boil the base until thickened, transfer to a form with parchment.
- Ready Samarkand halva is cut into portions and served with tea.
Halva from flour
Even just flour will make a delicious treat that you can treat yourself and your family with a cup of tea. The dessert is complemented with oven-dried walnuts or any other nuts that are mixed into the base or sprinkled with sweets on top. For flavor, you can add a little vanilla to the composition.
Ingredients:
- powdered sugar - 300 g;
- melted butter - 180 g;
- flour - 0.5 kg;
- nuts - to taste.
Cooking
- Heat the oil, add flour in portions, fry until a nutty taste.
- Powdered sugar is mixed in, warmed up a little more and transferred to a form with parchment, adding nuts.
- Still warm flour halva is cut into portions and served at the table.
pistachio halva
Incredibly appetizing and exquisite, homemade halva from pistachios is obtained. The pleasant nutty taste and unusual color of the dessert will satisfy the needs of every picky eater with a sweet tooth. Before serving, the dessert is well cooled in the refrigerator and only then cut into portions.
Today we have sweets from India. Halva in Indian cuisine is not only the set of products that we are used to (seeds, nuts, butter, sugar, honey), but also completely original combinations, for example, prepared on the basis of khoi (specially dried cottage cheese (ricotta) with powdered milk and oil) with various additives.
We will have Indian carrot halva with double cardamom and nutmeg. Cook together!
A simple recipe for Indian halva of Indian cuisine step by step with a photo. Easy to cook at home in 20 minutes. Contains only 290 kilocalories.
- Preparation time: 20 min
- Time for preparing: 20 minutes
- Amount of calories: 290 kilocalories
- Servings: 6 servings
- Occasion: Dessert, snack, breakfast
- Complexity: simple recipe
- National cuisine: Indian food
- Dish type: Desserts and pastries
Ingredients for six servings
- Cardamom 10 g
- Cardamom beans 10 pcs.
- Khoi 90 g
- Carrot 500 g
- Ground nutmeg 1 pinch
- Walnuts 9 pcs.
- Sugar 400 g
Step by step cooking
- We will need the following products for Indian carrot halva: ready-made or home-cooked khoya, carrots, sugar, spices (cardamom and nutmeg, where nutmeg can be replaced with 4 tsp cinnamon), nuts.
- Grate the peeled carrots on a fine grater (but not the smallest, so that it is not mashed).
- Stew the grated carrots in a dry frying pan to get rid of excess moisture.
- Add sugar to dried carrots.
- Peel the cardamom seeds.
- Add all the spices (cardamom grains, cardamom powder (2 tsp) and ground nutmeg) to the sweet carrot mass. Constantly stir the halva.
- When the sugar is completely dissolved, add 3 full tablespoons of khoi, which we prepared ourselves.
- Knead the Indian halva over low heat until completely smooth.
- Our Indian halva is ready! We distribute it in portions.
- And decorate with halves of walnuts. Serve with tea or milk. Have a great gastronomic experience!
Gili kichri, a dish of rice, peas and spinach -
This popular dish of rice, vegetables and peas takes about an hour to cook. It's hearty and perfect for lunch. He is loved both in Calcutta and in southern India. Prepare, like almost all Indian dishes, immediately before a meal or 1-2 hours before it. Gili khichri can be served with a vegetable salad, such as cucumber tomato raita.
How to make gili khichri
1.5 cups medium or long grain rice
1 ¼ cups mung dal or regular peas
¼ cup melted butter or butter
3 bay leaves,
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh ginger,
2 cloves
2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon grated nutmeg
225 g fresh finely chopped spinach,
3 finely chopped tomatoes.
Dal - this is the name in India of any legumes: peas, beans, lentils. Mung-dal - known in Russia under the name "mash". They are small green beans with a small white stripe down the middle. The simultaneous use of rice and legumes helps to better absorb the beneficial substances from both products.
For soups, sauces and other dishes, it is best to take peeled mung dal, it is pale yellow in color. You can buy it in Indian goods stores. In St. Petersburg, for example, it is in the Himalaya store on 1st Sovetskaya Street. It costs from 70 rubles per pack (400-500 gr).
Spinach can be used frozen, preferably whole.
1) Rinse dal and rice, leave in water for one hour, drain.
2) Fry bay leaf, ginger and cloves in heated ghee or butter in a cauldron or thick-walled pan, add rice and dal.
3) Fry, stirring, 8-10 minutes until oil is absorbed.
4) Pour water 5 cm above the rice with dal, add salt, turmeric, nutmeg, stir and bring to a boil. If you use other types of legumes - their cooking time may increase, then it is better to cook them almost until cooked separately, and then cook them together with rice.
5) Close the lid tightly and cook over medium or low heat for about 30 minutes, gradually reducing the heat. Add some water if necessary.
6) Then add the chopped spinach and tomatoes, stir gently and close the lid. Cook for about 15 more minutes. Kichri must remain moist. Stir at the end of cooking, ready-made khichri sticks to the bottom of the pan.
Paneer shak - steamed spinach with cheese -
In southern India, steamed spinach with cheese is very popular. It is usually served with wheat cakes and rice, and sometimes as an independent dish.
Cooking it is quite simple, almost all the ingredients can be bought in Russia. The dish is prepared immediately before eating, served hot. It takes 20-30 minutes to prepare.
Classic paneer shaka recipe
450 g fresh spinach without stalks (can be replaced with frozen),
1 tablespoon melted butter,
2 teaspoons ground coriander,
½ teaspoon turmeric
¼ teaspoon ground hot red pepper
½ teaspoon garam masala (mixture of spices)
2 pinches asafoetida (optional)
3 tablespoons of water
2/3 cup sour cream (optional)
225 gr paneer (Adyghe cheese is suitable),
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon sugar
Usually, asafoetida and garam masala, a special mixture of spices, will be used for this dish. If they are not available, then you can add curry, but then reduce the amount of red pepper and turmeric.
There are two types of frozen spinach on sale: whole, rolled into balls, and chopped - portioned or solid frozen sheet. Take whole.
Wash spinach, drain and chop. Heat the melted butter in a saucepan over medium heat, fry the ground spices for a few seconds. Add spinach and simmer over low heat until soft, about 10 minutes. Put sour cream or cream, with them the taste is softer, and Adyghe cheese, diced, salt, sugar, stir and cook for about five more minutes on low heat.
You can fry the cheese with spices first. It is advisable to choose Adyghe cheese, which does not crumble, and the right cheese should not stick to the pan. Then add frozen spinach and, a little later, cream. In the picture, Adyghe cheese is slightly fried.
Raita - Indian salad with yogurt -
Raita, a salad with yogurt, is a very common dish in India. In the summer it is served for lunch almost every day. Eaten with spicy food - it contrasts well with hot and spicy dishes, helps to extinguish the "fire in the mouth." Making this dish is pretty easy.
The name "raita" comes from the word "paradise" - black mustard seeds (In Russia, this spice can be bought in Indian goods stores and markets). In Gujarat, each such salad is necessarily made with black mustard seeds, but in northern India it is customary to add Indian cumin, fried without oil and crushed, to raita.
Yogurt should be taken either homemade (see the recipe "How yogurt is made in India"), or store-bought, which is sold under the names "katyk" and "matsoni" (produced by "Clean Line"). An obligatory component of raita is fresh herbs. In India, cilantro is most commonly used in this dish, but other herbs can be used as well.
Khira Raita
Grated cucumbers in mint yogurt
½ teaspoon cumin seeds (jeera)
2 medium cucumbers
1 ¼ cups yogurt
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground red pepper
2 tbsp. tablespoons sesame or other vegetable oil
fresh mint
1. Grate cucumbers, salt, leave for 10-20 minutes, then squeeze out excess juice.
2. Grate or finely chop the radish (can be done without radishes).
3. Finely chop the greens (cilantro, parsley, dill, etc.). You can also add fresh mint.
4. Pour yogurt or yogurt-sour cream mixture into a bowl, add red pepper, beat with a fork until smooth. Add cucumbers and radishes, stir.
5. In a small skillet or ladle, heat vegetable oil over medium heat. Fry black mustard seeds in 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil. Fry until they stop crackling and turn gray.
6. Pour the oil, along with the roasted seeds, into the yogurt and cucumber mixture and stir.
7. Put in the refrigerator for 1.5 -2 hours. During this time, it will be well saturated with spices. Eat chilled.
kakri raita
Cucumber salad with yogurt
½ tsp cumin seeds
2 medium cucumbers
1 ¼ cups yogurt
½ tsp garamasala,
½ tsp salt,
¼ tsp ground black pepper
1. Coarsely grate cucumbers, salt, leave for 10 minutes, then squeeze out excess juice.
2. Grate or finely chop the radish. Cut greens (cilantro, parsley, dill and Chinese salad).
3. Fry cumin in a dry frying pan.
4. Mix yogurt with herbs and seasonings, stir well.
5. Add cucumbers and radishes, mix.
6. Put in the refrigerator for 1.5 -2 hours.
tamatar raita
Tomatoes with yogurt
Another popular Raita in India is with tomatoes. It is better to use strong tomatoes or remove the seeds. You can take small tomatoes, cut them into quarters. From the greens, it is better to take the leaves of fresh cilantro, basil or dill.
2 cups yogurt or a mixture of 1 ½ cups yogurt and 1/3 cup sour cream.
¾ teaspoon salt
1 pinch white or black pepper
3-4 firm medium sized tomatoes
1 st. a spoonful of vegetable oil (sesame or other)
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
1/3 green chili pepper (or to taste), de-seeded and finely chopped
cilantro, basil, or dill for garnish
1. Pour yogurt (or a mixture of yogurt and sour cream), put salt and pepper. Beat with a fork until smooth.
2. Peel the tomatoes and cut into 1.5 cm cubes. Dip in yogurt without stirring.
3. Refrigerate for several hours (or continue without refrigeration).
4. Heat vegetable oil in a frying pan or bowl. In hot, but not smoking oil, toss mustard seeds and green hot peppers. When the mustard seeds begin to crackle and turn bluish, pour the seasoning into the salad and mix gently. After pouring in the oil, it should be served immediately. Decorate with a sprig of greenery.
Lassi - a drink made from dairy products -
Yogurt can be used to make namkin lassi and mithi lassi - salty and sweet lassi, the most popular soft milk drinks in India. In fact, this is yogurt diluted with water with additives.
The consistency of lassi resembles a milkshake, but it is much lower in calories. The simplest lassi is made with yogurt, sugar and crushed ice.
Pictured is a banana lassi. You can do it at any time of the year, but it is especially good in warm weather. It is better to beat the bananas first to grind them as much as possible, and then add water, yogurt and honey, and beat again. Can be made with ripe mango, strawberries, raspberries. Very tasty! It is recommended to first dissolve sugar or honey in a small amount of warm water.
Mithi lassi
(sweet yogurt drink)
4 cups of yogurt
3 cups cold water
6 art. spoons of sugar or 5 tbsp. l. honey,
2 teaspoons rose water
¼ teaspoon ground cardamom
Crushed ice (optional)
You can add a pinch of nutmeg.
Beat everything until foamy, serve chilled. Instead of rose water, you can add 3 tbsp. lemon juice 3 tbsp flavored syrup 1/2 cup mashed cherries, ripe bananas or ripe mangoes.
Namkin lassi
(salty yogurt drink)
1 teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted and ground.
4 cups of yogurt
3 cups of water
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons of salt (it is worth reducing, in our opinion, this is a lot)
Crushed ice (optional)
You can add mint.
Mix all ingredients, except cumin, in a mixer. Pour the mixture into glasses, sprinkle with a pinch of crushed cumin on top. Serve chilled or at room temperature. If making with mint, mix in a mixer until the mint leaves turn into a paste (about 30 seconds). A glass of mint yogurt can be garnished with a mint leaf.
Lassi is good for breakfast or in the morning, not recommended in the evening. Yogurt can be made at home (see How to make yogurt in India for a detailed recipe). You can also use store-bought products that are sold under the names of matsoni or katyk (they are produced by Chistaya Liniya) or Bulgarian yogurt. You can also buy matsoni in some cities in the markets, for example, in St. Petersburg - on Kuznechny.
By the way: yogurt, about half diluted with water, is ayran or tan in the Caucasian tradition. It is possible that lassi will also turn out from store-bought ayran or tan, but we have not tried it.
How yogurt is made in India
In India, homemade yogurt - dahi - is eaten as often as cereals, vegetables and legumes. It is made from whole milk, sometimes even cream and sourdough. If yogurt is diluted with water, lassi is obtained - a light sour-milk drink that quenches thirst well.
Yogurt is also used to prepare nutritious salads - Wright. Yogurt or lassi, not water, is served in India with spicy dishes - it is able to put out a fire in the mouth.
Sometimes you can hear that in India they eat kefir, but this is not so. Yogurt and kefir are fundamentally different drinks. They eat fermented milk products either in the morning or at lunch, but not in the evening, and even more so at night. Yogurt and salads with it are best consumed in the warm season, while in winter, when the fire of digestion intensifies, the number of dishes from milk is increased in the diet.
Classic yogurt recipe:
Milk. It is best to make from home or state farm milk. Store-bought milk is fine too, but use pasteurized rather than sterilized milk.
Leaven. You can buy ready-made matsoni (katyk) from the Chistaya Liniya company, there are matsoni on the market, for example, in St. Petersburg - on Kuznechny. You can use Bulgarian yogurt, it is sold in Finland. It is believed that the culture improves over the years where it has been fermented continuously for many years. Yogurt for starter culture should be fresh and sweet, if milk is fermented with sour yogurt, then the resulting yogurt will also be sour.
1) Boil milk, you can even sweat for density.
2) Pour into a glass jar or dish in which you will prepare yogurt. Cool to a temperature when the finger endures for some time (count to 15).
3) Put the starter - 2 tablespoons on the floor of a liter jar, stir.
4) Wrap up. The temperature should be 30-43 degrees. If the house is cool, you can put it near the battery (but not on it) or in the oven. Try not to move the pan!
5) After 5-6 hours, check whether the milk has curdled, that is, whether it has become dense and thick. If it doesn't curl, keep checking. The maximum time is 12 hours.
6) As soon as the milk curdles, put it in the refrigerator, otherwise the bacteria will continue to work. Ready yogurt try not to shake.
7) It is better to eat yogurt within 3 days, the maximum is stored for 4-5 days.
If fermented early, when the milk is still hot, or if you forget to get it on time, it may curdle. Then instead of yogurt you will have to make pies. If fermented milk is too cold, it can be liquid. Now there are yogurt makers on sale that control the temperature themselves. In fermented yogurt, when it begins to thicken, you can add berries and pieces of fruit. Sometimes it is tinted with a piece of beetroot.
By the way, this is how yogurt is made not only in India, but also in other countries, for example, in Greece, Bulgaria and the Middle East. Matsoni (Georgian), matsun (Armenian), katyk (Central Asian), yourt (Turkish), lyaban zabaadin (Arabic), sour milk (Bulgian), yaurti (Greek), etc. - all these are the names of yogurt, that is, a product fermented by the culture of Bulgarian sticks. For example, in the Stavropol Territory it is called "sourdough", but the recipe is the same as yogurt.
The difference from curdled milk: it is obtained from unboiled sour milk, while yogurt is made from boiled milk, but the sourdough is still the same - Bulgarian stick.
But yogurt differs sharply from kefir both in taste and in its own culture and effect on the body. Yogurt has a huge distribution area in the world, unlike kefir, which is eaten in the Caucasus, and now in Russia.
Since yogurt is fermented milk, it has the same nutritional value. It is rich in calcium, proteins, fats, carbohydrates, phosphorus, vitamins A, D and vitamin B complex. Yogurt promotes the growth of E. coli, which improves digestion and destroys harmful bacteria that cause many intestinal diseases. The lactose contained in yogurt helps the body digest the calcium and phosphorus that enters it, and yogurt itself is absorbed faster than milk. In one hour, the body digests yogurt by 91 percent, while milk by 32 percent.
Halva in Indian -
We are used to the fact that halva is made from ground sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, sugar or honey. Other in India. Halva is made quite differently here - most often from fried semolina with the addition of milk syrup, sugar, nuts and dried fruits.
Indian halva is more like a crumbly sweet pudding. It is best eaten hot. It is sold in shops with sweets, it costs from 10-20 rupees (about 6-12 rubles) per 100 grams. The Indians pronounce its name as "halava".
Halva is loved both in the north and in the south. In the north, vegetable halva is often offered for dessert or even as a snack - it is made from carrots, pumpkins or sweet potatoes. Grated vegetables are boiled in cream or milk until thickened. And fruit halva is very sweet, it is eaten with pastries. And in Kozhikode in Kerala in southern India they make halva according to a special recipe, it is called Kozhikkodan Halwa. It is made from maida (a type of wheat flour), ghee, coconut, cashews, pineapple, etc. Karutha aluva, made from rice, is also popular in the south. This halva is almost black.
Sooji Halwa - semolina halva,
Sooji gajar Halwa - semolina with carrots,
Sooji besan Halwa - made from semolina and chickpea flour,
Gajar Halwa - carrot,
Aate ka Halwa - wheat halva,
Kaju Halwa - made from cashew nuts
Badam ka Halwa - almond.
Making halva is simple, all the ingredients for many types of halva are familiar to us. You need to choose good quality butter. It is better to use light brown unrefined sugar, which is available in many supermarkets, both in Russian packaging and imported (Denmark, Great Britain). In India, they put more sugar than in the above recipe. It takes about half an hour to cook.
Halva from semolina with raisins
2 3/4 cups (650 ml) milk
1 1/2 cups (300 g) sugar
1/2 tsp nutmeg,
1/4 cup (35 g) raisins
1 cup (200g) butter (preferably melted ghee)
1 1/2 cups (225 g) semolina
2 teaspoons orange zest or
1/4 cup hazelnuts or walnuts, or other toppings (see below)
juice of one lemon
1) Slowly melt the sugar in a cast-iron, cauldron or thick-walled saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly so as not to burn. If there is no cast iron, see another option below.
2) It will turn light brown - reduce the heat and slowly pour in hot (!) Milk. The sugar will crystallize.
3) Leave to dissolve over low heat.
4) Melt the butter in a frying pan (pot), fry the semolina in it for 15 minutes, stirring regularly until it becomes slightly brown.
5) Add raisins, zest and juice (or nuts) to caramelized milk.
6) Pour this mixture into semolina.
7) Stir once or twice: break up the lumps, then cook for a few minutes on low heat under the lid to absorb the liquid.
8) Stir several times for looseness.
9) It is best to eat halva hot. It can be warmed up by holding the pan in a large bowl of hot water. At the same time, it must be kneaded, it will become more airy.
Another option is if there is no cast iron or thick-walled pan. Immediately pour hot milk with sugar or water with sugar and spices into semolina.
Ingredients Tried: Vanilla, cinnamon, cardamom, saffron, nutmeg, various toasted nuts, fresh fruits, especially plums, apricots, and peaches. All this should be added not at the last moment, but to cook a little together.
Carrot halva
900 g fresh carrots
3/4 cup (150g) butter
2 cups (500 ml) milk
3/4 cup (150g) sugar
3 art. raisin spoons,
3 art. tablespoons almonds (or cashews), sliced and lightly toasted
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom.
1) Grate the carrots on a fine grater and fry for 10 minutes in melted butter over medium heat, stirring often.
2) Add milk, sugar, raisins, almonds. Cook for another 20-30 minutes, until it turns into a homogeneous mass.
3) Cool, make a layer 2.5 cm thick, sprinkle with cardamom. Cut into pieces and serve as a dessert.
Also see How to find halvah in Egypt
Carrot halva made from Russian products looks like a real Indian one.
Semolina halva is best eaten hot. But you can make balls out of it and decorate with half a cashew nut or almond.
Compiled by: Elena Kogutovskaya, Elvi Usmanova, photo by Elena Kogutovskaya
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