India: Fact Sheet
INDIAN SWEETS & SNACKS
For the Sens, making sweets and snacks to meet the huge demand
from the Indian community is not only a commercial enterprise - it
is a family business. Here, father and son, sister and aunt all
pitch in and get involved in the making of traditional sweet treats
and savoury snacks.
Contacts:
Auckland Indian Sweets and Snacks
Ltd
24 Avenue Ave
Otahuhu
Auckland
Ph: 09 270 3275
Samuel Sen Ph: 021 66 44 55
KHOYA BARFI (Reduced Milk Sweet)
1 litre milk
500g sugar
8 cardamom pods
6 strands of saffron
Pistachios, finely chopped
METHOD
Dissolve the saffron in a tsp of milk and set aside.
Cook the rest of the milk until it reduces by half and is almost
creamy. Add the sugar and stir continuously on a medium heat until
the mixture thickens, add cardamoms and saffron, cook for 30
seconds. Transfer immediately to a greased plate. Allow to set for
2 minutes. Garnish with nuts and cut the slice into desired sized
pieces or use decorative moulds.
JALEBI
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tbsp fine grained semolina
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp plain yoghurt
1 1/4 cups warm water
1/2 tsp saffron strands slowly dry roasted and powdered
3 cups sugar
2 2/3 cup water
1/2 tsp green cardamom seed powder
1 1/2 tbsp rose water
Ghee or vegetable oil for frying
METHOD
Mix the flour, semolina, baking flour, yoghurt � cup warm
water in a ceramic bowl. Mix well with a whisk. Add the remaining
� cup of warm water and 1/8 tsp of saffron powder, whisk
until smooth. Set aside for 2 hours to ferment. Whisk thoroughly.
Prepare sugar syrup by dissolving the sugar and 2 2/3 cups water.
Just before the syrup is ready add saffron and cardamom powder.
Heat oil in a pan. Pour the batter in a steady stream (or
coconut shell with a hole) into the oil and form coils. Make a few
at a time. Deep fry them until golden and crisp all over but not
brown. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels and immerse in
sugar syrup. Leave for at least 4-5 minutes so that they can soak
up the syrup. Take the jalebi out of the syrup and serve hot.
Makes about 20.
MADHU AND SON
For young Indian men like Ajay Vasisht- it is easy to get through
life without mastering the art of cooking especially when your
mother is Madhu Sharma - an accomplished cook who prepared food for
former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Ghandi when he visited New
Zealand in 1986. For her Taste of Home Madhu prepared some dishes
from Kashmir.
KASHMIRI KOFTA (Mince Meat Rolls in
Gravy)
1kg lamb or goat mince (made from the hind leg)
Salt to taste
Pinch of Asafoetida
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 tsp dried ginger powder
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp garam masala
2 inch piece of fresh ginger - ground
4 cloves
Bunch of coriander leaves, copped finely
250g yoghurt/curd
2 tbsp cooking oil
100g reduced milk (Khoya) (From an Indian shop)
300g ghee or vegetable oil
Pinch of saffron - ground in 1 tsp Keora water (from an Indian
shop)
2 cups water
Pinch of cardamom powder
METHOD
Mix the red chilli, ground ginger, ground coriander, garam masala,
ground ginger, cloves, fresh coriander, cooking oil and 2/3's of
the yoghurt into the mince meat. Knead well and set aside for one
hour or more, put it in the fridge until it firms, add the cardamom
powder.
In a wide mouthed pan add the ghee, the remaining yoghurt,
� cup water, cloves and asafoetida. While this simmers, roll
the meat by hand, making each piece about 10 cm and 1.5 cm thick
with tapered ends. Slip each piece in the sauce shaking the pan
from time to time to prevent the koftas from sticking to the
bottom. While shaking the pan, keep adding water and scrape the
meat from the bottom of the pan. Keep adding water. It shouldn't
get too thick otherwise the kofta will be dry. Lower the heat and
add � cup water and let it all cook for 5-10 minutes, if you
need extra sauce add a little more water.
Wait for a few minutes, uncover and shake the pan in a circular
motion so as to separate the koftas from each other. Carefully
scrape the sediment from the pan with a spatula. Repeat till the
koftas are quite brown. Add some water and cover again. When the
gravy thickens, remove the pan from the heat and add the
saffron.
Makes approx 30-35 koftas Serves 6-8 people
KHAMEERI BHATURA (Sweetened Sour Dough Yeast
Bread)
1/2 kg wheat flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp ground cumin
2 tbsp yeast
1/2 cup milk
2/3 tbsp sugar
50g pure ghee
METHOD
Mix together the wheat flour, cumin and yeast. Warm the milk,
sweeten it with the sugar and add it to the flour mixture. Knead
into dough for about 10 minutes. Set aside in a covered pot in a
hot cupboard or leave it on the kitchen bench overnight till it
rises about twice its original size.
Put a little oil on your hands and make small balls using the dough. Roll them flat and 5-6 inches in diameter. Deep fry them. Roll them around in the deep pan, touching lightly with a spatula or frying spoon. This will allow them to rise and blow. When golden brown take out and put on a serviette to serve. Serves 6-8 people.
DAIRY
Some of the earliest Indian immigrants came to New Zealand from
Gujarat, a province in the west of India. In the 1920's Manjula
Darji's grandfather was one of them. Almost a century later Manjula
and her husband Ash still refer to their Indian heritage when they
take a break from working in their suburban dairy to prepare a
traditional vegetarian thali.
Contacts: Dairy on the cnr of Kepa & Kohimarama Rd, Kohimarama
EGGLANT, POTATO & PEA CURRY
2 eggplants
800g potatoes, peeled
1 cup fresh or frozen peas
3 tomatoes, chopped
2 fresh chillies, crushed
2 tsp fresh ginger, crushed
1 tsp garlic, crushed
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp chilli powder
3 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp ground cumin
3 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup oil
1/4 tsp asafoetida
1 tsp mustard seeds, black
Fresh coriander, chopped
METHOD
Cut the eggplants and potatoes into medium pieces. In a flat pan or
saucepan add the oil. Heat and add mustard seeds and asafoetida.
Once the mustard seeds have stopped popping, add the eggplant,
potatoes and peas. Add the spices, salt, sugar, garlic, ginger,
chillies and water.
Stir spices through. Then cover and simmer until potatoes have cooked. Add chopped tomatoes. Stir through and simmer for 5 minutes. Decorate with freshly chopped coriander.
CUCUMBER RAITA
1 long telegraph cucumber
3 cups thick natural yoghurt (Greek)
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp coarsely ground black mustard seeds
1 fresh green chilli, crushed
Fresh coriander, chopped
Pinch of chilli powder to decorate
METHOD
Grate the cucumber with skin on. Squeeze out as much water as
possible. Add the yoghurt and the rest of the spices. Mix together
and decorate with fresh coriander and chilli powder.
GUJURATI DAHL
1 cup toovar dhal (yellow lentils)
1 tomato
30g kumara, chopped into small pieces
50g pumpkin, chopped into 5cm pieces
1/2 a carrot, chopped
4 cups water
1 lemon juiced
2 tsp fresh ginger, crushed
2 tsp green chillies, crushed
2 tsp chilli powder
2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp ground cumin
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp desiccated coconut.
METHOD
Wash and cut vegetables, add to the dhal with the water. Boil until
cooked.
Blend together with hand blender or food processor until
smooth.
Serves 8-10 people.
SANDRINGHAM
Knowing 'where to go' is insider knowledge when it
comes to buying ethnic food and ingredients. Bharat Jamnadas is not
only a senior reporter on Asia Downunder but he is a whiz in the
kitchen too.
Bharat's passion for cooking means he has a few favourite food
spots including suburban Sandringham.
Contacts:
Bharat Jamnadas
Jamnadas@xtra.co.nz
Valley Fruits and Veges
576 Sandringham Rd
Sandringham, Auckland
Ph: 09 846 5050
Khyber Food and Spices
528 Sandringham Rd
Sandringham, Auckland
Ph: 09 815 2307
MASALA DOSA - AOTEA MARKETS
Every Friday and Saturday, Bharat also knows he will
find Ravi Davangere preparing the South Indian favourite, Masala
Dosa - delicious thin pancake rolled around spiced vegetables.
Contacts:
Masala Dosa Stall - Aotea
Markets
Ravi and Bisna Davangere
Ph: 09 826 5201
MASALA DOSA
For Dosa Batter:
2 cups of 3 kinds of rice (normal, boiled rice, sambar rice)
1/2 cup split and husked black gram lentils
1/2 cup dhal
1tsp fenugreek seeds
Salt to taste
For the filling:
1/2 kg potatoes (boiled and peeled)
100g onions, sliced (optional)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2-3 green chillies, chopped (optional)
15-16 curry leaves
3-4 tbsp oil
1 tsp mustard seeds
Salt to taste
1/2 cup water
METHOD
Soak the batter ingredients for 7-8 hours. Grind them in a stone
grinder to make a thick paste. Ferment this mixture till it becomes
spongy. Large quantities take 1-2 days to ferment.
Heat the oil in a frying pan. Add mustard seeds, curry leaves, chillies, onions and sauté until onion is transparent. Add salt and turmeric. Then add the potatoes.
COCONUT CHUTNEY
100g freshly grated coconut
5-6 green chillies
1 tbsp cumin seeds
20g mustard seeds
2 tbsp oil
25g tamarind
Salt to taste
METHOD
Stone grind the coconut, tamarind, green chillies till smooth
(stone ground chillies will always give a better texture and
flavour). Heat the oil and season it with mustard and cumin seeds.
Pour the seeds over the ground chutney and mix well.
SIKH WEDDING
Last up on the show we were privileged to be invited
to a Sikh Wedding. The massive temple in south Auckland fits over
1000 people. All the wedding guests are welcomed and catered for so
it's no surprise that the cooking preparation for this event starts
at 6am.
Contacts:
Sikh Temple
70 Takanini School Rd
Takanini
NZ Sikh Society
Ph: 09 276 9043
No recipes provided
