Navratri 2022: Sama rice cutlet, makhana, flax seed chivda and other dishes to enjoy this fasting season

Navratri starts today and since it is a period of fasting, there are many ingredients that people can't eat and use in their dishes. It is also why they have to alter their recipes in more ways than one. Some people rely on consuming traditional food during the season but others who find it difficult, may even consider giving up on the activity entirely because they can't seem to find their way around it. Looking for alternative ingredients for dishes that use ingredients that are an essential part of everyday cooking in India is understandably a task but not one that can't be done.

Now that the nine days of fasting are here, it is going to be all the more exciting because many people will be celebrating after two years of the Covid-19 pandemic. Avoiding the different ingredients during this season may seem intimidating but not impossible. Yes, most dishes include the likes of onion, garlic, flour made out of wheat, rice and corn, and even legumes, to name a few. However, city chefs say a lot of food can be made without them. If only one enters the kitchen, they can whip up some interesting dishes while keeping the ingredients in mind.

Mid-day Online reached out to Mumbai chefs to ask them about various dishes that people can make during this time while keeping the restrictions in mind. The chefs have innovatively used different kinds of flour, vegetables and cooking techniques to stir up some really delicious dishes.

Sama Rice Cutlet by Vinayak Patil, chef, Butterfly High, Thane West and BKC
If you want to eat something light during this time, then chef Vinayak Patil suggests replacing other kinds of flour with barnyard millet, more commonly known as sama rice. He uses the ingredient to make a sama rice cutlet to relish during Navratri. Patil explains, "Noting the food restrictions, it is great to experiment using ingredients that may seem simple on their own but can create a lovely snack or a dish when combined with each other. Easy and quick to make, these cutlets can be enjoyed by everyone in the family."

Ingredients
Sama ke chawal ⅓ cup
Water 1 cup
Potatoes boiled, peeled, and mashed 1 medium or 1/2 cup
Ginger paste or grated 1 ½ teaspoons
Green chilies, finely chopped 2 nos
Cilantro or coriander leaves, finely chopped 2 tbsp
Cumin seeds 1 tsp
Black pepper powder ¼ tsp
Lemon juice 2 tsp
Rock salt (sendha namak) to taste
Peanut oil to deep fry

Method
1. Wash and soak sama rice for 10 minutes.
2. Discard soaking water, and take rice to the pan.
3. Add 1 cup of water and turn the heat to high and let the water come to a boil.
4. Once it starts to boil, reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and let it cook for 20 minutes.
5. Let them cool to the touch and then open the lid.
6. Fluff up the rice and remove it to a bowl. Let it cool completely.
7. Take cooked rice into a bowl. Add the rest of the Tikki ingredients except oil. Mix it well.
8. Start shaping the tikkis or roll.
9. Once finished shaping, heat the oil in a pan for deep frying on medium heat.
10. Once the oil is hot, fry a few cutlets at a time. Don't disturb it for the first 1-2 minutes otherwise, it will get a break.
11. Once browned and cooked from one side, flip them and fry the other side.
12. Drain the excess oil using a slotted spoon. Remove it to the paper towel-lined plate.

Makhana and flax seed chivda by Swanand Thipsay, sous chef, ITC Grand Central, Lower Parel
Who doesn't love chivda in India? Eaten so often as a snack, it is also an easy way to eat healthy food while fasting, when made with the right ingredients. Thipsay explains, "I often used to observe my mother and my aunts ideate a healthy snack for everyone, especially for the children to munch on. Now when I work as a chef, guests often request me to prepare this for them during Navratri season." While the city chef remembers his favourite aunt giving them shakarkand ki tikki(sweet potato galettes), red pumpkin porridge (kaddu ka halwa) and raw banana rosti to feast on, it is this makhana and flax seed chivda that is his favourite. "It's healthy, tasty, quick to prepare and can be accommodated in everyday life too," he adds.

Ingredients
Makhana 100 gm
Flax seed 200 gm
Ghee 4 tbsp
Mustard seeds 1 tbsp
Cashew nuts 50 gm
Hing 1 tsp
Turmeric (optional) 1 tsp
Green chilli, chopped 4-5 nos
Dry coconut, sliced into flakes 50 gm
Curry leaves 10-12 leaves
Sendha namak to taste
Sugar 1 tbsp

Method
1. Heat half the ghee in a kadhai. Toss the makhana in it on medium heat for a couple of minutes till it becomes crispy. Remove and keep aside.
2. Heat the remaining ghee in the kadhai. Add mustard seeds, green chillies, turmeric, hing, curry leaves, cashew nuts and dry coconut flakes. Fry this in golden colour.
3. Add the flax seeds and saute for a couple of minutes till crisp. Add makhana, sendha namak and sugar.

Sabudana and water chestnut vada by Shamsul Wahid, group executive chef, Social & Smoke House Deli, across all outlets
A popular food option during any fasting period, sabudana (sago) and the vada made out of it is eaten with different kinds of combinations including chutney. Building on its popularity and easy availability during this time of the year, chef Shamsul Wahid innovates with the classic dish by adding water chestnut to it. The vada is not only easy to make but is one that can be enjoyed by young and old during Navratri. So, why make a regular sabudana vada when you can add a twist to it?

Ingredients

Navratri chaat masala
Whole coriander seeds 100 gm
Cumin 100 gm
Cloves 3 to 4 nos
Black pepper 20 gm
Fennel seeds 50 gm
Green cardamom 15 gm
Ajwain 10 gm
Deghi chilli powder 30 gm
Sendha namak to taste

Method:
1. Roast all the spices.
2. Then grind to a powder.
3. Mix with sendha namak.

Ingredients
Sabudana 1 cup
Potatoes, boiled 150 gm
Unsalted peanuts, crushed 90 gm
Chopped ginger 30 gm
Chopped coriander 50 gm
Chopped green chilli 2 or 3 nos
Sendha namak to taste
Navratra chaat masala to taste
Water chestnut chopped 1 whole
Oil for deep frying

Method:
1. Soak the sabudana overnight then drain the water.
2. In a big bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients.
3. Make balls or any shape of your choice.
4. Refrigerate for one hour.
5. Deep fry till crispy and serve with a chutney of your choice.

Navratra special butter roasted makhana and beetroot-infused quinoa salad by Jerson Fernandes, chef, Novotel Mumbai Juhu Beach
Makhana is easily a crowd favourite and enjoyed by one and all and what better time than now? While Thipsay suggests using it in chivda, chef Jerson Fernandes recommends roasting it with butter and adding it to a dish of beetroot-infused quinoa salad. One doesn't have to look twice to know that the dish is not only healthy but also refreshing with its flavours. For those who love the idea of experimenting with quinoa, this is an ideal option during these nine days, and otherwise.

Ingredients
Quinoa 200 gm
Makhana 100 gm
Beetroot 1 no
Walnuts 50 gm
Sugar 30 gm
Zucchini 1 no
Carrots 1 no
Red radish 1 no
Chopped coriander 50 gm
Fresh kiwi, diced 100 gm
Black salt to taste
Lemon juice 1 no
Orange juice 400 ml
Crushed black pepper to taste
Fresh cream 100 ml

Method:
1. Boil quinoa in orange juice till mashed and allow to cool.
2. Dry roast makhana and season them with chilli powder and some black salt. Allow to cool and get the extra crunch.
3. Slice the zucchini and carrots lengthwise and grill them till soft. Once cold, roll them and keep aside.
4. Once quinoa is cold enough, add beetroot puree, lemon juice, chopped coriander and mix well.
5. Now, caramelise sugar and dip the walnuts in it till it gets a caramel coat.
6. Start plating by placing quinoa mixed with makhana in the centre, the rolled grilled vegetables on the side and the walnuts randomly around the quinoa.
7. Make round slices of the red radish and use it as a garnish for the beetroot-infused quinoa.
8. Place cubes of fresh fruits in and around the salad. Pipe small dots of cream around the salad and serve.

Beetroot Cutlets Encrusted with Cashewnuts by Chef Kandla Nijhowne, Modi Naturals
There are many different ingredients that can't be used during this time but beetroot is certainly not one of them. If you love beetroots, then Chef Kandla Nijhowne recommends making cutlets out of them for this Navratri season and encrust them with cashewnuts. Keeping the sweetness of the beetroots, Nijhowne says one can add some zing to the cutlets with a dash of lemon juice or amchoor and that can be added to the cooled mixture before shaping the tikkis. Further, if one doesn't have cashewnuts, then they can also replace them with crushed peanuts or magaz.

Ingredients
Beetroot, large, peeled and grated 1 no
Potatoes, medium-sized, boiled, peeled and mashed 2 nos
Oil 1 tbsp (and more to fry)
Ginger paste 1 tbsp
Green chillies, finely minced 1-2 nos
Jeera 1/2 tsp
Garam masala 1/2 tsp
Cashew nuts, chopped, very finely 3/4 cup
Sendha namak to taste

Method
1. Heat up oil in a heavy pan and add jeera to it.
2. When the jeera sputters and sings, tip in the ginger paste and the grated beetroot along with a little sendha namak.
3. Saute briefly till the beetroot looks a bit limp and tender.
4. Add the mashed potatoes, green chilies, garam masala and salt as needed.
5. Blend with your fingertips and shape into even-sized balls.
6. Gently flatten the balls in your two palms and moisten each with a little water.
7. Spread the chopped cashews on a flat plate.
8. In a pan, setup oil for shallow frying.
9. One by one, place each tikki into the cashew and press a little till the surface has got encrusted with cashew bits. Coat the other side likewise.
10. Gently lower 5-6 tikkis into the hot oil and fry until the cashew bits look golden brown.
11. Flip over and fry the other side and remove to a length of kitchen towel.
12. Serve hot with mint chutney.

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