Listed below are two recipes that individuals can make on the auspicious occasion of Sita Navami at their homes.

Boondi Laddu Recipe

Ingredients for Laddu

For Sugar Syrup

• ½cup water
• 1cup sugar
• saffron powder or crushed saffron (kesar)

For Making Boondi

• 1cup Besan (gram flour)
• saffron powder or crushed saffron (kesar)
• ¾cup water
• 2 to 3 black cardamoms
• ½tablespoon magaz
• oil for deep frying
• A teaspoon of oil or ghee for applying on the palms while shaping the ladoo

Making Sugar Syrup and Batter

1. Dissolve sugar, saffron threads, and water in a pan and keep it on the stove to prepare the sugar syrup. Keep on low to medium heat to cook the sugar solution.
2. Make a smooth-flowing batter of the gram flour/besan, crushed saffron, and water. The batter should neither be thick nor thin. It should be a flowing batter.
3. Cook the sugar syrup till you get one thread consistency in it and then switch off the heat. Remove the pan from the stove and set it aside on your kitchen counter.

Remember that the sugar syrup should be hot when you add the boondi to it. So you can keep the sugar solution in a hot water bath.  Place the pan on a plate or tray filled with hot water. This will keep it hot without crystallizing it.

Making Boondi

Heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or pan. The oil has to be moderately hot. When you add one or two drops of the gram flour batter, they should come up briskly but steadily on the surface.

If they come up very quickly, then the oil is very hot. If they don’t come up or take time, the oil is not enough hot.

Take a perforated ladle/spoon. With your hands position the ladle above the oil. You will need one larger ladle/jhara to remove the fried boondis.

Remember to fry the boondi in medium-hot oil or moderately hot oil. If the oil is warm, the boondi will soak more oil, getting loaded and soggy with it.

If the oil is very hot, the batter will get more brown or even burnt becoming very crispy.

Take a large spoon of the besan batter and pour it on a perforated ladle/spoon. Press with the other spoon so that the batter falls down from the perforations into the hot oil.

Fry the boondi (gram flour balls) till they become golden. Don’t over-fry or make them crisp. When the oil stops sizzling, remove the boondis.

About 45 seconds to 1 minute is enough to get the correct texture in the boondi. This step is important because if boondi becomes crisp then motichoor laddu won’t be soft and they won’t be able to absorb the sugar syrup.

For collecting the fried boondi use a large slotted spoon/jhara. Drain the oil very well after removing the boondi and then add them directly to the sugar syrup.

Also, note that the sugar syrup should be hot. If the sugar syrup is not hot, then just heat it. In case, the sugar syrup crystallizes, then reheat again mixing 1 to 2 tablespoons of water. No need to bother about the flat or tailed boondis as we will be pulsing them in the blender later.

Fry the boondi in batches this way and keep on adding them after draining the oil very well to the hot sugar syrup.

Make all the boondis like this and keep on adding boondis immediately to the sugar syrup. Stir and mix well. The boondis should get softened in the sugar syrup.

Making Motichoor Laddu

In a blender or mixer add all of the boondi that has been mixed with the sugar syrup. Add 1 tablespoon of hot water and pulse the boondi mixture a few times to get a smaller shape. Don’t pulse too much otherwise, you won’t be able to shape the motichoor laddu easily.

The amount of water to be added depends on the texture of the boondis. If the boondis are a bit crisp, then add 1 or 2 tablespoons more of the hot water. The boondis absorb the hot water and remain soft and moist.

Add the magaz/melon seeds and black cardamom seeds. Mix well.

Apply some oil or ghee on your palms and shape the ladoo. The mixture would be warm when preparing the laddu. On cooling they become firm.

You can garnish them with melon seeds/magaz or raisins or nuts like almond or pistachio slivers. These ladoo can also be refrigerated.

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Masala Bhaat Recipe

Masala Bhaat is a traditional Maharashtrian rice dish made with aromatic spices and vegetables. Here’s a recipe to make Masala Bhaat:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of basmati rice
• 3 cups of water
• 2 tbsp of oil or ghee
• 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp of mustard seeds
• 1/2 tsp of fennel seeds
• 1 bay leaf
• 2-3 cloves
• 2-3 cardamom pods
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 green chili, chopped
• 1 tsp of ginger-garlic paste
• 1/2 cup of mixed vegetables (carrots, peas, beans, potatoes)
• 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder
• 1 tsp of coriander powder
• 1 tsp of cumin powder
• 1/2 tsp of red chili powder
• Salt, to taste
• Fresh coriander leaves, chopped for garnish

Preparation Method:

1. Wash the basmati rice and soak it in water for 30 minutes.

2. In a pan, heat oil or ghee.

3. Add cumin seeds, mustard seeds, fennel seeds, bay leaf, cloves, cardamom pods, and cinnamon sticks. Sauté for a few seconds until the spices release their aroma.

4. Add chopped onion and green chili and sauté until the onion turns translucent.

5. Add ginger-garlic paste and sauté for a few seconds.

6. Add mixed vegetables and sauté for 2-3 minutes.

7. Add turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder, red chili powder, and salt. Mix well.

8. Add soaked rice to the pan and sauté for a few minutes.

9. Add 3 cups of water and mix well.

10. Cover the pan and let the rice cook on low heat until it’s fully cooked and fluffy.

11. Turn off the heat and let the rice rest for 5 minutes.

12. Fluff the rice with a fork and garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Your delicious Masala Bhaat is now ready to be served and enjoyed!

Recipes by- By Chef. Narayan Dutt Sharma, (Culinary Head of Barbeque Nation Hospitality Limited)