Raksha Bandhan 2024: Bonding Over Food With Traditional, Quick And Easy Recipes

So, gather your family and loved ones, and make the day special and fun-filled with these easy and delicious recipes. From delightful Gujarati Khaman Dhokla to a flavoursome Punjabi Chole Bhature and festive and colourful Pineapple Barfi, let these treats continue the tradition of good food that marks these get-togethers and festivities.

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Raksha Bandhan is a popular festival celebrating the bond between brothers and sisters on a day filled with love, joy and delicious foods. This year, show your love and appreciation for your siblings by cooking together or surprising them with special homemade dishes. Chef Kunal Kapur recommends three easy and traditional recipes – Gujarati Khaman Dhokla, Punjabi Chole Bhature and Pineapple Barfi – to mark the day and celebrate the festivities.

Cooked in multi-source edible oil that offers a good balance of healthy MUFA (monounsaturated fatty acids) and PUFA (Polyunsaturated fatty acids), antioxidants, and vitamins, let these dishes be the perfect food to munch in between heartfelt conversations. Prepared with the right ingredients these easy snacks can be enjoyed by everyone.

Gujarati Khaman Dhokla

A savoury delicacy featuring light and spongy steamed gram flour cake.

Ingredients 

For Dhokla Batter
• 2 cups of Gram Flour (Besan) 
• ¾ teaspoon of Salt
• ¼ teaspoon of Turmeric
• 1 cup of Water
• ½ cup of Curd
• 2 tablespoons of powdered Sugar 
• 1 teaspoon of Green Chilli Paste
• 1 teaspoon of Ginger paste
• 2 tablespoons of Saffola Gold Oil
• 2 tablespoons of Lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon of Baking Soda
• A small sheet of Butter paper

For Tempering
• 3 tablespoons of Saffola Gold Oil
• 3 teaspoons of Mustard Seeds (small rai)
• 6 nos of Green chillies
• Handful of Curry Leaves (optional)
• 2 cups of Water
• 3 tablespoons of Sugar
• Salt - to taste
• ¼ cup of  Lemon juice

Steps to follow

• Begin the preparation by setting up the steamer. Pour water into the steamer and bring it to a boil
• Grease an 8-inch round tin mould lightly and place a round butter paper on its bottom. Keep it aside
• To make the batter, sieve gram flour in a bowl and add salt, and turmeric. In a separate bowl, mix green chilli paste, ginger paste, sugar, curd, water and Saffola Gold oil
• Pour three-fourths of this mixture over the dry gram flour. Whisk the batter for around 5 mins in a clockwise manner to make the batter light and fluffy
• Then add lemon juice and baking soda to the batter, mix them gently in the same clockwise direction and wait for 30 secs
• Pour the batter onto the mould, place it in the steamer and cook the batter for 30 mins covered with the lid
• Turn off the heat after 30 mins and allow the dhokla to remain in the steamer for 10 mins more
• In the meanwhile, prepare the flavoured syrup by heating a pan and drizzling Saffola Gold oil. Add mustard seeds, allow them to pop in the hot oil and then put in slit green chillies along with curry leaves
• After a minute, pour water, sugar, salt and lemon juice and bring it to a boil. Then, remove the syrup from the heat
• Carefully remove the tin mould from the steamer. Remove the dhokla onto a platter by running a knife along the sides of the mould
• Pour the syrup over the dhokla, while both of them are warm. This will allow the dhokla to soak up the syrup completely
• Wait for 10 mins and then serve the Khaman dhokla

Punjabi Chole Bhature

A popular and flavourful dish that blends the spiciness of chole with fried, puffed Indian bread.

Ingredients

For Chole 
• 1½ cup of soaked Chickpeas 
• 1 no of Black cardamom  
• 6-7 nos of Peppercorns  
• 3 nos of Cardamom 
• 1 stick of Cinnamon  
• 4 nos of Cloves  
• 1 no of Bay Leaf  
• 4 wedges of Dried Gooseberry (Amla) 
• ½ teaspoon of Baking soda  
• Salt – to taste
• 3 cups of Water  
• A small piece of Muslin cloth 

For Bhature 
• 2 cups of All Purpose Flour (Maida)  
• 2 tablespoons of Semolina 
• Salt – a generous pinch 
• ¼ teaspoon of Baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon of Baking powder 
• 2 teaspoons of Sugar 
• 2 tablespoons of Curd 
• Water – as required

For Masala
• 5 tablespoons of Saffola Gold Oil 
• 1 teaspoon of Carom (Ajwain)
• ½ tablespoon of chopped Garlic 
• ½ tablespoon of chopped Ginger 
• 1 cup of chopped Onion 
• ½ teaspoon of Turmeric 
• 1 teaspoon of Chilli powder 
• 1 tablespoon of Coriander powder 
• ½ tablespoon of Cumin powder
• 1 tablespoon of Chole masala 
• 1 cup of fresh Tomato puree 
• Salt – to taste
• ¼ teaspoon of Fenugreek leaves powder  
• ½ tablespoon of Dry mango powder 

Steps to follow

• To begin, soak chickpeas overnight
• Take a small muslin cloth, add black cardamom, peppercorns, cardamom, cloves, bay leaf, and dried gooseberry and tie it to make a small spice bag 
• Transfer the soaked chickpeas and the spice bag onto a deep-bottomed vessel, and add baking soda along with 5 cups of water. Boil the chickpeas till they are soft and tender. Then, remove the spice bag and keep the chickpeas aside
• To make the dough, take All Purpose Flour in a bowl and add salt, curd, semolina, baking soda, baking powder, sugar and little water. Knead them well and allow them to rest for 2 hours
• Meanwhile, heat Saffola Gold oil in a pan and add carom seeds, chopped garlic and ginger. Sauté it, then add chopped onions and cook them till they turn light brown. Then, add turmeric, chilli powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and chilli powder and continue cooking
• Pour in fresh tomato purée and continue cooking the masala till it releases oil. Add salt, fenugreek leaves power powder and dry mango powder to the masala. Then pour the boiled chickpeas along with its water into the pan and continue cooking for 20 mins, till it reduces and thickens up. Check for seasoning and serve hot
• To make bhature, heat up Saffola Gold oil in a deep vessel. Apply some Saffola Gold oil on your hands and make small, round dough balls 
• Take one of the small dough balls, place it on the kitchen counter and roll it out evenly. Deep fry the poori by cooking both sides. Complete the same process with the remaining small dough balls. Remove and serve them hot with chole

Pineapple Barfi

A delicious and simple sweet dish that is part of a traditional festival meal

Ingredients

• 2 cups of Sugar
• 3 cups of Water
• ½ teaspoon of Cardamom powder
• 2 cups of diced Pineapple 
• 1 cup of chopped Coconut 
• A dash Water
• 1 cup of Custard powder
• 4½ tablespoons of Saffola Gold oil 
• Handful of chopped Nuts 

Steps to follow

• In a deep-bottomed vessel, add sugar along with 3 cups of water and cardamom powder and bring it to a boil. Cook it till the sugar dissolves, and remove from heat. The syrup should have a thin watery consistency
• Grind pineapple and coconut with a dash of water to form a purée. Strain it to extract a clear juice of pineapple and coconut. Add custard powder to this extract and whisk it to avoid any lumps
• Add this extract mixture to the hot sugar syrup and slowly mix it. Remember the gas has to be off while mixing it
• Once mixed, switch on the heat and keep stirring the mixture, till it thickens and keep moderating the heat from low to medium-high. Add a tablespoon of Saffola Gold oil and keep stirring the mixture for around 3 mins
• Add another tablespoon of Saffola Gold oil and keep stirring the mixture until it is evenly mixed. Continue this step till all the oil is added to the mixture. Keep stirring and cooking the mixture to the point that it is well cooked
• Line a tray with butter paper and pour the cooked mixture on it. Garnish the barfi with chopped nuts and allow it to cool completely. Then put the barfi in the refrigerator for an hour 
• After an hour, remove the tray from the fridge, and upturn the tray to release the block of barfi. Remove the butter paper, cut it into squares and serve. The barfi will stay fit to eat for a week if stored in the fridge