Makar Sankranti 2023: 5 easy-to-make traditional recipes

The auspicious festival of Makar Sankranti will be celebrated on Jan 15, 2023 all over the country. The festival marks the commencement of the harvest season. The days start getting longer as the sun starts moving towards the North and transcends into the zodiac sign Capricorn, also known as Makar in Hindi. Some highlights of the festival include kite flying, wearing yellow coloured clothes and enjoying sweet and savoury dishes with family. Since food is an indispensable part of Indian festivals, here are 5 easy-to-make traditional Makar Sankranti recipes that you can make at home. (all image credits-istock)

Ingredients required- 1½ cups of sesame seeds, 1 tablespoon ghee, 1¼ cups of jaggery and ½ tablespoon of cardamom powder.

Method-

1. Add sesame seeds to a pan. Dry roast on low flame. Stir continuously to event roast them.
2. Once colour changes to golden, take the seeds out in a bowl.
3. In the same pan, heat ghee and add jaggery.
4. Let the jaggery melt completely and mix well.
5. Once a boil comes and colour darkens a bit, add sesame seeds and mix.
6. Keep mixing till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan.
7. Now let the mixture cool down a bit and mix in cardamom powder.
8. Pinch out small balls from the mixture and make laddoos.

Ingredients required- 1 cup rice, ½ cup moong dal, ½ cup toor dal, 1 tsp turmeric, 1 tsp cumin seeds, ¼ tsp hing, 1 bay leaf, 1 dry red chilli, 1 black cardamom, 1 cinnamon stick, 4 peppercorns, 4 cloves, 1 onion, 1 tomato, ¼ cup peas, ¼ tsp garam masala, 2 tbsp ghee and salt.

Method-

1. Wash the rice, moong dal and toor dal well.
2. Add them to a cooker along with 4 cups of water. Add turmeric and salt as per taste.
3. Pressure cook the Khichdi for 4-5 whistles on medium flame.
4. Heat ghee in a pan. Add hing, cumin seeds, bay leaf, dry red chilli, black cardamom, cinnamon stick, peppercorns and cloves. Let them splutter for a minute.
5. Now add chopped onions and saute for two minutes.
6. Add finely chopped tomato and cook for another two minutes.
7. Now add peas along with salt as per taste and ¼ cup water, cover with a lid and cook for 5 minutes.
8. Add the cooked Khichdi to this mixture and add water to adjust the consistency as per your liking.
9. Lastly, mix in garam masala and serve.

Ingredients required- 1 cup wheat flour, 1¼ cup jaggery, 1 cup ghee, 10 cashews and 10 raisins.

Method-

1. In a pan, add crushed jaggery along with 3 cups of water. Keep it on medium-high heat and let it boil. Once a boil comes, simmer for two minutes and switch off the flame.
2. Now in a kadhai, heat ghee and add wheat flour to it. Mix well and roast the mixture.
3. Stir continuously, otherwise, the mixture might burn.
4. The colour of the mixture will change from beige to light brown. This process will take at least 8-10 minutes.
5. Now add the jaggery water to the roasted ghee-atta mixture and stir continuously to prevent any lumps.
6. Cook the halwa for 1-2 minutes more and it will leave the sides of the pan.
7. Serve the Gur Halwa after garnishing with cashews and raisins.

Ingredients required- ½ cup rice, 3 tablespoon grated coconut, 3 tablespoon crushed paneer, ½ banana, 10 grapes, ¼ apple, ½ cup milk, 5 cashews, 2 tablespoon sugar and 3 tablespoon pomegranate seeds.

Method-

1. Wash the rice well and soak it in water for 4 hours.
2. Now drain all thhe water and grind the rice to form a coarse mixture.
3. In a bowl, take milk and mix sugar in it.
4. Add the coarse rice mixture to it along with finely chopped banana, apple, grapes, paneer, cashews and grated coconut.
5. Give a good mix.
6. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and serve.

Ingredients required- 1 cup rice, ½ cup moong dal, 2 springs of curry leaves, 1 cinnamon stick, 2 tablespoon ghee, 1 tablespoon mustard seeds, ¼ tbsp hing, 1 tbsp urad dal, 1 tbsp moong dal, 1 dry red chilli, 10 cashews and salt as per taste.

Method-

1. Wash the rice and dal well. Add to a pressure cooker along with 4 cups of water, salt and cinnamon stick.
2. Pressure cook for 4-5 whistles.
3. For tempering, heat ghee in a tadka pan, add mustard seeds, hing, urad dal, moong dal, dry red chilli, cashews and curry leaves.
4. Pour the tadka over the Pongal and serve.

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