SPICE APRIL 2017 IPAD LR

FOOD ||||| SESAME
Safed Murgh
more effectively than nuts like peanuts.
For this reason, sesame is used in
cuisines worldwide and in a variety of
dishes,” he says.
“I was fortunate to be offered a
sesame payasam as prasad at the Ayyappa
temple in Pune. It was divine. Sesame is
the central ingredient in Safed Murg, one
of the most delicate Indian curries. It is
prominent in Middle Eastern food which
does not rely as heavily on spices as
Indian food. For instance, Tahini, the
popular Middle Eastern dip, spread and
accompaniment is made from a paste of
ground sesame seeds,” he adds.
RAGI SESAME LADDOO
Recipe courtesy: Chef Sanjeev
Kapoor
INGREDIENTS
Finger millet (ragi) flour,
roasted
Roasted white sesame
seeds
Ghee
1½ cup
2 tbsp
½ tbsp
¾ cup
Powdered jaggery (gur)
Roasted and crushed
almonds 10-12
Roasted and crushed
pistachios 10-12
Cardamom powder ½ tsp
METHOD
Heat ghee in a non-stick pan, add
finger millet (ragi) flour and sauté.
Heat two tablespoon water and
jaggery in another non-stick pan
and let the jaggery melt.
Add the melted jaggery to the
finger millet flour along with
almonds, pistachios, cardamom
powder and white sesame seeds,
and mix well. Remove from heat
and set aside till just warm.
Divide the mixture into equal
portions and shape them into
laddoos.
Serve.
SWEETNESS PERSONIFIED
Sweets and desserts are no strangers to
sesame seeds either. A large swathe of
India swears by winter treats like gajak
and revri made of sesame seeds and gur
(jaggery) in delicious variations from
hard to crumbly and flavoured with nuts
and spices. The sesame-gur laddoos and
barfis prepared on the occasion of Makar
Sankrant (popular Hindu festival) are
especially memorable. In Maharashtra,
these sweets are exchanged with a
customary, “Til gur ghya ani gode gode
bola” which in English means “Accept
STONE WATER GRILL, PUNE (SAFED MURGH)
86 ||||| APRIL 2017