Navratri is a Hindu festival devoted to the worship of divine feminine energy or Shakti. It spans nine days, during which many people observe fasts as a means of purifying the mind and body and demonstrating devotion to the goddess Durga. Fasting is also thought to help individuals cultivate self-control and discipline. To comply with Navratri fasts, people abstain from consuming certain foods, such as grains, lentils, onions, garlic, and non-vegetarian items. Instead, they opt for vrat-friendly foods like fruits, nuts, milk, yoghurt, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and specific grains like amaranth, barnyard millet, and buckwheat. Some popular fasting-friendly dishes include sabudana khichdi, kuttu ka atta puri, singhare ka atta dosa, samak rice khichdi, and fruit chaat.
Do you know that you can also experiment with regular recipes and make them vrat friendly by changing their ingredients? South Indian cuisine is something that we all love and is very light on the stomach. This cuisine is known for its use of spices like mustard seeds, cumin seeds, coriander, and turmeric. These spices not only add flavour to the food but also have many health benefits, like aiding digestion, reducing inflammation, and boosting immunity. Idli is a popular breakfast item in South India and is a type of savoury rice cake. It is usually made by steaming a batter made from soaked and fermented rice and urad dal (black lentils). This recipe can be tweaked, and by adding or replacing the grains with samak ke chawal, you can make a vrat friendly dish at home. This idli is delicious, and the samak chawal does not alter its original taste. You can enjoy this recipe with satvik coconut chutney.
Here's how you can make vrat friendly idlis at home-
Ingredient
- 1 cup Samak rice (barnyard millet)
- 1/2 cup Sabudana (tapioca pearls)
- 1/2 teaspoon rock salt (sendha namak)
- Water as required
Method
- Rinse the samak rice and sabudana separately and soak them in water for 3–4 hours.
- Drain the water and grind them together to make a smooth batter. You can add a little water while grinding to make the batter pourable.
- Add rock salt to the batter and mix well.
- Grease the idli plates with a little oil and pour the batter into each idli mould.
- Steam the idlis in a steamer for 12–15 minutes or until cooked.
- Once done, remove the idli plates from the steamer and let them cool down a bit.
- Use a spoon to remove the idlis from the moulds.
- Serve hot with coconut chutney.