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Basant Panchami 2022 recipes: Basant Panchami, the festival dedicated to goddess Saraswati is celebrated with much fervour across the country. It is celebrated on the first day of spring and falls on the fifth day of the month of Magha.
Delicious traditional dishes are cooked and enjoyed on this day. While in North India, especially in Punjab and Haryana, people fly kites, in eastern part of the country like West Bengal, it is celebrated as Saraswati Puja. In the southern states, it is known as Sri Panchami. In Gujarat, bouquet and garlands of flowers set with mango leaves are exchanged as gifts.
On this day, it is common for people to wear clothes in hues of yellow and eat mouth-watering traditional delicacies like Meethe chawal, Boondi Ke Laddoo and Kesari Halwa. Here's a look at four mouth-watering delicacies of Basant Panchami shared by Bharat Sharma, Director Foodya.
1. Khichdi
One of the standard dishes of this occasion include Khichdi, or Bengali-style Khichuri that is served during Saraswati Puja. A festive khichdi requires the basic ingredients of scented (gobindo bhog) rice, split moong dal, and vegetables (cauliflower, carrots, potatoes and peas). The distinct taste is derived from the robust garam masala, cumin, green chillies, and ginger-garlic paste.
First start with sauteing the spices in a tablespoon of ghee. Add the chopped vegetables and salt. Dry roast the moong dal and rice and give it a rise before adding it to the pot. After a good stir, add water and let the lentils and rice cook. Once it is ready, add a dollop of ghee on top of the porridge and serve hot.
2. Kesari Bhaat or Meetha Chawal
Kesari bhaat is a saffron-flavoured sweet rice delicacy enjoyed on Basant Panchami. Start with soaking a few saffron strands and jaggery in water, and keep it aside. Soak a few more saffron strands separately for the garnish. Take the soaked and drained rice and add it to the jaggery water. Mix well. Cook the mixture, and add water if it gets too dry. After the rice is cooked, garnish with chopped cashews, raisins, saffron and ghee. Serve hot.
3. Boondi Ke Laddoo
Boondi Laddoo is one of the most popular treats during any festival, and Basant Panchami is no exception. While there’s a lot to garnish with, the preparation starts with gram flour batter and sugar syrup.
Mix the gram flour with milk or water to make a paste of medium thickness. Heat the pan with a generous amount of ghee. Use a strainer to strain the boondis in perfectly circular shapes, as they hit the hot ghee. Fry them till golden brown and drain the boondis. Add the boondis in a large pot of cardamom-flavoured sugar syrup.
Prepare round balls with your hands. Garnish with chopped nuts, raisins, and melon seeds. Coat the laddoos with a silver foil if you feel fancy.
4. Kesar Halwa
Halwa, or Rava Kesari is a dish similar to Kesari Bhaat. Except, it includes semolina and large amounts of ghee. Start with heating the pan with a tablespoon of ghee and roast the rava in it. After it is golden brown, add a jaggery water and soaked saffron strands to the rava. Add cardamom powder and boil the mixture. Cook till the rava has soaked most of the water, and garnish with chopped nuts, raisins and hot ghee.
