Welcome Makar Sankranti In 2023 With These Special Recipes

Makar Sankranti, which usually falls on January 14 every year, is a propitious festival that is celebrated across India. Though it is known by different names in different regions of the country, all of them indicate one common thing—welcoming the spring season. It is called Makar Sankranti in Punjab and Northern India, Magh Bihu in Assam, and Pongal in Tamil Nadu. That’s how rich and beautiful the cultural diversity of India is!

Usually, on Makar Sankranti, people engage in spiritual practices, devour tasty, home-cooked Sankranti special dishes, and fly kites. Though you might already have been preparing traditional dishes on Makar Sankranti for years, we are bringing you a few savoury and sweet recipes that you must include in your culinary adventures this year.

1. Til ke laddoo

Ingredients: 

1. 500 gm sesame seeds
2. 500 gm mawa
3. 500 gm tagar/bura
4. 100 gm cashew nuts
5. 4 pcs. of cardamom (crushed)

Method: 

• Heat a pan and roast the sesame seeds until they become light brown. Cool the seeds and grind them in a mixer. 
• In another pan, add mawa and roast it until it becomes golden brown in colour. You can even roast mawa in the microwave. 
• Mix mawa and bura or tagar (500 gms), sesame seeds, cashew pieces and cardamom powder. And, your laddoo mixture is ready. 
• Now, you can make round balls out of the mixture of your preferred size and serve them fresh. You can even store these laddoos.

One of the easiest and tastiest Makar Sankranti sweet dishes is ready!

Recipe Courtesy Nisha Madhulika, Indian Chef, Restaurant Consultant

2. Suji halwa

Ingredients: 

1. ⅔ cup ghee
2. ¾ cup sugar
3. 5 green cardamoms
4. 3 cups water
5. 1 cup suji (semolina)
6. 1/2 cup chopped dry fruits of your choice

Method:

• In a pot, add the cardamom, sugar and water; mix well. Bring this mixture to a boil and stir well until the sugar dissolves completely. Switch off the flame.
• Now, take a separate pan, heat the ghee and add suji to it. Cook this on low heat until the suji turns golden brown. Add the sugar syrup to the suji. (Word of caution: as you add the sugar syrup, the very hot suji will let off a lot of steam and heat. So be careful)
• Keep stirring the mixture and cook it until it thickens.
• Add chopped almonds, walnuts, raisins or other dry fruits of your choice as a garnish. Serve this hot.

Who doesn’t love hot and sizzling suji halwa? Do try this easy and special Makar Sankranti recipe. 

Recipe Courtesy Kunal Kapur, Indian Celebrity Chef, New Delhi

3. Tilwale paneer

Ingredients:

1. 250 grams cottage cheese
2. 2 tbsp black sesame seeds (for coating)
3. 2 tbsp white and black sesame seeds mixed
4. 1 tsp garam masala powder
5. 1½ tsp Red chilli powder
6. ½ tsp Chat masala
7. 1 tsp ginger garlic paste
8. Salt to taste
9. ½ tsp kasuri methi
10. 1 cup + 2 tbsp refined flour (maida)
11. Oil for shallow frying
12. 3 tbsp semolina (suji)

Method:

• Cut the cottage cheese into small pieces and keep them in a bowl. Sprinkle kasuri methi, red chilli powder, salt, chat masala and garam masala powder and add ginger garlic paste. Give it a good mix.
• Take a separate bowl and mix semolina (2 tsp), refined flour (1 cup), and remaining red chilli powder and garam masala powder, salt, ginger-garlic paste, and water to make it a thick batter.
• Spread white and black sesame seeds, semolina (1 tbsp) and refined flour (2 tbsp) on a plate.
• Now, the cottage cheese pieces that you had cut initially, dip them in the batter and then coat them completely with sesame seeds mixture.
• Heat some oil in a non-stick pan and place these cottage cheese pieces in the pan in it and cook.
• Keep turning sides until it turns golden on all sides. Once done, drain these pieces on tissue paper or any other absorbent paper. Lastly, sprinkle some chaat masala.
• Take your serving plate, place some onion and lemon slices on it, arrange the cooked cottage cheese fingers in a nice pattern and serve them hot.

There’s no scope of missing this Makar Sankranti dish this year! Even if you are unable to cook it on the same day, do try it later.

Recipe Courtesy Sanjeev Kapoor, Indian Celebrity Chef, Television Personality

4. Chole dhaniya masala

Ingredients:

1. ¾ cup chickpeas, soaked
2. ¼ cup Bengal gram, soaked
3. Salt to taste
4. ¼ cup fresh coriander leaves
5. 1½ tsp coriander seeds
6. 1½ tsp cumin seeds
7. ½ inch cinnamon stick
8. 1 black cardamom
9. 2 green chillies
10. 4 -5 cloves
11. 2 onions, sliced
12. 1 tsp ginger paste
13. 1 tsp garlic paste
14. 4 tbsp ghee
15. Black salt as per taste
16. ½ tbsp amchur
17. ¼ tsp red chilli powder
18. ½ tsp garam masala powder

Method

• In a pressure cooker, add the chickpeas and Bengal gram with three cups of water along with a little salt. Pressure cook for five to six whistles.
• In a pan, dry roast the cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cloves, cinnamon, and black cardamom. Allow the spices to cool and then grind them into a powder in your mixer.
• In your blender, grind the green chillies and fresh coriander into a smooth paste with a little bit of water.
• In a non-stick kadhai, heat 3 tbsp of ghee. Add the onion and sauté for 3-4 minutes until it turns golden brown. Add the ginger and garlic pastes and sauté it further for 1 more minute.
• Add dried mango powder, black salt, garam masala powder, and green chilli-coriander paste. Saute for another 2-3 minutes or until you the ghee starts separating from the masala.
• Now, add the cooked Bengal gram and chickpeas and mix properly. If you feel the mixture is too dry, add ½ a cup of water.
• Taste and adjust the salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce the flame to low and cook for around 4-5 minutes.
• In a small pan, heat the remaining ghee. Once hot, switch off the flame and add red chilli powder. Pour this over the channa, put on the lid, and let it simmer for another 5 minutes.
• Switch off the flame.
• Open the lid, and welcome the wholesome aroma of chole dhaniya masala into your kitchen. Serve hot with bhature or puri.

Recipe Courtesy Sanjeev Kapoor, Indian Celebrity Chef, Television Personality

Does just reading about this Makar Sankranti special dish make your mouth water? Undoubtedly, your answer must be a big ‘YES’. 

Celebrate Makar Sankranti with these mouth-watering savoury as well as sweet dishes

Be it any festival, celebrating it without special dishes seems quite incomplete, doesn’t it? This is why, to make your Makar Sankranti a special one this year, we have brought to you these Makar Sankranti special recipes and highly recommend you try at least one savoury and one sweet dish out of these.