Chef Maharaj Bhawar Singh Shares His Winter-Special Recipes 

Winter is all about indulging into warm and comforting dishes without worrying about the calories. From lip-smacking desserts to various cocktails, it’s a season to relish delectable delicacies. When talking about India, every region in the country has a platter decorated with a variety of winter delicacies.  Some of those famous dishes are Kashmiri gushtaba, sarson ka saag of Punjab, lapsi from Gujarat and everyone’s favourite gajar ka halwa. 

Also Read: Try These Winter-Special Recipes To Stay Healthy This Season

Here are a few recipes from Swad Kesariya for our readers by Maharaj Bhawar Singh, Corporate Chef, Khandani Rajdhani: 

1. Adadiya Pak 

Ingredients: 

• 150 gm urad dal atta (coarse)  
• 150 gm channa dal atta  
• 100 gm mix dry fruits  
• 100 gm gondh 
• 25 gm khus khus 
• 3 tbsp milk 
• 250 gm sugar 
• 250 gm ghee 
• 50 gm saunth powder

Method: 

• Take 2 cups split black gram flour (urad dal flour should be coarse like suji, make sure it’s not in powder foam). 
• In large bowl combine flour, milk and ¼ cup clarified butter, mix thoroughly. (We called in this process dhabo) 
• After half hour sieve this flour by pressing mildly. Set aside. 
• In heavy bottomed pan Heat the clarified butter and fry edible gum on high flame. Set aside. 
• Chopped edible gum uneven and make coarsely powder using a mortar. 
• Add the flour & Poppy Seeds in clarified butter and Roast it on a low flame stirring continuously till light brown or until 25 to 35 minutes. 
• Once it is browned add finely chopped edible gum. 
• Mix well turn off the flame, let it cool 10 to 15 minutes. 
• Add in all Saunth powder & sugar mix very well. 
• Spread it on a square or round plate garnish with almonds. Cool 3 to 4 hours than cut.

 2. Gajar Ka Halwa 

Ingredients: 

• 3 cups grated desi red carrots 
• 1 cup sugar   
• 1/2 cup mawa (khoya) 
• ½ cup milk  
• 2 tbsp ghee  
• 1 tbsp cashew nuts 
• 1 tbsp pista  
• 1 tbsp almonds  
• ½ tsp cardamom powder

Method: 

• Take a heavy bottom sauce pan. Add 1 part of ghee in the pan and heat. 
• Add the grated carrots and sauté Til the carrots start leaving water from the sides. 
• Add the sugar to the carrots and keep cooking for 10 mins. 
• Add the ghee now and stir and about 5 minutes. 
• Add the milk to the Halwa and let it reduce and evaporate. 
• Now add the grated mawa, chopped nuts stir and cool.  

Chefs Tips: 

• Can be served warm with vanilla ice cream. 
• Can be cooled and made into gajar halwa ladoos. 
• Can be stuffed inside a Pie to make a gajar halwa pie. 

3. Haldi Nu Saag 

Ingredients: 

• 200 gm amba haldi (grated)  
• 50 gm desi ghee  
• 50 gm green peas 
• 50 gm cauliflower (chopped) 
• 10 gm jeera whole 
• 10 gm ginger paste 
• 1 ½ cup onion (finely chopped)  
• 3 cups yoghurt 
• 10 gm green chilli (finely chopped) 
• 20 gm garlic (chopped) 
• 30 gm tomato (chopped) 
• 2-3 tsp red chilli powder 
• ½ cup coriander fresh 
• Salt to taste

Method: 

• Wash the raw grated Amba haldi for 2-3 times. 
• Heat ghee in a thick bottom pan on medium heat. Add onions, haldi, garlic, tomato and green chillies and cook well for 5-7 minutes. 
• Add the Cauliflower, Green Peas stir and cook for 1 Minute and add hot water and simmer for minutes. 
• Gradually stir in the whisked yogurt with red chilli powder to the Kadhai. 
• Turn the heat to low and simmer stirring occasionally for about 10 minutes or until a thick consistency is obtained. Add salt and season the dish. 
• Turn off the heat and garnish with freshly chopped coriander leaves and serve hot.

Chefs Tips: 

• Can be served with hot phulkas. 
• Serve Warm garnished with some grated mawa.

4. Mogri Peru 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups mogri (peru)  
• 1 tsp mustard seeds 
• 1 tsp cumin seeds 
• 1 pinch hing 
• 1 tbsp oil 
• ½ cup coriander leaves for garnish 
• 1 tsp dhania powder 
• 1 tsp jeera powder 
• ½ tsp red chili powder  
• ½ tsp turmeric powder

 Method: 

• Cut the mogri Peru into 1-inch-long chunks. 
• Heat oil, temper with cumin seeds, mustard seeds, asafoetida & green chillies. 
• Add the mogri and sauté till soft. 
• Add the dry masalas, water and salt and cook for a couple of more minutes. 
• Garnish with chopped fresh coriander. 
• Serve hot.  

Chefs Tips: 

• Mogri combined with cucumber can be used to make a koshimbir. 
• Mogri can be used along with beetroot to make a raita. 
• Mogri can be used to make a mogri ka chaat mixed with green apples.

5. Surti Undhiyu 

Ingredients: 

Grinding Masala: 

• ½ cup green garlic 
• ½ cup coconut (without the dark skin) 
• 1 tbsp peanuts raw – 1 tbsp 
• 6 tbsp coriander fresh

Mixing Masala: 

• 1 tbsp green chilli paste 
• 1 tbsp ginger paste 
• 1 tsp garlic paste  
• 1 tsp haldi powder 
• 1 tsp dhania powder 
• 1 tsp jeera powder 
• 1 tsp garam masala powder 
• 1 tsp ajwain 
• Salt to taste 
• 1 tbsp dry coconut 
• 1 tbsp white til 
• 1 tbsp sugar 
• 1 tsp hing 
• 100 gm green garlic chives

Vegetables: 

• 100 gm shakarkand 
• 200 gm peeled potato 
• 150 gm purple yam (ratalu) 
• 4 eggplant 
• 1 raw banana (cut into 6 pcs) 
• 500 gm surti papdi 
• 100 gm green peas

Tadka: 

• 1 tbsp sunflower oil 
• 1 tsp garlic paste 
• 1tsp hing  
• 1 tsp ajwain 
• 1 tsp green chilli paste

Methi Muthiya: 

• 2 cups fresh methi 
• 2 tsp green chilli paste 
• 1 ½ tsp ginger paste 
• 1 tsp garlic paste 
• 1 tsp salt 
• 1 tbsp white till 
• ½ tsp hing 
• 1 tsp haldi powder 
• 1.5 tsp sugar 
• 1 tbsp curd 
• 2 tbsp oil 
• 1 cup besan 
• ½ cup atta kar kara 
• ½ cup maida 

Method: 

• Take all the grinding masala and grind to a coarse consistency. 
• Mix all the mixing masala to the coarsely ground masala with one part of the green garlic chives and chopped coriander. 
• Cut the potato, yam, sweet potato, raw banana (with skin) into 1 inch size pieces. 
• Slit the banana & egg plant and stuff with the masala. 
• Take oil in the cooker and add all the tadka ingredients and sauté. Add all the beans, stuffed vegetables and methi muthiya and pour some water over all the vegetables. 
• Cook all the vegetables for 4 whistles. Remove onto the serving plate and garnish with left over green garlic chives and chopped coriander. 

6. Sarson Da Saag 

Ingredients: 

• 4 bunches sarson ka saag 
• 2 bunches spinach  
• 1 bunch bathua 
• 2-3 green chillies 
• 1 cup makai ka atta

Tadka Ingredients: 

• 3 tbsp ghee 
• 2 big tbsp ginger finely chopped 
• 3 tbsp green chilli 
• 2-3 onion finely chopped

Serving:  

• 1 tbsp white butter  

Method: 

• Chop all the Green Leafy Vegetables finely and rinse thoroughly in running water. 
• Chop the onion, ginger and green chillies finely. 
• Take a cooking pot with lid and add about 500 ml of water and bring it to boil. 
• Add all of the chopped greens leafy vegetables and 1 part of the green chillies to the boiling water, cover the lid and cook the green for around 15-20 mins on slow flame. 
• Remove the cooking pot off the flame and add the Makai the atta in batches and keep mashing the cooked green till all the makai ka atta is dissolved in the greens everything turns into a paste. 
• Take ghee in another pot and add ginger, green chillies and onion and sauté till the onions are translucent and soft. 
• Add the entire greens mixture to this tadka and cook with the tadka for another 15-20 mins. 
• Add salt and season the whole mixture. Serve hot with big dollop of white butter on top.

Chefs Tips:

• Ideally to be eaten with Makai Ki Roti, Jaggery and white Butter. 
• Can be cooled and stored in the refrigerator for 2-3 days. 
• Can be an excellent topping on a crispy toasted slice of garlic baguette with some jaggery and white butter topping. 

Make these recipes at home and enjoy.