When my colleague brought carrot halwa to office last week, I had asked her on how to go about preparing it. It appeared to be much easier than what I thought it would be. There are very few things that makes an Indian working wife happier than when you get a cup of coffee ready for her when she gets back from work. And last Saturday I delighted her not just with a cup of coffee but also with carrot halwa.
It is pretty easy and for all those who are keen to experiment with some food making, here's a simple one to try and make a start. You could begin with a small quantity of five carrots. Shred it using a standard manual shredder.Pour five teaspoons of ghee into a pan. Grab ten to fifteen pieces of cashews and raisins and drop them into the pan. Saute them until they become light brown. Take them out and keep it aside. Now add the shredded carrot into the pan and fry it well, till the taste and smell of the raw vegetable disappears. Add milk to an extent such that it just covers the carrot. Add two tablespoons of sugar. The inherent sweetness of the carrot will add on. Keep the flame initially high when there is more liquid to evaporate and then bring it low.One thing what I noticed here is that the milk was taking real time to blend with the carrot and evaporate. It could probably be because carrot by itself has some inherent fluid.
Continue to mix the contents well especially when semi-solidification starts so that it does not get burnt at the bottom. Once the contents become semi-solid, drop in the fried cashews and raisins and mix well. The contents can then be taken off the stove. Serve it while it’s still a little hot. The original colour of the carrot will still remain.
I would be lying if I said that I was cool right through the exercise. Whenever I have been away from my family for long term work assignments, I have had to take up cooking. I believe I was able to do a good job, so much so that I was able to call individuals and families to my house at these locations and give them dinner. I have told this to my people at home several times and they always kept nudging me to do something so that they could see it with their own eyes :)) So it was but natural that I wanted this piece to come out well in the very first shot. Many times these little pressures in my life turn out to be funny.
My wife loved it and complimented me while also telling me that I can try out the regular side dishes for lunch and dinner too :-) My daughter too enjoyed it. Give it a try.
It is pretty easy and for all those who are keen to experiment with some food making, here's a simple one to try and make a start. You could begin with a small quantity of five carrots. Shred it using a standard manual shredder.Pour five teaspoons of ghee into a pan. Grab ten to fifteen pieces of cashews and raisins and drop them into the pan. Saute them until they become light brown. Take them out and keep it aside. Now add the shredded carrot into the pan and fry it well, till the taste and smell of the raw vegetable disappears. Add milk to an extent such that it just covers the carrot. Add two tablespoons of sugar. The inherent sweetness of the carrot will add on. Keep the flame initially high when there is more liquid to evaporate and then bring it low.One thing what I noticed here is that the milk was taking real time to blend with the carrot and evaporate. It could probably be because carrot by itself has some inherent fluid.
Continue to mix the contents well especially when semi-solidification starts so that it does not get burnt at the bottom. Once the contents become semi-solid, drop in the fried cashews and raisins and mix well. The contents can then be taken off the stove. Serve it while it’s still a little hot. The original colour of the carrot will still remain.
I would be lying if I said that I was cool right through the exercise. Whenever I have been away from my family for long term work assignments, I have had to take up cooking. I believe I was able to do a good job, so much so that I was able to call individuals and families to my house at these locations and give them dinner. I have told this to my people at home several times and they always kept nudging me to do something so that they could see it with their own eyes :)) So it was but natural that I wanted this piece to come out well in the very first shot. Many times these little pressures in my life turn out to be funny.
My wife loved it and complimented me while also telling me that I can try out the regular side dishes for lunch and dinner too :-) My daughter too enjoyed it. Give it a try.
