Fermented milk with crumbly pap
Thick, tangy amasi was once soured in calabashes in Zulu and Xhosa homesteads, and it is still the drink-cum-meal that many South Africans crave on a hot afternoon, poured over crumbly pap as umvubo. At home it is easy and safe with pasteurised full-fat milk and a spoon of live cultured buttermilk as the starter; never use raw milk. Expect something like a pourable, sharper yoghurt with soft curds, cooling against the dry, crumbly maize. The common mistake is fermenting somewhere too warm, which makes the milk separate into watery whey and rubbery lumps. Chef's tip: once it has set, chill it for a few hours before eating; the cold firms the curd and rounds out the sourness.
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Golden potato pattice stuffed with fresh coconut, coriander and a sweet-sour lemon seasoning, bound with cassava flour so they suit a fasting day. The outside fries crisp while the inside stays soft, with a juicy coconut centre. Serve them hot with coconut chutney as a farari snack or light meal. Makes 15.
Pudas are thin savoury pancakes. These low-calorie ones are made from rice, maize and wheat flour mixed with crumbled paneer, spinach, fenugreek and coriander and a fresh paste of onion, chilli, mint, garlic and ginger. The moisture in the vegetables and paneer is enough to bind the dough, so no ghee, oil, yogurt or water goes into it. Cook on a griddle with just a little oil and serve with tea, or with plain yogurt and pickle.
Soft, spiced farari thepla made with ground soaked sago, rajagra (amaranth) and moraiyo (samo) flours and mashed potato, kneaded with yogurt and seasoned with sesame, coriander, chilli and ginger. They're rolled between sheets of plastic, as there's no gluten to hold them, and shallow fried on a griddle. Serve with yogurt or farari kofta curry. Soak the sago 6 hours ahead. Makes 15.
Crisp, golden sago wada made from mashed potato, sago pearls and cassava flour, seasoned with green chilli, ginger, coarse black pepper and sesame, then rolled in soaked sago so the outside fries into a crunchy, pearly crust. Serve hot with coconut chutney on fasting days. Makes 20.
Light savoury scones made from rice flour and gram flour, flavoured with dried basil, oregano, mustard and black pepper and topped with poppy seeds. Shaped as one round and marked into 8 wedges, they are good warm with soup or salad. The book's recipe uses one egg; to make them eggless, leave it out and add an extra 60 ml soya milk and 1 tsp baking powder.
Slices of matoke (green cooking banana) cooked with cumin, chilli and ginger in a tomato sauce thickened with roasted peanuts, a simple vegan curry for fasting days. The bananas turn tender and potato-like and soak up the nutty, tangy sauce. For a farari potato curry, use yogurt instead of tomatoes and potatoes instead of the bananas.
Light, eggless pancakes made with wheat flour, soya milk and water, rolled around fresh banana, peach, apricot and strawberries and finished with cinnamon, chopped almonds and pistachios and a drizzle of maple syrup. A colourful dairy-free breakfast or dessert; serve immediately.
A pretty, low-fat dessert: short-grain rice simmered slowly in semi-skimmed milk with cinnamon until thick and creamy, sweetened and flavoured with orange rind, then pressed into a ring mould over a layer of dried fruit and chilled. Turned out, it shows off a jewelled top. Serve chilled, with a little orange juice spooned over.
Soft, thick uttapam for fasting days, made from a yogurt batter of samo (moraiyo), singoda (water chestnut) flour and rajagra (amaranth) flour, tempered with cumin and curry leaves and studded with cucumber, tomato, coconut and green chilli. Cooked under a lid, they're crisp at the edges and fluffy in the middle. Serve with yogurt and green chutney. Makes 6.
Konafa (kunafa) is a celebration sweet of shredded kataifi pastry tossed in butter and baked in two layers around a filling of coconut, almonds, pistachios and mixed peel with glacé cherries. The hot pastry is drenched in cold rose-water syrup and pressed so it holds together, then cut into squares. Crisp, syrupy and nutty; serve cold with fresh cream or ice cream.
A light, eggless and butter-free cake made with self-raising flour, cinnamon, light muscovado sugar, apple juice and a little sunflower oil, studded with juicy cranberries and diced apple and baked in a ring mould. Drizzled with warm cranberry jam and decorated with apple slices, it looks festive and is low in fat.
A soft, moist low-calorie slice made without flour, eggs or refined sugar: ripe bananas are blended with sunflower oil, vanilla and cardamom, then cashews, desiccated coconut, oats and grated apple. Baked and cut into wedges, it is naturally sweet and good with tea or in a lunch box.
A creamy, chilled kheer of small sago pearls simmered in milk with sugar, pistachios, almonds, cashews, cardamom and saffron, then mixed with a separate milk of apricots, figs and raisins and fresh green grapes. It's sweet, fragrant and full of texture. A party-size dessert for fasting days or festivals. Serves 15.
A light, low-calorie chocolate mousse with no eggs or cream: silken tofu is blended with banana, tahini dip and a little honey, then grated chocolate is whizzed in for flecks of flavour. It takes five minutes to make; chill in glasses before serving.
A fragrant Middle Eastern rice pilaf: rice simmered in vegetable stock with onion, garlic, chilli and cumin, then finished with golden vermicelli and pine nuts toasted in butter, sweet currants and fresh parsley. Serve warm with cacık.
A low-calorie version of the tea-time puri: wholewheat dough flavoured with fresh fenugreek, cumin, chilli and turmeric is rolled thin and baked until crisp and golden instead of being deep-fried. They keep for a couple of weeks in an airtight tin, ready for snacking with tea.
A crunchy, nourishing low-calorie salad of peppery watercress, fennel and Chinese cabbage, scattered with sunflower, pumpkin, linseed and sesame seeds, flaked almonds, raisins and dried apricots, then dressed with sesame oil, balsamic vinegar and a touch of honey. Serve as a light lunch or a side.
A creamy, dairy-free and low-calorie 'ice cream' made by blending frozen banana and strawberries with silken tofu, honey and vanilla until thick and smooth. Layer it with chopped fresh fruit and garnish with mint. Serve straight away.
A classic Turkish dish whose name means 'the imam fainted', supposedly with delight. Aubergine shells are fried in olive oil and filled with their own flesh cooked with tomatoes, onion, red and green peppers, garlic and herbs, then baked until meltingly tender. Finished with lemon and parsley; good hot or cold with bread, salad and creamy garlic dip.
A quick, low-calorie way to use leftover rice: sprouted moth beans and green grams are cooked with garlic, ginger, green chilli, capsicum, spring onions and a few spices over a cumin and asafoetida tempering, then tossed with cooked rice. Served hot with fresh tomato and coriander.
A refreshing, lighter mango lassi made with low-fat yogurt: ripe mangoes, yogurt, a little sugar and rose water are blended with water until smooth and frothy, chilled and poured over crushed ice. Perfect on a hot day or with a spicy meal.
Diamond-shaped cutlets of potato and sweet potato with fresh coconut and roasted peanuts, dipped in a cassava-flour batter and coated in coarse peanut powder, then fried until golden. They're crunchy outside, soft and gently sweet inside. Serve hot with coconut and tomato chutney (use a farari one without onion or garlic). Makes 20.
A wholesome, low-calorie twist on khichdi, using bulgar wheat in place of rice. Husked green gram lentils and bulgar cook in the pressure cooker with peas, cauliflower, potato and onion, tempered with a little ghee, cumin and whole spices. Soft, comforting and filling; serve hot with banana raita or plain yogurt.
A light, eggless bread pudding: dried fruits are plumped in hot apple juice and mixed with diced stale bread, sliced banana and cardamom and clove, then soaked in skimmed milk, sprinkled with brown sugar and baked until firm and golden. Serve hot or cold with low-fat yogurt.
A hearty but light one-pot stew from the book's Low calorie section: sweet potato and chickpeas simmer in grated tomatoes and tomato paste with onion and garlic, spinach is wilted in at the end, and a spoonful of miso (made from soya beans) adds a deep savoury flavour. Uses only a teaspoon of oil. Serve straight away with bread or rice.
A lighter, eggless quiche: a crisp wholemeal pastry case made with soya spread, filled with red and green peppers and mushrooms bound with cottage cheese, soya yogurt and grated soya cheese, and baked until set. Serve hot with a green salad.
Quick, low-calorie party bites: warm diced potato tossed with chilli, cumin, onion, green chilli and coriander is piled onto thin canapé or water biscuits, topped with sweetened low-fat yogurt and drizzled with mint and onion chutney and tamarind chutney, like a mini chaat. Assemble just before serving so the biscuits stay crisp.
A full falafel meal: crisp chickpea fritters flavoured with fenugreek, spinach, chilli and ginger are stuffed into pitta pockets spread with hummus and tahini, then packed with a crunchy cabbage, cucumber and carrot salad and a fiery home-made red chilli sauce. Serve with green, red and tamarind chutneys.
A crunchy, nutty barfi of roasted sesame seeds and ground peanuts set in a two-thread sugar syrup, pressed into a tray and topped with chopped peanuts. It's sweet and toasty, like a soft brittle, and keeps well. Good for fasting days and the winter festivals. Makes 20 pieces.
Thin potato crisps blanched in salted water with citric acid and dried in the sun, a traditional store-cupboard standby for fasting days. Fried in seconds when needed, they puff up light, crisp and white. Sprinkle with black pepper or chilli powder. Drying takes 1–2 days of strong sun.
A crunchy, high-fibre and low-calorie salad of boiled sprouted pulses (moth beans, chickpeas, green grams) with apple, orange segments, grapes, radish, salad leaves and spinach, lifted with a little green chilli. A light mint and yogurt dressing goes on just before serving. Serve chilled as a starter or light lunch.
A naturally sweet, fat-free fruit compote: dried apples, prunes, apricots, raisins and sultanas soak overnight in apple juice with cinnamon and lemon rind, then simmer gently until plump and glossy. Serve hot or cold, on its own, with yogurt or over porridge.
A Gujarati-style dry vegetable dish made with chopped colocasia (arvi) leaves and chana dal, cooked with peanuts, tamarind and jaggery for a sweet-sour taste, then thickened with a fresh paste of coconut, green chilli, coriander and ginger and finished with a mustard and cumin tempering. Uses only two teaspoons of oil. Serve hot with baked parathas.
A light, low-calorie pullao from the book's Low calorie section. Basmati rice is cooked with baby carrots, baby corn and fine French beans, whole spices, garlic, ginger and green chilli, using a little semi-skimmed milk for softness and onions browned in the oven instead of deep-fried. Serve hot with the remaining baked onions and masala yogurt.
Soft dates cooked briefly in butter with cardamom, shaped around a fried almond and rolled in desiccated coconut. A simple no-bake sweet that is rich, chewy and naturally sweet, perfect for festive trays and with coffee. Makes about 40.
A smooth, bright green, dairy-free soup of spinach and onion blended with a little creamed coconut, then simmered with vegetable stock, soya milk and a hint of nutmeg. Cook the spinach only briefly so it keeps its colour. Serve immediately.
This is the big festive chevdo: crisp potato straws and rounds, fried chana dal, green grams and pawa, with cashews, peanuts and sultanas, curry leaves and green chillies, all coated in a sweet-hot seasoning and a fragrant whole-spice tempering with lemon. It makes a large batch for Diwali and keeps for weeks in air-tight tins. Golf potatoes are small, round potatoes.
Mathia are thin, crisp, slightly sweet and peppery wafers made from mathia flour, a mix of ground husked moong and urad dal. They are a classic Gujarati Diwali snack. The dough is pounded until pale, rolled very thin between plastic sheets and fried one at a time. They are fragile, so store them gently. To make mathia flour, finely grind 4 parts husked green gram lentils with 1 part husked black gram lentils.
Tum tum are thick, chunky gram flour sticks pressed through a 1 cm disc, spiced with chilli, cumin-coriander, black pepper and ajwain, and balanced with lemon and sugar. They are hot, tangy and crunchy, perfect with tea, and one of the components of bhusu.
Bhusu is a festive farsan mix: crunchy fried pulses and lentils, three kinds of sev, tum tum, bundi, sakarpada cubes, puffed rice, cashews and peanuts, all tossed in a sweet, sour and spicy seasoning. It makes a large batch for Diwali and keeps for weeks in air-tight tins. It's a project spread over a few days, because the pulses need soaking first. Make the jini sev, jadi sev, tum tum and sakarpada from their own recipes in this section.
Jadi sev is the thick variety of sev: crunchy gram flour noodles pressed straight into hot oil, seasoned with coarse black pepper and green chilli powder. Eat it by the handful with tea, or mix it into bhusu and chevdo. For medium sev, use a disc with slightly smaller holes.
Chakri (also called chakli) are crisp, ridged spirals piped from a sev press and deep-fried. This version uses rice flour with a little gram flour and plain flour, flavoured with fresh coriander, ginger, chilli, sesame and lemon, with a touch of sugar. They are a Diwali favourite and keep well in an air-tight tin.
Sakarpada (shakarpara) are little sweet diamonds of a rich dough made with ghee, milk and sugar, fried until golden and crunchy. They are a Diwali favourite with tea, and the cubes go into bhusu too. They keep for weeks in an air-tight tin.
Small, crisp fried puris flavoured with cumin seeds and plenty of black pepper. The butter rubbed into the flour makes them short and flaky, and frying them slowly over low heat keeps them crisp right through. Serve them as a snack with tea; they keep for weeks in an air-tight tin.
Bhabhri are long, thin strips of plain and gram flour dough, fried until crisp and tossed straight away in a mix of powdered sugar, chilli, citric acid and salt. They are sweet, tangy and lightly spicy at once, and a favourite tea-time nasta. Pounding the dough makes it lighter in colour and gives the strips their crisp, flaky bite. They keep for weeks in an air-tight container.
Potato chakri are crisp, light spirals made with rice flour and boiled potato, flavoured with ginger, chilli, lemon, sesame and coriander. The potato makes them extra tender-crisp. They keep for about 3 weeks in an air-tight container, so make them ahead for Diwali or guests.
Sanchar papdi are thin diamonds of rice, gram and urad flour dough that blister and bubble as they fry, then get a dusting of sugar, chilli and sanchar (black salt). They are crisp, light and tangy, and a lovely tea-time snack. Pounding the dough until pale makes them extra crisp.
Khakhra are thin chapaties roasted slowly on a griddle until they turn crisp, like a cracker. This masala version adds gram flour, fresh fenugreek, turmeric and chilli to the wheat dough. They are a light Gujarati breakfast or tea-time snack, and lovely with pickle, chutney or a smear of butter. You can also make them in a roti maker.
Fafadia gathia are pale, airy strands of gram flour dough rubbed through a gathia jara straight into hot oil. Beating the salt and kharo water until white and frothy, then kneading the dough hard, makes them light and melt-in-the-mouth. Serve with fried green chillies, papaya sambharo or jalebi. For fuli (puffed) gathia, use coarsely ground black pepper instead of white pepper and press the dough through a fuli jara.
Soft dumplings (muthia) of boiled rice, dhokra flour and gram flour, flavoured with garlic, ginger and chilli, simmered in a lightly tempered broth and finished in a thin, tangy yogurt sauce. It's a comforting one-pot meal. Serve hot with bread. It can also be cooked in a pressure cooker.
Uppma is a soft, savoury semolina dish cooked with vegetables, onion, green chilli, ginger and curry leaves. This version cooks the semolina in tangy buttermilk and finishes it with lemon, coriander and cashews. Toasting the semolina first keeps the grains separate. Serve it hot for breakfast or tea, with plain yogurt.
A favourite chaat: golden potato patties stuffed with spiced crushed peas, topped with hot ragda (a tangy dried-pea curry), tamarind, green and red chutneys, fine sev, chopped onion and coriander. Make the jini sev from the recipe in the Nasta section, or use ready-made fine sev.
Soft, white steamed squares of ground rice and urad dal, spiced with black pepper and green chilli and topped with a mustard and sesame tempering. They're a classic Gujarati farsan. Serve with green and red chutneys. For yellow dhokra, use bengal gram lentils (chana dal) instead of black gram lentils, and add a pinch of turmeric and some garlic paste to the batter.
Papdi atta (papdi no lot) is a soft, steamed rice-flour dough cooked in water seasoned with cumin, ajwain, sesame, cinnamon and cloves, then shaped into little rounds and steamed until tender. It's a much-loved Gujarati snack, eaten hot with a drizzle of raw oil and khichi sambhar masala.
A bright green pesto of fresh coriander and mint, made creamy with toasted cashews and sharp with lime juice. Toss it through pasta, swirl it into rice or use it as a sandwich spread.
A hearty, family-friendly bake of shell pasta and baked beans in a spicy tomato, ginger and garlic sauce, topped with cheddar and capsicum rings. Serve hot with garlic bread.
A spiced vegetable filling of potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, beans and peas with tomato, spring onion and warm cinnamon-clove, baked in a potato and bread crust and piped with a potato topping. Dotted with chilli sauce and ketchup, it makes a colourful centrepiece.
Cannelloni tubes filled with a gently spiced stuffing of ground peas, grated potato and carrot, baked slowly in a herby tomato sauce under a layer of cheddar. The long, gentle bake cooks the dry tubes in the sauce.
Little crisp puris flavoured with green chilli, fresh coriander, sesame, lemon and a touch of sugar. They're fried slowly over low heat so they stay crisp for weeks, ready to serve as a snack with tea.
A vegetarian moussaka for a crowd: fried aubergine and potato slices layered with a herby tomato sauce and a garlicky cheese white sauce, topped with cheese and mixed herbs and baked until bubbling. Serve sizzling hot with bread.
Rigatoni tossed in a thick tomato sauce with soft aubergine, celery and garlic, with an optional splash of brandy for depth, and topped with grated cheddar.
A fresh, fragrant pesto made with mint leaves and toasted pistachios. It is lovely tossed through hot pasta or spooned over roasted vegetables, and a spoonful lifts a plain vegetable soup.
Mumbai's favourite street food made at home: a rich, buttery bhaji of mashed cauliflower, peas, potato, aubergine, carrot and capsicum, cooked with onions, tomatoes and pav bhaji masala, served with butter-toasted buns. This version adds a spicy garlic and tomato sauce on top. Serve with chopped onions and tomatoes on the side.
A family-style vegetarian take on enchiladas: crisp fried maize tortillas dipped in a home-made tomato and red chilli sauce, stacked with a paneer, onion and capsicum filling, topped with cheese and baked until bubbling. Serve hot with chilli sauce. You can use 2 cups ready-made grated paneer instead of home-made.
Soft, fluffy steamed idlis of rice and urad dal, served with a tangy, lightly sweet pigeon pea lentil sambhar full of vegetables: aubergine, drumsticks, bottle gourd and potato, tempered with mustard, fenugreek, curry leaves and kokum. Serve with coconut chutney. The batter is ground the day before and left overnight.
Kanki is broken rice simmered until soft and creamy in water seasoned with a generous whole-spice tempering of cumin, cloves, cinnamon, sesame and curry leaves, with green chilli and ginger. It's a warming Gujarati snack like khichu. Serve hot with a drizzle of oil and a sprinkle of red chilli powder.
Instant dhokri are soft, spongy steamed squares of gram flour and dhokra flour, raised in minutes with fruit salt instead of an overnight ferment. They're finished with a crackling tempering of mustard seeds, sesame and curry leaves. Serve with green and red chutneys. To make dhokra flour, coarsely grind 1 cup long-grain rice with 1 cup bengal gram lentils (chana dal).
Small mushroom caps are filled with a garlicky, spicy breadcrumb and onion paste, dipped in a three-flour batter and fried until golden. They are crisp outside and juicy inside. Serve them hot with chilli sauce.
Sata are rich, flaky rounds made from a ghee dough. Half the dough is cooked with extra ghee until golden and worked back in, which gives them their crumbly, layered texture. Fry them slowly over low heat. For salted sata, add ¾ teaspoon salt to the dough. For sweet sata, dip the fried sata in a thick sugar syrup and sprinkle with almond and pistachio flakes.
Patta gathia are flat, ribbon-like strips of gram flour dough, rolled paper-thin under the palm on a wooden board and fried until crisp. Black pepper and ajwain give them their flavour. They are a classic Gujarati tea-time snack and are great with fried chillies and papaya sambharo.
A colourful Gujarati pawa (poha) of flattened rice with tender sweetcorn, diced potato, peanuts and cashews, tempered with cumin and curry leaves and finished with lemon and plenty of fresh coriander. It's a hearty breakfast or tea-time snack. Serve it hot with green and red chutneys and plain yogurt. Use thick pawa so it holds its shape after soaking.
Jini sev is the fine, thread-thin sev used on bhel, sev puri, ragda pattice and chaat, and in farsan mixes like bhusu. It's gently seasoned with turmeric, white chilli powder and asafoetida. For medium sev, use a disc with slightly bigger holes.
Little broccoli patties bound with gram flour and breadcrumbs, seasoned with garlic, green chilli and cumin, rolled in sesame seeds and pan-fried until golden. They make a light starter or snack. Serve hot with mint and yogurt chutney.
Dahi vada are soft, spongy dumplings of ground urad, moong and black-eyed bean lentils, fried, soaked and then covered in a cool spiced yogurt with cumin, chilli and tamarind chutney. They are a cooling, tangy party dish. Instead of soaking the fried vadas in hot water, you can soak them in thin buttermilk for an hour for an even softer, tangier vada.
Chatako is a festive Gujarati mixed dish: slices of patra (steamed colocasia leaf rolls) tossed with potatoes and fresh green pigeon peas in a whole-spice tempering, then folded into a tangy yogurt masala with coconut, ginger, tomato and coriander, sweet-sour with jaggery and tamarind. Serve hot as a side dish with dinner or at tea-time parties. Ready-made patra from an Indian grocer works too.
The classic comfort dish: elbow macaroni in a smooth, rich cheddar sauce, topped with more cheese and grilled until golden and bubbling. Serve it with a green salad.
Soft, golden bread buns with a surprise inside: choose a cheesy three-pepper and spring onion filling, a spicy peas kachori filling, or buttery mushrooms, or make some of each. They're perfect with soup or for a party table.
Soft, fluffy semolina (rava) idlis made in half an hour, with no grinding or fermenting: the batter is raised with fruit salt. They're topped with a tempering of mustard, cumin, curry leaves, green chilli, fresh coconut and coriander. Serve with green and coconut chutneys.
A golden baked dish of sweetcorn, mashed potato, peas and carrot, spiced with green chilli, ginger and lemon, and tempered with sesame, cumin, curry leaves, cashews and raisins. A ketchup and breadcrumb topping goes crisp in the oven. Serve hot as a snack or with soup.
Gujarati-style samosas: thin, crisp pastry pockets folded into triangles and filled with peas, potato and carrot, sweet, sour and spicy with lemon, sugar, chilli and cinnamon-clove powder. Make the samosa chapaties (pastry) from the recipe in the Basics section. Serve with lemon wedges and green, red and tamarind chutneys.
Batata vada are spiced, sweet-sour potato balls with onion, coriander and cinnamon-clove, dipped in gram flour batter and fried until golden. They're a favourite snack for rainy days and parties. Serve hot with green coriander chutney and tamarind chutney.
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