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Jwano ko jhol
Carom seed broth
ज्वानोको झोल (jwano ko jhol): thin Nepali carom-seed broth with ghee, cooked for new mothers and cold days
Jwano ko jhol is the soup Nepali families make for a mother in the weeks after a birth, and for anyone in the house who has a cold during the Kathmandu winter. Carom seeds are fried in ghee with a spoon of flour until nutty, then whisked with water, garlic and ginger into a thin, peppery, slightly thyme-like broth that is sipped hot from a bowl or poured over rice. The usual mistake is burning the jwano: it turns bitter in seconds, so take it off the heat as soon as it darkens a shade. Chef's tip: whisk the water in a little at a time, as with gravy, so the flour never forms lumps.
- Total time
- 25 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 1 tbsp jwano (ajwain, carom seeds)
- 4 cloves garlicfinely chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh gingergrated
- 1 tbsp plain flour
- ½ tsp ground turmeric
- 4 ¼ cups hot water
- ¾ tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepperfreshly ground
- ¼ tsp timur (Nepali Sichuan pepper) (optional)crushed
- 1 tbsp fresh coriander (optional)chopped
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Melt 2 tbsp ghee in a saucepan over a medium-low heat. Add 1 tbsp jwano (ajwain, carom seeds) and fry for about 1 minute until fragrant and one shade darker; do not let it go black.
1 minStep 2: Add 4 cloves garlic and 1 tbsp fresh ginger and fry for 1 minute until golden at the edges.
1 minStep 3: Sprinkle in 1 tbsp plain flour and ½ tsp ground turmeric and stir for 2 minutes until the flour smells toasty and turns pale gold.
2 minStep 4: Pour in the hot 4 ¼ cups hot water a ladle at a time, whisking after each addition so no lumps form.
3 minStep 5: Add ¾ tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper and ¼ tsp timur (Nepali Sichuan pepper). Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring now and then, until slightly thickened, like a thin gravy that coats a spoon lightly.
10 minStep 6: Taste, scatter over 1 tbsp fresh coriander and serve hot in bowls or over rice.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 80 kcal
- Protein
- 1 g
- Carbs
- 4 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does jwano ko jhol take?
- About 25 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of ghee?
- Butter, same amount (keep the heat a little lower, butter burns sooner).
- What can I use instead of garlic?
- ½ tsp garlic paste or ⅛ tsp garlic powder per clove.
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