Traditional Festival Recipes using Ultra Appliances
Festivals in Indian culture are not just rituals but a sensory experience complete with color, tradition, and yes, food. In every part of the country, families wait eagerly to make traditional festival recipes that generations of Indian kitchens have lovingly preserved. From desserts like payasam and modaks to snacks like murukku and vada, festive food making is an art and a labor of love.
But these days, time is usually so short for such elaborate preparation. The good news? Old-fashioned doesn’t have to be so time-consuming. Using the right kitchen equipment, you can replicate the aura of traditional dishes quicker, simpler, and with the same sense of authenticity.
What Makes Festival Recipes So Special in Indian Culture?
Every festival in India has some distinctive dishes:
- Diwali is famous for
1) laddoos,
2) halwa, and
3) karanji sweets
- Pongal features warm dishes such as
1) ven pongal and
2) sakkarai pongal
- Ganesh Chaturthi is not complete without
1) modak and
2) kozhukattai
- Onam demands a elaborate sadya with dishes such as
1) avial,
2) payasam, and
3) thoran
- Navratri (North & West India) the most popular healthy dish is
1) Sabudana Khichdi Prepared on fasting days,
2) tapioca pearls cooked with peanuts and potatoes.
These dishes typically require several steps such as soaking, grinding, slow cooking, and steaming. Though the process is sacred to the act of cooking, it can be tiresome particularly when performed completely by hand.
Making Tradition More Convenient - How Ultra Appliances Help
The intention is not to cut corners on tradition, but to keep the process simple without sacrificing the essence of the dish. That’s where Ultra Appliances come into play.
Grinding Made Easy:
Indian festival recipes – consider adai, appam batter, or dough for murukku -start with grinding soaked lentils or grains. Ultra Grind + gold (t) Wet Grinder delivers a consistent, traditional texture without the manual effort.
Perfect Blending & Mixing:
Smoother blending of ingredients is needed while preparing sweets such as coconut burfi or besan laddoo. With the Ultra Metal Range Mixer Grinder, you have a luscious finish that brings out the flavor and the presentation – without lumps or irregular grinding.
Time-saving Pressure Cooking:
For recipes like sambar, pongal, or payasam, the ultra SS 304 triply krono provides even heat distribution, the flavor is retained, and the cooking time is reduced dramatically.
Steaming to Perfection:
Idli, modak, or kozhukattai become soft and fluffy when prepared in the Ultra Diet Steamer, which provides controlled, uniform steaming for perfect results every single time.
Smart Ways to Prepare Festival Recipes
Soak & Grind in Advance – Prepare batter at night using the Ultra Metal range Grinder.
Batch Cooking -Pressure cook lentils and base gravies with the Ultra duracook Pressure Cooker in order to save time for several dishes.
Utilize Steam Efficiently -steamers ultra diet steamers for a variety of things such as modaks and idlis in order to save kitchen time.
Through reimagining how we go about these recipes – with the assistance of the proper appliance -you’ll find that it is easier to conserve tradition as well as your energy.
Recipes For Preparing these recipes in the Smart Way
Diwali Dishes
1.Besan Ladoo
Method
1.Roast the Flour: In a heavy-bottomed nonstick kadai or induction-compatible pan, heat ghee over low heat. Add besan and roast, stirring constantly with a wooden spatula or silicone ladle for 10-12 minutes until the colour darkens and a nutty fragrance appears.
2. Cool the Mixture: Pour into a large mixing bowl and let it cool down slightly, folding occasionally with a spatula.
3.Mix in Sugar : Add cardamom powder, powdered sugar, and nuts. Mix well using hands or a silicone spatula.
4.Shape the Ladoos : Shape warm by hand or with a ladoo shaper. Let it cool on a plate prepared with parchment paper.
B. Sooji Halwa
Method
1.Roast Sooji : In a nonstick kadai, heat ghee and roast semolina on low heat until golden, constantly stirring with a flat ladle.
2. Boil Sugar Syrup : At the same time, in a saucepan or milk boiler, make water and sugar boil on the stovetop or induction cooktop.
3.Combine : Gradually add the syrup to the roasted semolina, quickly stirring with a whisk or silicone spatula.
4.Simmer & Finish : Allow it to cook till thick. Mix cardamom powder and ghee-roasted cashews and raisins in a small tadka pan.
C. Karanji
Method
1.Prepare the Dough : In a bowl, mix flour and ghee, and knead with water to a smooth dough. Cover with a fresh muslin cloth and keep aside to rest.
2. Cook the Filling : Dry roast coconut in a nonstick pan and then mix with sugar and spices.
3.Shape the Karanji : Roll dough in a rolling board and a rolling pin. Cut with a gujiya mold or karanji cutter for neat edges.
4.Deep Fry : Deep fry oil in a deep kadai or fryer. Fry karanjis with a slotted spoon, and drain paper towels on a cooling rack.
Pongal Dishes
A. Ven Pongal
Method
1.Cook Base: Rinse dal and rice in a colander and cook them in an ultra SS 304 triply krono with 3.5 cups of water until they are soft.
2. Prepare Tempering :In a tadka pan, heat the ghee, and add cashews, curry leaves, ginger, cumin, and pepper. Stir using a small ladle.
3. Mix Everything : Add tempering to the cooked dal-rice in an ultra SS 304 triply krono. Mix with a wooden spatula until well mixed.
B. Sakkarai Pongal
Method
1.Cook Dal & Rice: Rinse dal and rice in a colander and cook them in an ultra SS 304 triply krono with 3.5 cups of water until they are soft.
2. Make Jaggery Syrup :In a tadka pan, heat the ghee, and add cashews, curry leaves, ginger, cumin, and pepper. Stir using a small ladle.
3. Mix & Simmer : Add tempering to the cooked dal-rice in an ultra SS 304 triply krono. Mix with a wooden spatula until well mixed.
3.Finish with Ghee & Nuts : Dry roast nuts and raisins in a small nonstick tadka pan and add to the pongal. Combine with a flat spoon or spatula
Ganesh Chaturthi Recipes
A. Ukadiche Modak
Method:
1.Prepare Filling:Use a nonstick frying pan to cook grated coconut with jaggery. Stir using a wooden spoon until thickened.
2. Make Dough:Boil water in a saucepan and add rice flour. Stir with a wooden spatula until clump-free. Cover and rest.
3. Knead & Shape: After heating, knead the dough on a clean surface or kneading board into a smooth ball. Form into modaks either by hand or using a modak mold.
4.Steam : Put modaks in an ultra’s AISI 304 food grade Diet steamer lined with banana leaves or muslin cloth. Steam for 10–12 minutes until shiny.
B. Kozhukattai
Method
1.Make Dough & Filling:Same procedure as Modak. Filling done in a nonstick kadai and dough in a mixing bowl.
2. Shape & Steam:Shape in round or oval forms and steam in an ultra’s AISI 304 food grade Diet steamer, putting the dumplings on a greased steamer plate.
An elaborated Onam Sadya Dishes
A. Avial
Method:
1.Cook Vegetables:In a large pan or saucepan, sauté turmeric and salted chopped veggies. Cover with a lid for equal cooking.
2. Grind Paste :Grind cumin, coconut, and green chilies coarsely in an ultra AISI 304 food-grade top white mixer grinder using a dash of water.
3.Combine & Simmer: Add paste to veggies in the same pan. Stir with a spatula. Simmer briefly.
4.Finish : Add whisked curd and drizzle coconut oil. Stir gently using a ladle
B. Semiya Payasam
Method:
1.Roast Vermicelli:Roast in a nonstick pan with ghee till golden.
2. Boil Milk :GIn a deep saucepan, boil milk on medium flame.
3.Cook Payasam : Add roasted vermicelli and cook until soft. Stir with a balloon whisk
4.Finish with Nuts: Roast nuts in a tadka pan and add to the payasam.
C. Cabbage Thoran
Method:
1.Sauté Base:R Use a nonstick kadai or cast iron pan. Add oil, mustard, urad dal, and curry leaves.
2. Cook Veggies :Add chopped cabbage and salt. Sprinkle water, close with a lid, and cook until mushy.
3.Add Coconut Mix: Add grated coconut blended with green chilies. Sauté in an uncovered pan for a few minutes.
4.Finish with Nuts: Roast nuts in a tadka pan and add to the payasam.
Navratri – Sabudana Khichdi
Method
1.Soak Sabudana:Wash in a fine strainer. Soak in a bowl just until water covers them. Drain thoroughly before use.
2.Prep & Cook:Boil potatoes in a Ultra SS 304 stainless steel triply krono pressure cooker. Crush peanuts using a blender.
3.Cook Khichdi: In a nonstick pan or kadai, heat ghee, sauté cumin, chilies, curry leaves, and potatoes.
4.Add Sabudana: Add sabudana and stir with a silicone spatula until the pearls become translucent.
4.Serve: Garnish with coriander and lemon juice. Serve hot with a ladle or serving spoon.
Bringing Innovation to Your Tradition
At its essence, Indian festive cooking is about tradition, taste, and heritage. With Ultra Appliances by their side, busy working professionals and new-generation home cooks can now comfortably join in on recreating festive favorites. Be it whipping up fresh batter for Diwali delicacies or steaming modaks to perfection during Ganesh Chaturthi, Ultra makes it easy to pay homage to tradition with the help of technology that’s modern.
END CAPTION- Ready to Simplify Your Festival Cooking?
1.Celebrate the richness of tradition with the ease of Ultra – Explore our appliances today.
2 Cook smarter, not harder, this festive season.