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Elevate your emotions with this yummy Eid recipe, Sheer Khorma

I was wondering of what to try next and since all my recipes were a selection of savouries, I decided to switch to something sweet. So I chose this favourite dessert of ours –Sheer Khorma.

Sheer khorma is a milk based vermicelli pudding made with dry fruits and “Seviya”. It’s a thin vermicelli pasta used to cook mainly sweets. It is a traditional preparation usually made during Eid & every household has its own recipe of this rich preparation.

Here is a version of it that I have been making unchangingly for every Eid. There is no Eid without Sheer Khorma.

INGREDIENTS:

  • Milk-1 litre
  • Ghee-2 tbsp
  • Cardamom Powder-2tsp
  • Almond-1tsp (finely chopped)
  • Cashew Nuts -1tsp (chopped)
  • Pista-1tsp (chopped)
  • Dates-1tsp (chopped)
  • Raisins-2tsp
  • Nylon Vermicelli-1cup
  • Condensed milk-1/2 cup

METHOD:

Heat ghee in a non-stick pan on medium low flame. Add chopped nuts and dates and sauté it for two minutes until the nuts turn light golden in colour. Be very careful while frying the nuts. It’s best to keep it on low flame or you may end up burning it.

Add the nylon vermicelli to the nuts and stir it for a minute. Switch off the flame & transfer this vermicelli-nuts mix to another plate.

Heat the same non-stick pan on medium flame, add milk and let it come to boil. When the milk comes to boil slow down the flame and let the milk simmer for five minutes and in the meantime add cardamom powder to it. Keep stirring the milk in intervals.

You can notice the milk will thicken slightly. Now add the roasted vermicelli and nuts into the milk. Mix it well. The vermicelli will cook in no time and now add condensed milk into it. Make sure you add the condensed milk only after the vermicelli is cooked.  I have added half a tin of condensed milk but you can add according to your sweet tooth. Mix everything well and let it cook for five minutes. The consistency of Sheer Khorma should not be very thick. Switch of the flame. Sheer Khorma is ready to be served and you can garnish it with some rose petals. You can devour this warm or let it cool in the refrigerator and have it chilled.

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Khanna: ‘Keep the sanctity of the cuisine as it is’

As I travelled I realised that the cuisine is changing. Dishes even ‘sambhar’ and ‘rasam change. Andhra-style ‘sambhar’ is very spicy in some places and a little sweet-ish in others…Chef Khanna speaks with Siddhi Jain.

Food is transcultural that has evolved and changed enough over these years. It is important to respect the sanctity of any cuisine, as it is deeply rooted in culture, says Chef Anurudh Khanna, Multi Property Executive Chef at Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi. Having curated a food festival that brings to town culinary treasures from the Tamil city of Tiruchirapalli, Chef Khanna highlights that there are many misconceptions relating to cuisine from Southern Indian states, which make for a rich culinary bouquet in themselves. Chef Khanna speaks on the side-lines of ‘Treasures of Trichy’ food festival which is going on at Westin Gurgaon, New Delhi till September 15. Excerpts:

Could you tell me about the inspiration behind ‘Treasures of Trichy’?

Khanna: While planning a food festival, we were just thinking which cuisine and Indian state to tap into. We looked at the resources in our culinary team at Westin – here someone is from Uttarakhand, from Nepal, southern states, Rajasthan, Bengal – so it’s quite varied. Our resident South Indian chef, Chef Vijaykumar is from Tiruchirapalli, who is with us from 2019. That’s where we thought of putting this cuisine in the front, and making him the main chef for food festival.

There are many variations in what is singularly thought of as ‘South Indian cuisine’. As a chef, what do you have to say about this?

Khanna: I also discovered this, during my last assignment in Bangalore where I traveled to Mangalore, Kerala, and to Andhra. As I travelled I realised that the cuisine is changing. Dishes even ‘sambhar’ and ‘rasam change. Andhra-style ‘sambhar’ is very spicy in some places and a little sweet-ish in others. Not just the palate changes from state to state, but breakfast ‘sambhar’ is different from all-day ‘sambhar’. The Spice level matters a lot. For example, Kannada cuisine is not that spicy, Mangalore cuisine is rich with spices, Andhra cuisine is heavy on chillies but Kerala cuisine is very fragrant.

About the stereotype, yes there are a lot of misconceptions about food among people who are not native to south Indian states or who haven’t travelled much. They think South Indian cuisine is mostly just ‘idli, sambhar, dosa, vada’, and there are a lot of varieties of dosa. But in reality, South Indian cuisine is immense.

Chefs are experimenting with fusion styles, for instance, something like a dosa-flavoured burger. Any opinions?

Khanna: As a chef, I’d say it should not be done. A little twist to the recipe is acceptable but changing the recipe upside-down is not. Food is an element very rooted in culture. You can be just a little bit around culture, adapt but complete 180-degree changes and fusions, are not my food philosophy. Let’s keep the sanctity of the cuisine as it is. It is different from doing multi-grain dosa or ragi dosa, even variations in stuffing is possible.

What’s next, when it comes to food festivals at the Westin?

Khanna: Next would be regional as well. I’d discover some more regional talent from my team first. Maybe I could do a travel flow within Uttar Pradesh, and bring out regional variations among UP dishes.”

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Right platforms for right dishes

The Tamil Nadu-based channel shot to fame providing recipes and cooking lessons, with the group’s six members filming themselves preparing various Chettinad dishes under the open sky…writes N. Lothungbeni Humtsoe

Life without celebrations is inconceivable to most of the communities around the world. Eid Mubarak! Like all festivals, Eid brings with it happiness, excitement and elevating emotions; and of course food! The Eid feast is one of the most important elements of the celebration.

While celebrations entail paying homage to the Prophet and preparing a delectable feast, you can never have enough recipes to pick from. If you’re hosting an Eid celebration this year, we’ve got the right platforms to help you prepare the right dishes. From main course to dessert, find all the recipes you are looking for:

Foodism

The 2019 food tech company that has brought together verticals like a Wholesome Food magazine, a website and an Instagram handle covering from great food to nutrition and more! They have a recipe sharing platform for members to come together and share their love and knowledge of food. It is also a one-stop-shop for food lovers and professionals and the only platform to incentivise content creators (recipes, lifestyle, health, wellness, blogs — both video and posts). Foodism is also coming up with a mobile and web application that allow users to interact and network for business.

Village Cooking Channel

The Tamil Nadu-based channel shot to fame providing recipes and cooking lessons, with the group’s six members filming themselves preparing various Chettinad dishes under the open sky.

They sometimes cook entire multi-course meals in one session. In keeping with tradition, they cook only over firewood and use stone grinders in preparing the pastes and powders. This channel was started by a team of 6 people in 2018 as a timepass. The 75-year-old Periyathambi, who is a former caterer by profession. The USP of the channel is traditional South Indian recipes on agricultural fields, using traditional cooking methods.

Your Food Lab

Chef Sanjyot Keer, founder of Your Food Lab, brings you amazing and delicious recipes. It is the dishes that your family will want second helpings of, and you will not deny their requests. Sanjyot is a talented chef and content creator who began his journey by learning hotel management.

He also worked for Masterchef India season 4 and has worked with some popular chefs in the past. The way he adds his own twist to Indian food but also for the simplicity with which he explains the process; his content is admired by both young and old.

Vahchef — VahRehVah

Sanjay Thumma, the founder of Vahchef — VahRehVah, is a well-known chef who is bringing Indian cuisine back to Europe, Australia, and North America. He has worked hard to establish Indian cuisine as a global phenomenon by building a network of restaurants around the world. He returned to India after giving up his restaurants to pursue his actual passion for cooking, creating videos that he uploads to his YouTube channel, which has over 2 million subscribers. You’ll keep coming back for more of his recipes because they’re so easy to make.

Kanak’s Kitchen

Kanak’s Kitchen is a channel hosted by Kanak Khathuria. She joined YouTube in 2015 and has 1.9 million subscribers. Kanak was one of the top contestants of Masterchef Season 1. Her channel features dishes from all sorts of cuisines. Head over to her channel to get some delectable recipes.

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