Nirmala August 28, 2023

1. Thekua :

Thekua or Khajuria or Thikari is a dry sweet from Nepal. It is very popular in Southern Nepal and in Indian regions such as Bihar, Jharkhand and eastern Uttar Pradesh (Purvanchal).Thekua is a revered prasad (offering to god) in the Chhath puja. It has been used as a sweet snack for centuries in these places.The main ingredients of Thekua are wheat flour, chasni (melted sugar)and ghee. Jaggery can sometimes be used as an alternative to sugar. Dough is prepared using these four main ingredients and cardamom can be added to enhance the taste. Dough is deep fried in ghee or vegetable oil till it becomes reddish brown. It is soft when hot but hardens after it cools. It needs no preservatives and it can be stored for several days for eating purpose.Normally there are two variants, the people in North bihar prefers the ones which are harder(Khajuria) and have a longer shelf life, whereas people in Eastern UP prefer it softer(Thekua). People in Nepal prefers both combined. The soft Thekuas are made of refined vegetable oils and have more of a special type of Flour, maida – which is actually roasted Wheat flour.It can be viewed as a Maithil precursor of Western Biscuits or cookies.

2. Khichdi :

Mix of Rice, Dal and several Vegetables; steamed together to give a distinctive taste of different ingredients combined in one dish. It is often topped up with ghee. Khich?i, alternate spellings khichdi, khichri, khichdee, khichadi, khichuri, khichari, kitcheree, kitchree, and many other variants, is a South Asian preparation made from rice and lentils (dal). Khichri is commonly considered to be a comfort food, and was the inspiration for the Anglo-Indian dish kedgeree. Khichri is also thought to be the inspiration for the popular Egyptian dish, Kushari. Khichdi has no relation with the Keralite dish kichadi.

3. Tandoori chicken :

Tandoori chicken is a popular South Asian dish consisting of roasted chicken prepared with yogurt and spices. The name comes from the type of cylindrical clay oven, a tandoor, in which the dish is traditionally prepared.

4. Parwal ki Mithai :

It is made of pointed gourd (botanical name-Trichosanthes dioica). The fruit is scrapped to remove the skin,sliced longitudinally, deseeded and boiled to make it tender and then filled with Khoyya- a preparation made of condensed milk and dry fruits. It is then imbibed with warm sugar syrup. Silver foil may be added after it cools off.

5. Pantua :

Pantua is a local confection of eastern India and Bangladesh. It is a traditional Bengali sweet made of deep-fried balls of semolina, chhana, milk, ghee and sugar syrup. Pantuas range in colour from pale brown to nearly black depending on how long they are fried. The name ledikeni is a rendition of Lady Canning and was first used by confectioner Bhim Nag when he renamed his pantuas specially prepared on the occasion of the birthday of Countess Charlotte Canning, wife of Governor-General Charles Canning.

6. Chaat :

Chaat is a term describing savory snacks, typically served at road-side tracks from stalls or food carts in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. With its origins in Uttar Pradesh, chaat has become immensely popular in the rest of South Asia. The word derives from Hindi c?? (tasting, a delicacy), from c??n? (to lick), from Prakrit ca??ei (to devour with relish, eat noisily).

7. Prawn :

Prawn is a common name, used particularly in Britain and Commonwealth nations, for large swimming crustaceans or shrimp, especially those with commercial significance in the seafood industry. Shrimp that fall in this category often belong to the suborder Dendrobranchiata. In North America, the term is used less frequently, typically for freshwater shrimp.In the United Kingdom prawn is more common on menus than shrimp, while the opposite is the case in the United States. The term prawn also loosely describes any large shrimp, especially those that come 15 (or fewer) to the pound (such as king prawns or jumbo shrimp).