Dhaniya Panjiri is one of the favorite dishes of Lord Krishna that is prepared on the day of Janmashtami and offered to Kanhaji as Bhog (offering).
It is believed that Dhaniya Panjiri is loved by the Lord and hence many people prefer breaking their day long fast by eating Dhaniya Panjiri. This day of birth of Lord Krishna is celebrated in the entire country with much fun, frolic and excitement. A whole gamut of dishes is prepared on this day and offered to little Kanha and Panjiri in particular is an important preparation in northern India.
Panjiri is typically prepared with wheat flour and other ingredients like nuts, lotus seeds and edible gum and is prepared as a Prasad on Satya Narayan Pooja. Since edible gum is an important ingredient in Panjiri, it is also made for new mothers as they are more vulnerable after pregnancy and must gain strength and nourishment. Wheat flour cannot be consumed during fasting and hence it gets replaced with grounded Coriander seeds powder.
I obtained this recipe from our Badi Amma (Pranay’s Tayiji) who still stays in a small village of Uttar Pradesh and despite of her old age (she is septuagenarian) follows her customs and traditions while celebrating these festivals. She narrated me over a phone call how she would celebrate this festival in her heyday. The female members of every family of the village would come together in the Krishna temple and sing and rejoice making Dhaniya Panjiri as a Prasad for the devotees. I could sense the excitement in her voice as she narrated the entire episode.
It is best to keep somethings true to their soul like this recipe so I have kept the recipe unaltered and it is exactly as I have received it from my Badi Amma.
Make this authentic and delicious Dhaniya Panjiri which is high on taste and nutrition both. Celebrate this Janmashtami with this traditional Panjiri and share your feedback with us in comments section below.
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- ½ cup=100 gms Whole Coriander Seeds
- 2 tbsp Chrinoji/Charoli
- ¼ th cup=50gms Edible Gum (Dink/Gondh)
- ½ Cup=15=20 gms Lotus Seeds
- ¼th cup=60 gms Sugar
- ¼th cup=40 gms Cashewnuts
- ¼th cup=40 gms Almonds
- ¾th Cup=70 gms grated dry coconut
- 4-5 Green Cardamom
- Ghee
- Heat 2-3 tbsp Ghee in a Pan. Add Edible Gum in this hot Ghee. Edible Gum (Gondh) starts to puff up when fried and it imparts a wonderful flavor and a stickiness to a dish. Gondh is added in many dishes. Do check out our Belgavi Kunda recipe-one of the finest dessert that makes use of Edible gum
- Notice how the Edible Gum (Gondh) puffs up on frying (1-2 mins). Remove from Pan.
- Add 1-2 tsp Ghee in the pan and fry Lotus Seeds. We are using ½ cup lotus seeds. If you like lotus seeds, you can increase its quantity in this recipe. Fry until it becomes slightly brown in color and crisp in texture. In 2.5 mins Lotus Seeds become brown in color and crisp. Remove from Pan.
- Similarly, add 1-2 tsp Ghee and fry Almonds, Cashewnuts, Charoli, Green Cardamom one by one in the pan. Now, we will roast dry Coriander Seeds in the Pan
- Add 1-2 tbsp Ghee in the Pan. Add Coriander Seeds and fry on low heat. In about 5-6 mins, Coriander Seeds are well roasted-it changes its color and a pleasant aroma emanates from it. Remove from Pan.
- Now, finally we will roast dry coconut. I am not using any more Ghee. We will roast until it becomes just crisp. Do not brown it. Roast for 1 min. Remove from Pan.
- Allow all the roasted ingredients to cool down and then will we grind it one by one. Meanwhile, let's grind Sugar.
- Transfer Sugar in a grinder jar and make a fine powder. You can also use store-bought powdered sugar in this recipe. Now, we will grind remaining ingredients into a coarse powder one by one.
- We have taken a large plate and all the powdered ingredients- Fine Sugar Powder, coarse Edible Gum, coarse nuts, coarse Lotus Seeds, coarse Coriander Seeds and roasted dry coconuts.
- Lets mix all the ingredients. Dhaniya Panjiri is now ready
Click to watch recipe video
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