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Panjiri is a North Indian dish which is made from whole-wheat flour fried in
sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...
and
ghee Ghee is a type of clarified butter, originating from India. It is commonly used in India for cooking, as a traditional medicine, and for religious rituals. Description Ghee is typically prepared by simmering butter, which is churned from c ...
, heavily laced with dried fruits and herbal gums. It is eaten by women after giving birth as a nutritional supplement, to promote healing and lactation, or eaten in general in the winters to ward off cold. Its usage is culturally and traditionally meaningful. It is consumed in
North India North India is a loosely defined region consisting of the northern part of India. The dominant geographical features of North India are the Indo-Gangetic Plain and the Himalayas, which demarcate the region from the Tibetan Plateau and Central ...
n states of
Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...
,
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...
,
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern si ...
,
Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
Jammu Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...
,
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peaks ...
,
Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West Be ...
, and
Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
.


Etymology

The term ''panjīrī'' is ultimately from Sanskrit elements ''panch'' (five) and ''jīraka'' (cumin). Panjiri is prepared by roasting wheat flour in
Ghee Ghee is a type of clarified butter, originating from India. It is commonly used in India for cooking, as a traditional medicine, and for religious rituals. Description Ghee is typically prepared by simmering butter, which is churned from c ...
and adding dry fruits and spices like Jeera (
cumin Cumin ( or , or Article title
) (''Cuminum cyminum'') is a
coriander Coriander (;
), Saunth (Dry
Ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices ...
powder) etc.


Other uses

Panjiri is popular across north India, and is often prepared as a Prasad in
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
prayers during Krishna Janamashtami and
Satyanarayan Puja The Satyanarayanã Puja is a religious ritual worship of the Hindu god Vishnu. The puja is described in the ''Skanda Purana'', a medieval era Sanskrit text. According to Madhuri Yadlapati, the Satyanarayana Puja is an archetypal example of how " ...
.


Ingredients

* Atta ( whole wheat flour) or sooji can also be used *
Ghee Ghee is a type of clarified butter, originating from India. It is commonly used in India for cooking, as a traditional medicine, and for religious rituals. Description Ghee is typically prepared by simmering butter, which is churned from c ...
* Chaar magaz (melon seeds) *
Sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...
*
Almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genus ...
* Powdered edible gum crystals (gondh) * Flame-of-the-forest (kamarkas) * Fennel seeds (Saunf) * puffed lotus seeds (makhane) * carom seeds (ajwain) * powdered cardamom seeds (elaichi) * powdered dried ginger powder (saunth) * walnut (akhrot) * Figs (anjeer) * unsalted pistachio nuts (pista) * powdered sugar (boora)


Cooking method

* Heat 500 gm ghee in a heavy bottomed kadai. * Fry all the dry fruits one by one till they turn golden brown, first almonds, then cashew nuts, walnuts, pistachio nuts, lotus seeds, and lastly, melon seeds. Keep them aside. * In the same ghee, fry the kamarkas, and keep them aside as well. * Next, roast the grated coconut and keep it aside. * Now, coarsely grind all the fried dry fruits, except the melon seeds. Mix the dry fruits, roasted coconut and melon seeds together in a large pan and keep aside. Grind the kamarkas into fine powder and keep them aside as well. * Heat the remaining ghee and roast flour over medium heat till the colour of the flour changes to golden brown and the ghee starts separating. * Turn down the flame at this point and sprinkle in powdered gum crystals. Keep stirring the mixture until the crystals puff up and the spluttering stops. * Add the powdered saunth and ajwain to the roasted flour and stir the whole mixture until all the ingredients are well blended. * Turn off the flame. Keep on stirring the mixture for another 5–10 minutes. * Now add the dry fruits, magaz, sugar and kamarkas to the roasted flour and mix well. Transfer the mixture to a large dish or tray and let cool. * Store the mixture in an airtight container.


See also

*
Satyanarayan Puja The Satyanarayanã Puja is a religious ritual worship of the Hindu god Vishnu. The puja is described in the ''Skanda Purana'', a medieval era Sanskrit text. According to Madhuri Yadlapati, the Satyanarayana Puja is an archetypal example of how " ...
* Krishna Janamashtami * North Indian Cuisine *
Indian cuisine Indian cuisine consists of a variety of regional and traditional cuisines native to India. Given the diversity in soil, climate, culture, ethnic groups, and occupations, these cuisines vary substantially and use locally available spices, he ...


References


Panjiri
{{Pakistani dishes Indian desserts Indian cuisine Punjabi cuisine