Celebrate Day 4 Of Chhath Puja 2024 With Traditional Sweetness Of Thekua

As we look forward to last day of Chhath Puja 2024, let’s make festivities memorable by preparing a Chaath Puja special sweet kua to offer to Lord Surya, Sun God.

Chhath Puja began on vember 5 and tomorrow I.e. vember 8 will be Day 4, which is last day of festival.

kua is closely associated with Chhath Puja celebrations, and re’s better time to prepare this special recipe than during ongoing festival.

Let’s embrace kua with love.

Ingredients for kua Recipe

• 1.25 cup whole wheat flour - 155 to 160 grams
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds (saunf)
• 1 tablespoon fresh grated coconut or desiccated coconut
• ½ teaspoon green cardamom powder or seeds of 4 to 5 green cardamoms crushed in mortar-pestle, husks removed
• 3 tablespoons Ghee - 25 grams
• ½ cup chopped Jaggery - 85 grams
• ¼ cup water or d as required
• 1.5 cups oil - for deep frying, any neutral-tasting oil

Instructions for making dough

• Take wheat flour, salt, fennel seeds, grated coconut and cardamom powder in a mixing bowl. Mix well and set aside.
• In a small bowl or pan, melt ghee until hot.
• d this hot ghee to dry ingredients and mix with a spoon.
• When mixture becomes warm or cool eugh to handle, n using your fingers mix ghee with flour till you get a brecrumb consistency.
• When you press mixture it should form a lump.
• In a saucepan take jaggery and water.
• Heat until all jaggery melts on medium-low flame.
• d hot jaggery solution in parts to flour and mix with a spoon first.
• Keep on ding in parts and mixing and n begin to bring dough toger and kne lightly.
• Make a firm or semi-soft dough.
• Cover dough with a kitchen towel and rest for 15 minutes.

Shaping

• Later make small balls from dough.
• Lightly flatten dough balls with your palms or with a rolling pin.
• Press flattened discs with a Peda maker, or cookie press or use a toothpick, fork or bamboo skewers to make design patterns.
• Keep covered with a kitchen napkin or kitchen towel.

Deep frying

• Heat 1.5 cups oil in a kai or wok.
• d a small piece of dough to oil. If it comes up grually on top, oil is hot.
• Keep heat to a medium-low and place prepared discs in hot oil.
• When one side is golden, gently turn it over and fry second side.
• Be very careful when turning and do it gently with a dinner spoon or a slotted spoon so that y do t break.
• Fry till golden and crisp. Due to jaggery, se fried cookies have a deeper golden colour.
• Place on kitchen paper towels.
• Fry remaining shaped cookies in batches until crispy and golden. Place fried cookies on kitchen paper towels for any extra oil to be absorbed.
• When cookies cool at room temperature store m in an airtight container.
• Serve kua as a tea-time cookie.

(Recipe credit: vegrecipesofindia.com)