(A simple, refreshing curry made using a salty Indian snack called ‘Farsan’)

Have you ever noticed the effect of weather on your food cravings? How in summer season we crave for sweet, juicy and cold foods, and how hot, savory dishes comfort us in winters! Then there is another season in India- the monsoon season, which calls for fried food!

I believe one should eat mindfully, but one must not overlook the seasonal cravings too! So, today I intend to share a gravy dish recipe that is a little different than the usual Indian gravy recipes. This recipe uses ‘Farsan’ - a salty Indian snack made primarily from chickpea flour (besan). Farsan is easily available in Indian grocery stores (in other countries too) or our halwais make it too! So one just needs to grab a packet of farsan to make this recipe!

‘Rassa’ means curry, and ‘bhaji’ means sabzi in Marathi language. Thus, this sabzi is called the farsan rassa bhaji.

I use K-pra shevbhaji masala for making this dish, but you can use garam masala instead (see notes below for details).

Ingredients

For the bhaji -

• 2 cup Farsan

• 2 tbsp oil

• 1 big onion (pyaaz)

• 1 medium tomato (tamatar)

• 1-2 garlic cloves

• 1 tbsp roasted peanut powder

• 1 tsp red chili powder

• 4 tsp shev bhaji masala

• 1 tsp sugar

• 4 cups water

• salt as per taste

For the garnish -

• coriander leaves chopped

Method

• Add chopped onion, tomato, garlic cloves in a blender jar and add little water. Blend into a smooth paste. Set this paste aside.

• Heat oil in a pan. When the oil gets hot, add this paste to the oil carefully. Mix well.

• Add red chilli powder, sev bhaji masala, and sauté on medium flame till the oil starts separating from this mixture.

• Add peanuts powder and sauté for a minute. Keep stirring the mixture.

• Add water, salt , and sugar. Stir properly to mix everything well.

• Add the farsan and boil for 1-2 minutes.

• Garnish with coriander leaves.

  FARSAN RASSA BHAJI IS READY TO BE SERVED!!

  SERVE HOT.

Notes -

• You can use 2 tsp of garam masala instead of sev bhaji masala to make this gravy.

• Ideally, this curry should be consumed immediately after it is made, as after sometime, the farsan swells up a lot and becomes soggy.