Good Morning Nagaland: Rajasthan Special Snack Recipe by Anita Sethi

Cook: Anita Sethi RECIPE TYPE: snacks CUISINE: Rajasthani SERVES: 4-5 Pitod recipe details: PREP TIME 20 mins COOK TIME 20 mins TOTAL TIME 40 mins INGREDIENTS (measuring cup used, 1 cup = 250 ml) For the Pitod batter: 1 cup besan/gram flour 100 gms¾ cup sour curd/yogurt About 150 gms + 2.25 cups water OR 3 cups sour buttermilk/chaas 1 tsp ginger/adrak + green chili paste About ½ inch ginger & 1 green chili crushed in a mortar-pestle ¼ tsp turmeric powder/haldi ⅔ tsp salt or add as required a pinch of asafoetida/hing For the filling: 2 tbsp fresh grated coconut 2 tbsp chopped coriander leaves/dhania patta For the Pitod tempering/seasoning: 1 tbsp oil 8 to 10 curry leaves/kadi patta 1 tsp mustard seeds/rai2 tsp til 1 green chili/hari mirch, chopped or ½ tsp red chilli powder Pitod- soft, melt in the mouth, spiced and seasoned gram flour rolls, a favorite snack from the Rajasthani cuisine.  INSTRUCTIONS: Preparing the Piod rolls: Take the yogurt in a bowl Add water and stir well till smooth Add ginger-green chili paste, turmeric powder, asafoetida salt If using fresh yogurt, then to add the sourness, Add about ½ tsp of lemon juice Add the gram flour/besan. With a wired whisk, keep on stirring and mixing till all the lumps are dissolved and you get a smooth batter with no lumps. Spread oil on plates or boards or tray. Mix the chopped tamarind and grated coconut then keep it aside. Pour the batter in a sauce pan or a broad frying pan. Switch on the stove top and keep the flame to the lowest then keep on stirring Best to use a wooden spatula or a heat proof silicon spatula. The batter should not be allowed to stick at the bottom. Do a plate test when the batter has thickened well. Spread a few teaspoons of the batter on a greased plate. Let it cool a bit and then begin to roll. (if you are unable to roll, then the batter needs to be cooked more) After a maximum of 20 minutes of cooking, the Pitod batter is ready. If the batter becomes too thick, then it becomes difficult to spread and you don’t get thin layers in the rolls. Pour about ½ to ⅔ cup of batter on a large plate and spread thinly & evenly with a spatula. You have to be quick with the remaining batter too (On Cooling the batter becomes likes blob which becomes difficult to spread.) Allow to cool and then sprinkle the coconut + tamarind mixture sparingly. You can also skip this stuffing part and directly garnish with the coconut and tamarind once you temper the Pitod rolls. Then cut into equal sized strips. Gently roll each strip tightly. Then place them in a serving tray or plate neatly next to eachother. Tempering/seasoning: Heat oil and crackle the mustard seeds. Then add curry leaves, green chilies and fry for a few seconds. When they change color & crackle, pour the hot tempering mixture along with the oil on the Pitod rolls evenly. You can garnish Pitod with some more coconut and coriander leaves, if you prefer. Serve Pitod with coriander chutney or coriander mint chutney.   Settled for more than 21 years in Dimapur, Anita Sethi has no plans to go back to her native state. Anita Sethi is married to a 4th generation descendant of one of the earliest settlers of Dimapur district from Rajasthan who are commonly known as Marwaris. Anita Sethi mother of two loves cooking all kind of vegetarian dishes.