Tal Sankari/ Til Chikki

EVENT: FOODIES_ REDOING OLD POSTS #41

RECIPE: TAL SANKARI/ TIL CHIKKI

Tal Sankari/ Til Chikki, a must have Indian sweet during the Makar Sankranti/ Uttarayan/ Lohri festival. Generally made during the winter season as it provides energy, is nourishing and keeps the body warm.

What is Tal Sankari/ Til Chikki?

Tal Sankari/ Til Chikki is simply a delicious sweet made from two basic ingredients, sesame seeds and either sugar or jaggery. Some add a bit of ghee or oil, some don’t. There are so many variations of this basic tal sankari/ til chikki. One can add coarse nut powder or roasted split chickpeas ( roasted chana dal). Add flavorings like cardamom, nutmeg, rose essence, etc. All depends on how the family enjoys it. Here, I’ve just used sesame seeds, jaggery, a bit of ghee and cardamom powder. Tal Sankari is the Gujarati name for til chikki. It is also known as sesame brittle, tal or til papdi, til patti. The thickness will vary from paper thin to about half an inch in thickness. I still cannot roll it out paper thin as I feel that definitely is an art.

What is Makar Sankranti or Uttarayan?

Makar Sankranti, Lohri and Pongal festivals all come around the same time. Lohri a Punjabi festival is usually on 13th January. Pongal festivities begin from 14th January. All these festivals are related to harvest. Its the beginning of harvest season. Makar Sankranti or Uttarayan as its called in Gujarat is the only festival which follows the solar calendar and falls every year on 14th January.

This festival is celebrated by many states of India for different reasons. Its the beginning of the harvest season, its the end of the inauspicious phase which begins during mid December, its the end of the southeast monsoons. In fact, everyone celebrates this day because it marks the beginning of the transition of the Sun God from the southern  to the northern hemisphere. Many states fly thousands of colourful kites on this day as an oblation to the Sun. During Uttarayan different states make different sweets.

Why is Til Gud or Sesame Seeds and Jaggery important during this festival?

According to the Hindu mythology sesame seeds originate from the drops of sweat that trickled from Lord Vishnu and fell on earth. Also it is believed that the God of Death, Yama blessed sesame seeds and therefore are regarded as the symbol of immortality. It is a tradition in many families to gift sesame seeds and jaggery and wishing them they speak sweet words throughout the year. If one does not make tal sankari/ til chikki then til gud ladoos or balls are made.

THE GROUP FOODIES _ REDOING OLD POSTS

This group was started by Renu, who blogs at Cook with Renu. The whole purpose of this group is to redo old posts with new photos, new write up, whatever one wants to do to make the post better. Most of my posts are about re writing the post in a more structured manner and of course updating the photos. Slowly but surely, going through so many of my old posts. I’m grateful that this group helps me stay focused on a task that needs much attention.

Some Makar Sankranti Recipes

Gulachi Poli or Tilgul Poli– a Maharashtrian speciality. Flatbread stuffed with jaggery and sesame seeds and other ingredients.

Dahi Chura – flat rice and yogurt are mixed to prepare this dish and enjoyed in the state of Bihar.

Til Gud ke ladoo – an easy to make ladoo where you don’t need to make the jaggery into a syrup.

Chocolate Sesame Fudge – sesame and jaggery with chocolate for chocolate lovers.

Nuts and Jaggery Brittle – mix nuts, dried fruit and sesame seeds to make something different for this festival.

Oats and Nuts Ladoo – made with jaggery and loaded with nuts, different seeds and oats.

Tal and Mixed Nuts Ladoo

Renu likes to add sunflower to the Til Gud Papdi she makes.

Ingredients required for Tal Sankari/ Til Chikki:

• Sesame Seeds – I generally use white sesame seeds, but you can add black ones too. Roast the seeds in a wide pan over low heat, till they begin to pop and you get the aroma of roasted sesame seeds. Don’t burn the seeds otherwise they will taste bitter.
• Jaggery – the best jaggery is the soft variety but if you don’t get that, simply grate the jaggery. Nowadays the option of jaggery powder is available. Its easily available in most Indian Stores.
• Ghee – clarified butter. A little is added to the melted jaggery so that the tal sankari or brittle does not become too hard. For vegan version you can easily replace it with olive oil or coconut oil.
• Cardamom Powder – for flavour