Asoka halwa| ashoka halwa is a traditional recipe of Thiruvaiyaru, a small town in Tamilnadu, South India. It is generally served in Tamil brahmin weddings, on the day of the wedding during breakfast. In my mom’s side everyone is a huge fan of asoka halwa but it it quite surprising that no one knows how to make asoka halwa. When i was in trichy this July for my niece wedding, i asked all the elders at home regarding the recipe but none of them replied positively. Last month during Navaratri, while i was casually talking to my friend Shriprada’s mom, i asked her whether she know the recipe of asoka halwa. She immediately replied that it is one of her signature dish and passed on the recipe with perfect measurements. I tried it out during navaratri itself and it turned out very well and it is quite easy too. I made this last week for my skype class students and it was a super hit among them. Try this easy traditional thiruvaiyaru asoka halwa for this diwali . Check out my full collection of deepavali recipes . Check out my
Preparation Time : 10 mins | Cooking Time : 25 Mins | Serves: 6-7
Yellow moong dal| paasi paruppu 1 portion* Wheat flour | Godhumai maavu 1 portion Ghee 1 and 1/2 portion Sugar 3 portion Orange food colour a pinch Saffron a pinch (optional) Cardamom powder a pinch Cashew nuts few *I used a small cup which holds a liquid of 50 ml.
Video of asoka halwa
Method:
- Dry roast the moong dal for 2 minutes in a pan and 4 portions of water.
- Pressure cook this for 5-6 whistles.
- When it is slightly warm, pulse this in a mixie. This step is important and gives a nice texture to the halwa.
- Keep it aside.
- In a heavy bottomed pan add all the ghee and roast the cashew nuts.
- When the cashew nuts start browning, add in the wheat flour and roast it in a small flame.
- When it emits a nice aroma keep this aside.
- In a pan combine the moong dal and sugar together and in few minutes you will see the sugar getting melted .
- Now take this out from flame and bring back the other pan in which we roasted the wheat flour.
- Add this moong dal sugar mixture to the this and mix well.
- Add the food colour to this now. If adding kesari powder mix this in little water and add, to ensure even mixing.
- Add cardamom powder and saffron(if adding) to this and mix well.
- This will come to a whole mass in a minute and starts leaving the pan.
- The video which i have posted will clearly explain that.
- If you want add 1 tsp of ghee to this at the end to get a glossy texture of the halwa.
- Serve this hot.
- This asoka halwa will stay good for 2 days if kept in the refrigerator. Heat this in a microwave or place it in a bowl of hot water (keep in a container) .
- While roasting the wheat flour ensure that it should not get burnt.
- Grind the moong dal once it is cooked, this will give a nice smooth texture to the halwa.
- Sugar you can reduce a bit, may be 2.5 portions too.
