Panjiri recipe, an Indian sweet made with whole wheat flour & dry fruits offered as prasad and served to new mothers after delivery
Panjiri is a traditional Indian whole wheat flour or atta based sweet prepared in the Northern states of India especially Punjab. It is considered a fasting food and a must make prasad for festivals like janmashtami or while performing satyanarayana pooja. It is very popular in Pakistan too and is called Hyderabadi panjeeri. This popular winter special punjabi panjiri (also called dabra) is made with pure desi ghee aka clarified butter and a treasured gem among Indian sweets or mithai.
panjiri
There are many variations to the basic panjiri recipe. Dry fruit panjiri, dhaniya panjiri, methi panjiri, panjeeri using only semolina are also popular among home cooks. Each home cook has his or her own style of making panjiri. The panjiri ingrdients usually include whole wheat flour or aata, sugar, nuts like almonds, pistachios, green cardamom and desi ghee. The authentic panjiri calls for a generous amount of ghee and the texture is almost like wet sand due to the use of a lot of ghee. I have reduced the amount of ghee so the picture of panjiri reflects a loose powdery texture. And I must mention that the whole home is filled with an irresistible aroma while roasting the whole wheat flour or atta in ghee.
panjiri ingredients – aate ki panjiri preparation
This nutritious dry fruit mix which is a Punjabi style panjiri for new mothers is served along with warm milk after delivery as it provides the necessary nutrients to help recoup and regain strength. Health benefits of panjiri after delivery are tremendous. This ayurvedic nutritional supplement has warming properties, aids digestion and increases lactation in lactating mothers after delivery. Panjeeri recipe for new mothers is laced with spices like dry ginger or saunth, fennel seeds, black pepper corns, poppy seeds, edible gum or gond and ajwain.
Kids are served whole wheat panjiri with warm milk to nourish and warm their bodies during the winter months. If you want to serve this tasty sweet dry fruits laden mix to kids, do not add edible gum or gond and spices like black pepper corns and ginger powder as they increase body heat. Just flavor with fennel seeds and cardamom powder and serve it with warm milk to your kids. It makes for a great tasting healthy nutritional drink for kids. I made a jar full of panjeeri to see us through the winter months. Panjiri has a long shelf life of at least 45 days. You can refrigerate this nutrient rich mix for longer shelf life.
panjiri prasad
Many home cooks add roasted and ground makhana or lotus seeds and magaz or melon seeds too. A Gujarati friend’s mother would add roasted makhana and dried coconut to the basic panjiri and must tell you that it was one of the best tasting panjiri I ever had.
Do add this authentic panjiri prasad recipe to your list of Janmashtami naivedhyam recipes and make sure to use desi ghee and dry fruits making it a rich, special offering to Lord Krishna. If you are short of time and cannot make homemade panjiri, you can always buy a box of bikanervala panjeeri laddoo but nothing to beat the aromatic homemade flavor as the panjiri ingredients are fresh and well roasted in desi ghee. 🙂
panjeeri
Learn how to make panjiri aka panjeeri recipe
