Indian Flavors Part 2 is here, and today Shayni Foods introduces you to the most famous North Indian Sweet and Savory Dessert known as 'Tilkut'. It is basically prepared on the festival of Makar Sankranti. Makar Sankranti is celebrated as the coming of warmer days and the change of Zodiac sign to Capricorn (Makar), it is celebrated every year on 14th January (some exceptions on 15th January). And, as Makar Sankranti is close, let's learn about the king of this festival Tilkut...
Tilkut is a sweet and savory dish made in North India, it is prepared from pounded seeds of 'Til' (Sesame seeds). Til is the Hindi name of Sesame and Pounding means 'Kutna' in Hindi, hence the name 'Tilkut'. Normally, three types of Tilkuts are available — the refined sugar Tilkut is white in color, the Sakkar Tilkut is made of unrefined sugar and is light brown in color and the Gur Tilkut is made of Jaggery and is dark brown in color. Each of these varieties
have their own flavor. The circular shaped savory is called Tilkut and the
smaller nut-sized ones are called Tillouri. Winter is the period when sugar
cane is harvested. It is also the period when large quantities of Tilkut are
made in many towns and even villages. However, as the demand persists
throughout the year, smaller quantities are made round the year.
Tilkut is very tricky to make, first you have to pound the Sesame nicely so that it kind of melts in your mouth, then it is combined with liquid sugar or Jaggery. The tricky part in Gur Tilkut is to melt the Jaggery, if you do not melt it completely your Tilkut will not hold and after melting the Jaggery, your hands should be fast enough to combine the Sesame and liquid Jaggery before the liquid turns into a solid. That's right, Jaggery doesn't takes a minute longer to solidify.
Tilkut tastes nice only when made with authentic techniques, you can find the recipe anywhere but, mind you the secret ingredient of Tilkut is Love. Almost, every Indian dish has its secret ingredient as Love. So, whenever you make an Indian dish, don't forget to add Love in it. 😋😊
One more thing, Shayni Foods has a room full of Love, and we add it in everything. Come and Enjoy. 😉 Till then HAPPY MAKAR SANKRANTI!!!
