"Alle' Chikki/ Ale Pak/ Ginger Toffee" ... monsoon and winter always brings in bouts of cough and cold ... ginger is very good healer and dispeller of phlegm ... fed up of rolling store bought lozenges that literally cuts the tongue; tried my hand today at making my own with jaggery as base ... and Eurekha !!! ... this is simply awesome ... one in mouth and my throat is in silent mode for last one hour ….
** Monsoon and Winter seasons are always hectic with piled up unnecessary load of work, added agony is the cough or cold that you catch on which is somehow inevitable. I have always seen that how much ever you try to avoid it, somehow the viral affect catches on. First it was hubby’s turn and within a few days I gave company and both of us were coughing and we had to take the antibiotic dosage as there was congestion and no one really wants to take a risk with the horrible events that are happening all round coz. of rains. This time the rains have somehow played havoc all round the country and there are floods and water clogging almost all over the country, I think around 7-8 states are the worst affected. Among them are Maharashtra, Kerala, Karnataka, West Bengal, Assam and a few more. Sigh, my home is in total mess with moisture, dirt, molds and whats not, giving a headache as you look on. The trouble is there was some pipeline problem in my area, the caused mixing of muddy water and for almost a month I had the problem of the same. The water issue is totally another one which I would like to blog, as I have collected samples of both the dirty as well as the cleaned and potted water for usage, quite a interesting topic for sure, but will keep it for another day.
** The cough was somehow persistent and this time round I was really fed up of drinking hot water, soups, kashays, turmeric milk, etc. as it was getting added on as extra work. Hubby suggested I buy lozenges to cut short work and I happily did so thinking my problem was solved. I had hardly eaten these in recent years as I had always stuck to my home remedies, and the persistent chewing of the same, was somehow cutting my tongue and my tongue too was somehow getting vague feeling, finally I stopped. In the process I remembered that long back hubby had brought Ale Pak/Ginger burfi sort from stores which was strong and sort of spiced, so thought of asking him to bring home the same. But unfortunately the signal was weak and I could not get through the call, so finally gave up and went into kitchen to finish of my chores. It was then that my eyes fell on the tender ginger purchased and it just struck to me that I could as well do it myself. I did not want to follow the sugar syrup base, so prepared with jaggery and added on my own spices available in my kitchen and it was simply awesome. I made it slightly chewy unlike the burfi type pak we get in stores, so that it could be rolled in mouth for at least 3-4 minutes for the ginger affect to catch on and trust me this is it.
** Here is my simple method of preparing "Alle' Chikki/ Ale Pak/ Ginger Toffee" … My Style …
** Ingredients :
Chikki Gud / Jaggery / Bella : 100 gms.
Tender Ginger / Alle’ / Ale / Adrak / Hasi Shunti : 100 gms
Fennel / Saunf / Badisep Powder : 1 tsp
Cardamom / Ellaich / Yello Powder : 1 tsp
Turmeric / Haldi Powder : ¼ tsp
Black Pepper / Kali Miri Powder : 2-3 tsp
Kala Namak : 1 tsp
Homemade Cow’s Ghee / Gayiche Toop / Tuppa : 1 tblsp
** Wash the tender ginger well, removing all the dirt sticking to it, scrap off the outer skin slightly. If the ginger is tender it goes off easily with a blunt knife. Cut into 1 inch pieces, put it in a electric veggie chopper and further cut it into very fine pieces. If you do not want to use chopper just grate the ginger, you can use any method. Keep this ready aside.
** In a thick bottomed kadai add in the jaggery cut into small pieces. Add in the ghee and about 2 tblsp of water and bring it to boil on medium heat, stirring often, once it comes to full boil, let it simmer for about 2-3 minutes, then add in finely chopped ginger and mix well. Cook this further on medium heat till it starts to thicken.
** Once it thickens add in all the powders mentioned above and mix evenly, taking care to see that there are no lumps of the powders, you must mix it fast or else sometimes it forms into small balls, so be careful. Continue the process of cooking till the mixture leaves the sides slightly. Meanwhile apply ghee to a stainless steel plate/tray and keep it ready.
** Once the mixture reaches somewhat the halwa like consistency remove from heat and put it in one go in the plate. Apply some ghee to the back of a tumbler and pat the surface of the mixture evenly with it to smoothen the mixture into a even layer. Do not make the layer very thick, it should be slightly thinner than the chikki layer.
** Here is a tip of checking the dropping consistency for the chikki : When the mixture starts leaving the sides, remove and place half a spoon of the mixture at the center of a clean ceramic plate. Allow to rest for a minute or two, then tilt the plate to a 45 deg. angle. If the mixture stays put without slipping it is done. You can check out the attached picture collage for proper understanding of the same.
** Allow the "Alle' Chikki/ Ale Pak/ Ginger Toffee" on the plate to cool for 5 minutes. Then with the help of a blunt knife or with dosa spatula make square shaped impressions on the surface and then gently make insertions so that they are cut into squares. Do not remove, but allow to cool completely, then gently lift from plate and put them in a clean air tight stainless steel box and store it.
** "Alle' Chikki/ Ale Pak/ Ginger Toffee" is done and ready to be relished. I loved these chikkis as they are chewy like toffees and you could comfortably roll them in mouth for about 3-4 minutes which imparts the taste of ginger and gives relief to the throat. Do try it out at home and give relief in the best way to your family and friends if they are having cough and cold, it really does give relief.
** Always try to make home remedies a habit with children at home, and also with family members of your home. There is no point in chewing on some chemical based or artificial flavored sweets or syrups for the same. These things do give relief in similar way as that the store bought ones would give. Just add on these too along with your regular medicines for faster relief.
** Caution : Remember not to neglect the same and do consult your family physician and see to it that proper treatment is under taken as these are just reliefs and not complete solutions.
** Important Note : I have made the "Alle' Chikki/ Ale Pak/ Ginger Toffee" spicy, which is apt for elders, for children sake, I think the spice level and ginger level should be reduced a bit. Use your judgement for the same or make 2 different batches, so that optimum benefit is given age wise.
** Note : I have used Cow’s ghee which I prepared at home, you can use readily available ones too. Cow's ghee/milk is always good for health than that of buffalo, so use the same whenever possible. In case of addition to home remedies/treatments it's considered to be better as per Ayurveda, so I suggest you use the same, but if not available then you can use any.
** Note : I have used Chikki Gud/Jaggery, which is freely available in Mumbai/Maharashtra. This jaggery is sticky by nature and gives good and fast results. The one’s we get here are also very clean and the same does not have any dirt in them. So the question of sieving the same does not arise.
However, if chikki gud/jaggery is not available, you can use any other jaggery available in your vicinity. If it is not clean, then you need to cook the same with addition of one cup of water and the minute it melts, sieve it through a fine sieve and then put it back on fire and further cook to bring it to thickening consistency.
** Note : I have used fresh tender ginger as you can notice in the picture, these are soft, sharp and strong in taste and flavor. Tender ginger is available only during monsoon and now it is available in plenty, however, you can use the ginger available in you vicinity too. Just see to it that you peel/scrap off the outer skin of the same if it is dry and then grate it or finely chop for use.
** An Earnest Request : There are many more recipes of different types in the blog. For all my Recipes, use the search option or the label section in the Blog. If you are still not able to find it or have a query, please leave a message in comment section or mail me the same. I will try my best to get back to you as soon as possible. Do try out various types of dishes included in the Blog and Enjoy them with your family and friends and do give me a feedback if possible.
** I am happy to inform you that I have also started a food group for by the name "KONKANI DELICACIES" which is over and year old, with about 19K strong members. It is a pleasure to inform that you will find in the group many more recipes posted by our expert members and you too can share some of your own. The link to the group is posted on the left side of the blog page. Do join us in our culinary journey. I strongly believe in Sharing and always endorse that "Sharing Is Caring" … Thank You ….
Thanks for good recipe.
ReplyDelete