This Ramadan is going to be different, perhaps it isn’t your first weird Ramadan. Like me, you are probably stuck mostly inside due to the virus. You also might be on a strict budget until things go back to somewhat normal. This Ramadan is going to be different, but we can still have yummy comfort food, after a day of fasting. Comfort food doesn’t have to mean expensive or fatty.
Just as a disclaimer most of the recipes given are South Asian because I cook South Asian food for Ramadan. As a tradition my husband I will eat snacks for iftar instead of actually eating food. So, this list also includes numerous hand food options, that can be prepared days in advance, frozen, and reheated in the oven or air fryer. Some people don’t eat anything special for iftar, but I for one like to make the month of Ramadan special. So, I do not cook these snacks at any other time of the year. To combat fried food that we Muslims love during this month, I will provide different salads and healthy recipes.
Dates: I know this is not a recipe but one good way to combat overeating, is to break the fast with dates (if you can get them or afford them) or some kind of fruit that’s affordable. Remember Dates are also sunnah, as the Prophet would break his fast with dates. The best thing about this fruit is that it is filling and provides great vitamins! Do not forget to hydrate as well, before you pray. Some people will break the fast with dates and water then pray and others will eat then pray. If you are worried about overeating, then I recommend the two dates and water then go pray. This will give your body time to adjust to the food and water, its important to hydrate!
Recipes
Snacks:
1.Peju or Lentil pakoda– this is my favorite fried food snack! I could literally just eat a bag of these if I could. These are fried lentil dumplings, a Bengali fried staple for Ramadan. One thing I love about this is that it is full of protein and goes well by itself or with puff rice. These little fried fritters are super simple and cheap to make, making them a go-to snack for your iftar.
2. Kala Chana– I debated whether or not this should be considered a snack or not. This dish can be eaten as a main meal, and I have served it as a main meal before. The success of this dish relies on the type of chickpeas used, the best are dried Desi chickpeas, Desi chickpeas are black. If you can not get Desi chickpeas, use just normal dried chickpeas. Canned chickpeas are okay, but you can taste the difference after making it with dried vs canned. This dish can be eaten with any kind of flatbread, rice, or puff rice.
3. Falafel – I do not always make falafel, actually I suck at making it. I do however love falafel, it is one of the most underrated foods of all time. Great falafel is again made with dried chickpeas. Compared to canned chickpeas, you will be able to get more meals and dishes out of dried chickpeas. I also prefer more herby falafel so I provide one with more herbs. This is also best alone, with flatbread, rice, or puff rice.
Meals:
4. Aloo bhurta– do not fret aloo bhurta is simply Bengali mash potatoes, but in my opinion the best mash potatoes in the world. I am being serious my entire family and their German exchange student loves these mash potatoes. They ask for them for every family event. The main flavoring component is mustard oil. All bhurtas are flavored with mustard oil, which really shines through with a complex flavor profile. I understand many of you may not have access to Indian grocery stores to get mustard oil. Mustard powder can be used instead along with a neutral oil, however, mustard oil really is the best for flavoring. You can include fish (tuna) or green beans to the aloo bhurta, but of course, smash the fish up. The name bhurta does refer to “smashed” after all.
5. Chicken and Tuna cutlets – I struggled with a good name for these, most online sources call them cutlets so that’s what I will go with. Tuna cutlets or patties are a combination of can tuna, potato, spices, and binding agents to create yummy cutlets to go with rice, bread, puff rice, or etc. If your not really a fishy person don’t worry this dish does not taste like fish, but if you are a fishy person you can add fish flavor to counter the spices. Chicken cutlets are pretty much the same thing but swap out the canned tuna for canned chicken.
6. Dal – dal literally means lentils, I prefer the term dal because it refers to South Asian style cooking. There are three main classic dals that can be used in this dish toor dal, moong dal, and red lentils. I prefer toor dal because it cooks exactly how I like. Red lentil doesn’t absorb enough liquid and moong dal absorbs a lot of liquid. I will provide recipes for all three of these dals, because most people might only have access to red lentils.
*note* dal does not need a lot of spices. I will generally pressure cook the lentils (you can boil them too) with some salt, a pinch of turmeric, black pepper. Often adding hing, but hing is not sold in the normal American grocery. Then I heat up either butter, ghee, or mustard oil with onion, garlic, and a chili; then add it to the dal. Dal can have a lot of spices or barely any, so this is a dish that you can make your own.
7. Lebanese lentil soup – I prefer Lebanese style lentil soup, it uses red lentils and is drastically different from dal. While both might rely on similar enough spice, the cooking processes and the end results are not similar.
8. Baba ghanoush and begun bhurta – simply smashed eggplant in two different styles. Both can be served with rice or any type of bread (Iraqi is best).
9. Chicken- Chicken is relatively cheap in the United States. I struggled to think of a good universal way you can cook this chicken and be “cheap” but at the same time “festive”. So I decided to include Bengali chicken curry, chicken kabsa, chicken tikka, chicken biryani, and good old fashion grilled chicken American style.
*note* Grilled chicken can be marinated in BBQ sauce, Carolina sauce, and in Italian dressing. I know Italian dressing sounds weird, but trust me it makes some really good grilled chicken.
10. Dolmas – stuffed grape leaves, some prefer them stuffed with rice and others like me like them stuffed with meat. If you do not have grape leaves, which can be found in the Mediterranean section or Arabic section in the store, you can substitute with cabbage leaves.
*note* you do not need to use lamb to stuff your cabbage or grape leaves. I have used ground turkey and beef, without any big differences. The key is the spices, so do not skimp on those.
Salads:
11. The Holy four- I call it the holy four salad because it includes cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, and lettuce. You can simply take off the lettuce add olives and feta, with a simple oil and vinegar dressing and you got a “Mediterranean” Salad. This salad can also include canned chickpeas or numerous types of dressings. It is my go-to for every meal because raw onions actually help to eat hot food. So if I cook an especially hot curry, eating raw onion and cucumbers helps with the heat. Not to mention I just like eating “Mediterranean” salads as my main meal anyway.
12. Fruit Salad – Fruit Salad can mean anything. Here I mean a variety of fruit, cut up and mixed together. It is best to get fruit that’s in season and to squeeze a lemon into the salad to prevent browning. Some people may add cool whip or other sauces, I prefer just the fruit, but you can get fancier if you like.