Yaji

Yaji is a renowned kashmiri snack made from rice flour.  It has a great significance in our religion. Yaji are prepared on vahrath.  On this day people take a bath using green amaranth leaves in place of soap,offer yaji to God as bhog. Then this prasad is eaten with a belief that stomach related all problems will be eradicated. This snack is very easy to prepare. Follow these simple steps if you are interested to enjoy your cup of tea with this snack.



Ingredients

1. 1 kg chawal ka aata (rice flour).
2. 1 table spoon salt.
3. 1/4 kg akhrot (walnuts).
4. 1 table spoon zeera (cumin seeds).
5. 1 table spoon ajwain (carom seeds).
6. 300 ml mustard / refined oil.

Method

1. Boil akhrot in water for 1 minute, drain off the water and wash them with fresh water. Add salt and two cups of water and mix the contents properly
2. Mix zeera and ajwain in flour evenly and knead it with the mixture of walnut and salt till soft dough is formed (mix more water if needed).
3. Pick a big chunk of dough (200g), make it round between the palms and mould it into the shape of a cup (yaji). Similarly make more yaji in the same manner and put them aside in a basin.
4. Now heat the oil in a deep frying pan and start frying them (2-3 at a time) on a medium flame till brown.
5. Serve them hot or cool with tea.

Note Kashmiri authentic yajis are prepared in an earthenware patila or brass patila duly electroplated. One ladle of mustard oil is heated in patila and yajis to be cooked are placed one above the other in the form of a heap on a low flame and are covered with a compact lid.  The yajis are cooked with the steam and it takes about 1/2 an hour to cook. The yajis are to be put upside down once while cooking  in order to mix with oil and avoid burning.