The celebration of any festival is incomplete without food. Likewise, holi is all about getting immersed in colours and treating yourself to some delicious holi special food. We are here to make your holi joyful with some mouthwatering traditional cuisines to your holi food menu. So,let your friends and family complement your cooking skills and feel special with the smiles they have on their faces.
Got guests at home or confused about what’s special to add to your holi party menu? Well, we have a solution for all! In this blog, we have curated a list of some traditional cuisines that will make your 2025 holi extra special.
5 Traditional Cuisine a Must Try for Holi!
Enjoy your holi by making special traditional cuisines at your home. Here are recipes of some popular holi food items from different parts of India
1. Dahi Bhalla
Time Required: 60 mins
Serves: 20
Ingredients Required for Dahi Bhalla
- 1 cup Urad Dal
- ¼ cup Water, required for grinding Dal
- 1tsp Cumin seeds
- 2tsp of chopped Ginger
- 2tsp chopped Green chilli
- Salt
- Oil( used normally) for frying
- 2 cups of Curd
- 5 tbsp of Sugar
- 1 cup Tamarind
- 5 cups of Water for chutney
- 1½ tsp Chilli powder
- 1 tbsp Roasted Cumin Powder
- Handful of sliced Grapes
- Handful of sliced bananas
- 1 tsp Black salt
- 1 tbsp of Melon Seeds
- Mint Chutney – ¼ cup
- Pomegranate – ½ cup
- A pinch of Chaat masala
- Coriander sprigs
Process
How to Prepare Bhalla:
- Soak urad dal for 4 hours or overnight.
- Grind with cold water into a fluffy paste.
- Beat the batter for 10 minutes, then add cumin, ginger, green chilies, and salt.
- Fry small balls of the batter in hot oil until golden brown.
- Soak the fried bhallas in lukewarm salted water for 25 minutes.
How to Prepare Tamarind Chutney
- Boil tamarind, water, chili powder, sugar, roasted cumin powder, salt, and black salt for 20 minutes.
- Strain, cool, and add grapes, banana, and melon seeds.
Preparations for Curd Mixture:
- Mix curd, sugar, and salt; whisk until sugar dissolves.
Assemble:
- Squeeze water from the bhallas, break them lightly.
- Place in a bowl and top with roasted cumin, sweet curd, tamarind chutney, mint chutney, pomegranate seeds, and coriander leaves.
- Serve it chilled.
2. Gujiya
Time required: 40 minutes
Serves: 20
Ingredients Required
For Gujiya Dough
- 2 tbsp of all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup desi ghee
- Salt
- Frying oil
For Stuffing
- 1 cup of grated khoya
- 3 tbsp of dried coconut
- 4 tbsp of fine sugar
- half tsp of Cardamom powder
- ¼ tsp of Jaiphal powder
- ¼ tsp of Javitri powder
- 1 tbsp of chopped Almonds
- 1 tbsp of chopped Pistachios
Reciepe to Make Gujiya at Home
- Prepare the filling: Cook grated khoya in a pan on low heat until light brown, then set aside.
- Make Dough: Rub maida, ghee, and salt until crumbly. Add water and knead into the dough. Rest for 15 minutes.
- Shape Gujjia: Roll out the dough to 3mm thickness. Cut into discs. Place filling in the center, brush edges with water, fold into a half-moon shape, and seal with a fork.
- Fry Gujjia: Heat oil in a pan. Deep fry gujjias on low flame until golden brown.
- Cool & Serve: Let gujjias cool before serving.
3. Matar Kachori
Preparation time– 10-15 minutes
Cooking time– 35-40 minutes
Serves– 10-12 kachori
List of Ingredients for Matar Kachori
For Dough
- 500 g Refined flour
- Salt
- 4 tbsp of Oil or as required
- 280-300 ml of Water
For Filling
- 1 tsp of Cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp of Coriander seeds
- 1 tsp of fennel seeds
- ½ tsp of Black peppercorns
- 3 Green chilli
- 2 inches of ginger
- Handful of fresh coriander
- 2 tbsp of ghee
- 300 gms of green peas
- ¼ tsp of Asafoetida
For Spice Mix
- Green Chilli paste
- Salt
- Pinch of sugar
- ¼ tsp of carom seeds
- 1 tsp dry mango powder
How to Prepare Holi Special Matar Kachori at Home?
Dough Preparation:
- Mix refined flour, salt, carom seeds, and ghee in a bowl.
- Add water and knead into a smooth, soft dough.
- Form a dough ball, grease it with oil, cover it with a damp cloth, and rest it for 2 hours.
Masala Preparation:
- Dry roast cumin, coriander, fennel seeds, and black pepper until fragrant. Grind into a coarse powder.
- Grind green chili, ginger, and coriander into a coarse paste.
- Heat ghee in a pan, add peas, cook for 1-2 minutes, then cover and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Add asafoetida, spice mix, green paste, salt, sugar, carom seeds, and dry mango powder. Mash the peas and adjust the seasoning. Cool the filling.
Kachori Preparation:
- Take a dough portion, shape it into a cup, add filling, and seal.
- Flatten into a thick disc.
- Shape the remaining kachoris and cover them with a damp cloth.
- Heat oil, and fry kachoris until golden and crisp. Drain excess oil.
Now you can serve it hot with sweet tamarind and green chutney
4. Puran Poli
Ingredients Required
For the Filling (Puran):
- 1 cup chana dal
- 1 cup of grated jaggery
- 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
- 1 tbsp ghee
- A pinch of saffron strands (optional)
For the Dough:
- 2 cups of whole wheat flour
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder (optional)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp ghee
- Water (as needed)
How to Make Holi Special Puran Poli
- To prepare the Dough, mix flour, salt, turmeric, and ghee. Add water and knead into a smooth dough. Now keep it to rest for 30 mins.
- To prepare the Filling, cook chana dal until soft. Mash it, then cook with jaggery and ghee until thick.
- Add cardamom powder and let it cool.
- To Shape and Cook roll out the dough, place filling inside, seal and roll again. Cook on a hot griddle with ghee until golden brown on both sides.
- Your puran poli is ready; enjoy it with family and friends
5. Malpua
Preparation Time: 10 minutes (30 minutes resting)
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients Required
For Malpua:-
- 1 cup Mawa, crumbled
- ½ cup Curd
- ½ Cup Refined Flour
- ½ cup Milk
- 1 tsp Fennel Seeds
- 4-5 nos Black Peppercorn
- ½ tsp Baking Soda
- Ghee, for Deep frying
For Sugar Syrup:-
- 1 Cup Sugar
- ½ Cup Water
- 1 tsp Rose water (Optional)
- 2-3 Saffron Strands
For Garnish:-
- Rabdi
- 2 tbsp Pistachios, soaked, skin removed, sliced
- Silver varq
- Cardamom powder
- A Few Dry/ Fresh Rose petals
- Mint Sprig
How to Make Malpua at Home?
- Mix khoya/mawa and curd.
- Add flour and milk and make a smooth batter.
- Crush black peppercorns and fennel and add to the batter.
- Mix in baking soda and rest the batter for 30 minutes.
- Boil sugar and water until sugar dissolves.
- Simmer to one-thread consistency.
- Add saffron and rose water. Keep warm.
- Heat ghee in a kadai.
- Pour batter into hot ghee and fry until golden brown on both sides.
- Soak fried malpuas in syrup for 2-4 minutes.
- Place malpuas on rabdi.
- Garnish with pistachios, silver varq, cardamom powder, rose petals, and mint sprig.
Now, serve it hot!
Conclusion
Make your holi special by adding these 5 traditional holi special foods- Gujiya, dahi bhalle, puran poli, matar kachori and Mal pua. Any holi meal is incomplete without thandai. So, complement your meal with holi special beverages like thandai. This holi share a moment of laughter, joy and food with your family. Double your celebration by trying these mouthwatering holi special foods! Wish you a Happy holi.
