• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Cooking 4 all Seasons logo

  • Recipe Index
  • About
  • Navaratri Special
  • Our other Website: Spice your Life!
  • Nav Social Menu

menu icon
go to homepage
search icon
Homepage link
  • Recipes ~ Indian and International
  • Navaratri / Navratri – Special
  • ×

    Home » Vegetarian Side Dishes » Chambray, Til ko Alu and Pakku ~ what - a thali from Sikkim!

    Chambray, Til ko Alu and Pakku ~ what - a thali from Sikkim!

    Published: Jun 13, 2008 · Modified: Oct 16, 2020 by Srivalli · 22 Comments

    Sharing is caring!

    1 shares
    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    It's such a wonder always. Being part of a country, which is home to many cultures, to people who speak so many different languages, it's hard to be familiar with all! So taking part in the Regional Cuisines of India, is such a wonderful opportunity to learn about different cultures, different cuisines. You may never actually visit that place, but cooking something common in that place, sure gets you a feeling of knowing something about them!

    I haven't traveled much through North India, except a couple of times to Calcutta, and both times had a great time. But I don't think I would ever get an opportunity to visit other states like Sikkim or Nagaland. So when my dear friend Bhags announced North East India as the cuisine we got to cook this month, I was left clueless. Of course, she was kind enough to give some links. But as usual, this and that kept me quite busy until the very last moment! In fact, I was alerting hubby dear to be ready for a feast on North Eastern Cuisine. Still, I was so very concerned when to actually get down doing it.

    Hubby dear finally came to the rescue. He said he would want to have those lovely Momos, he remembered eating while he was in Delhi. Though the steamed Momos famous, he preferred the deep-fried ones.  I finally nailed Sikkim to be the cuisine I wanted to try. Actually, all other things sounded so complicated or something not available locally! For all the potato disliker I claim to be, for all RCIs, I end up making something with Aloo. With just 3 days to go, I couldn't postpone it any longer. I decided on a Meat dish with Rice and Aloo.


    When I checked I had only Keema, so it was to be Keema curry. Of course, I hope nobody is going to fly down from Sikkim to show draggers at me, for changing their authentic recipes. I marched home with the recipe and hoped my pantry will have all the things needed. Rice was quite simple and Aloo was wonderful. This was the first time I was eating Sesame powder in a vegetable. We always use Sesame in Pulihora or Sweets or Savories. Aloo emerged as a delicious darling all decked up in Til powder!

    Only I encountered a disaster with the keema curry. It was to cook on slow for an hour. I knew it wouldn't take that long, so was having an eye on that. But as luck would have it, my twins decided it was their potty time. And the rest is history! What was supposed to be a gravy, ended up charred to its base and I had a sukka keema on hand. Hubby dear didn't complain but I was feeling awful! He said it tasted great, so the next time I am going to have both eyes on that!

    Chambray ~ Fry-Cooked Rice

    Basmati Rice - 200 gms (1 cup)
    Cinnamon - 1/2 inch
    Turmeric powder a pinch
    Salt to taste
    Bay leaf - 1
    Ghee - 2 tsp
    Black Cumin Seed - 1/4 tsp
    Water - 1 & 1/2 cup

    Method to prepare:

    Wash and soak rice with bay leaves and cinnamon for 15 min.

    Heat ghee in a non-stick wok, add the cumin seeds, let it splutter. Then add the rice without the water. Fry for 2 mins in sim.

    Then add the turmeric and salt. Mix well and add water. Cover with lid and cook in sim for 10 mins or till the rice is cooked.

    Chambray is eaten with Til ko alu.

    Til ko Alu ~ Potatoes with Roasted Sesame Powder.

    This is the first time I am cooking with roasted Sesame seeds. It gave a really yummy taste to the roasted potatoes. The recipe calls for boiled potatoes. But since I was using just two medium potatoes, I pan-roasted them with the onions. Finally, it gave excellent taste!

    Potato - 2 medium
    Onion - 1 sliced
    Green chili - 4 sliced into small pieces
    Sesame seeds (Til) - 10 g
    Salt to taste
    Oil - 1 tsp

    Method to prepare:

    Roast the sesame seeds in the pan in sim. Once it's roasted, remove and grind to a smooth powder once it's cool.

    Peel the skin of the potatoes and soak in water.

    In the same pan, heat oil. Add chilies and onions. Sauté the onions till brown.

    Then add the cubed potatoes. Simmer and add a spoon of water. Cover and let it get cooked. After 5 mins, add the roasted til powder. Mix well and again cover it covered.

    This gets cooked in about 10 - 15 mins.

    This was a good combination with the rice, though you may find it a little dry. So ensure you add about 2 spoons of water while it's getting cooked.

    Pakku ~ Mutton Keema Curry (oops Dry keema)

    This curry was without any chili powder, so I added it. I obviously can't expect hubby dear to eat without that!

    Mutton Keema - 250 gms

    Marinating paste:

    Onion - 1 medium
    Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
    Dry Coriander - 1 tsp
    Chilli powder - 1/2 tsp (my addition)
    Ginger garlic paste 1/2 tsp
    Cloves - 2
    Cardamom - 1
    Cinnamon - 1/2 inch
    Nutmeg powder - 1/4 tsp
    Turmeric powder a pinch
    Salt to taste

    Method to prepare:

    Wash and drain the keema.

    Make a paste of all the ingredients. Then mix it with Preparation: Marinate mutton pieces with the paste, add salt and turmeric powder, Chilli powder, and keep for 20 min.

    Heat a pan with oil and add the marinade and cook it covered, till it's done.

    Recipe

    Print Pin
    No ratings yet

    Chambray, Til ko Alu and Pakku ~ what - a thali from Sikkim!

    Course Main Dish - Dry Sautes
    Cuisine Sikkim
    By Diet Non Vegetarian
    Dish Type Dry Side Dishes, Mutton Dishes
    Author Srivalli
    Tried this recipe?Mention @cooking4all or tag #cooking4all!

    More Vegetarian Side Dishes

    • Festival Vegetable Side dishes
      Quick and Easy Dry Vegetarian Recipes for Festivals
    • Chilli Paneer Gravy
      Chilli Paneer Gravy ~ Restaurant Style Recipe
    • Zero Oil Kandhari Aloo
      Zero Oil Kandhari Aloo ~ No Oil Side Dish for Roti
    • Purattasi Sani Thaligai
      Purattasi Sani Thaligai | Purattasi Padayal Recipes | Shanivaralu Panduga

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. kamala says

      June 13, 2008 at 1:15 pm

      Wow...This is awesome Valli.Everything looks so mouthwatering.Great entry!!!

      Reply
    2. Swati Raman Garg says

      June 13, 2008 at 3:26 pm

      wow wow sri.. even iam a potato disliker but i like spiced up ones... and ur platter looks good..

      i agree to you it was only because of this RCI i made momos

      Reply
    3. Arundathi says

      June 13, 2008 at 4:10 pm

      wow - valli - a whole thali! that's so cool! the aloo looks superb!

      Reply
    4. Cham says

      June 13, 2008 at 4:49 pm

      I love the keema, great that u added chili 🙂 Love the thali 🙂

      Reply
    5. Jayashree says

      June 13, 2008 at 12:43 pm

      The aloo curry sounds like the perfect accompaniment for that simple, lightly spiced rice....

      Reply
    6. Vani says

      June 13, 2008 at 7:04 pm

      The thali looks wonderful, Sri! So true that thanks to RCI, we get to learn more about other states in India. Kudos to you cooking all these yummy things while managing two small kids!

      Reply
    7. Sharmila says

      June 13, 2008 at 1:42 pm

      Thali looks good.Good of you to add the info on food from Sikkim .. now we can think beyond momos.Good post.

      Reply
    8. Happy cook says

      June 13, 2008 at 1:45 pm

      Love the whole plate, i would like tp have that potato fry with seasmseeds.
      I think i will give it a miss this time RCI as there is only 2 more days to go and still i have not decided to make anything.

      Reply
    9. Sukanya Ramkumar says

      June 13, 2008 at 7:28 pm

      Hi....
      This is a nice plate of YUMMY food. Looks so delish!. Nice pictures....

      Reply
    10. Madhavi says

      June 13, 2008 at 7:43 pm

      Til aloo sounds awesome, thali looks great, mouthwatering!!!

      Reply
    11. Kalai says

      June 13, 2008 at 7:58 pm

      Potato fry with sesame seeds sounds fabulous, Valli! The whole thali looks delicious. 🙂

      Reply
    12. Bhags says

      June 13, 2008 at 9:13 pm

      this thalli from sikkim is all wonderful....well kudos to you girl for this for the effort....:)

      Reply
    13. meeso says

      June 13, 2008 at 9:46 pm

      Well, the food looks awesome, even if the meat was a lil charred (that has happened to me so many times) but It's always nice to have somebody supportive that always encourages no matter what 🙂

      Reply
    14. Deepa says

      June 13, 2008 at 10:24 pm

      How exciting to hear about a state whose cuisine has never entered my life before...! I love your recipes and your enthusiasm - very infectious. Also, this sikkim stuff reminded me of the recent book by Kiran Desai - The Inhertance of Loss. LOVELY book. The book also makes forays into the food of NE India, in very interesting ways...-Deepa (Austin, TX)

      Reply
    15. Asha says

      June 13, 2008 at 5:43 pm

      Cool! Finally, you came out with whole Thali, looks good Sri.
      If anybody shows daggers, give me a call, I will slay them before they get to you! Hahaha!

      Reply
    16. Suma Rajesh says

      June 14, 2008 at 1:30 am

      luved the colour of alu curry...nice effort..

      Reply
    17. Medhaa says

      June 14, 2008 at 2:46 am

      The plate looks delicious even if the meat was charred a bit I am sure it tasted great.

      Reply
    18. Sandeepa says

      June 13, 2008 at 10:53 pm

      The aloo curry with til sounds good, though I too have never used "til" in my cooking. What about the momo ? Did you make it ? I love those

      Reply
    19. jayasree says

      June 14, 2008 at 5:21 am

      Thats one wonderful thali from Sikkim. Hats off to ur enthusiasm.

      Reply
    20. sowmya says

      June 14, 2008 at 6:43 am

      nice thali...everthing looks delicious..especially the alu subji

      Reply
    21. Vcuisine says

      June 14, 2008 at 8:50 am

      Very interesting post Valli. Happy to see your interest. Viji

      Reply
    22. Bharti Khemani says

      June 14, 2008 at 7:28 pm

      Thanks for leaving your comment on my blog. I have lurked many a time here and have really been looking forward to participating in your roti mela. Hopefully soon!
      I agree that trying out food from different parts of the country and the world is a great way to travel with out ever leaving home.
      The sesame seeds are interesting with those potatoes. Gotta try it!

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating





    Primary Sidebar

    srivalli

    Hi! Seasons change, yet there are some timeless recipes you can enjoy anytime. If you are sport for it, you are in the right place!

    More about me →

    Popular

    • Chicken Biryani
      Chicken Biryani ~ Rice Cooker Style
    • No Onion No Tomato Aloo Sabzi
      No Onion No Tomato Aloo Sabzi
    • Ragi Sangati
      Easy way to make Ragi Mudda | Ragi Sangati Recipe Step by Step ~ Weekend Cooking!
    • How to peel Garlic and Pearl Onions in Microwave

    Most Popular Recipes

    Chicken Pakora Recipe

    Chicken Pakora Recipe | Crispy Chicken Pakoda

    Coconut Rava Halwa

    Coconut Rava Halwa

    Eggless Coffee Cake Recipe

    Chicken Pakora | How to make Chicken Pakoda | Step by Step Recipe

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    Privacy Policy
    Copyright © 2022 Cooking 4 all Seasons