One of the most important festivals of India, Diwali, is a festival of light and of delightful Diwali recipes. This festival is celebrated to rejoice in the triumph of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, and good over evil.
Let’s learn some history. Lord Rama and Ravana fought a fierce battle for seven days. After finishing the battle, Lord Rama left Lanka to return to Ayodhya. Diwali is celebrated to honor Lord Rama’s eventual defeat of the evil spirit Ravana, and his jubilant return to his home, Ayodhya. It is a five-day festival featuring different ceremonies each day, the third day being the main event.
Diwali will be celebrated this year on the 24th of October, 2022. This five-day festival is marked by prayers, delicious Diwali food recipes, fireworks, friends and family gatherings, and charitable giving. For Hindus, it is also the beginning of a new year. Beautiful lights will be hanging on streets and houses, winning our hearts.
The aroma of desi ghee laddoos will mesmerize you, and this will start your journey to decide what you are going to make this Diwali. We have made chivda, chakli, and poha for snacks and cliched sweets for forever and a day!
Diwali delights are one of the most significant parts of this festival. However, if you still haven’t bellied up to the bar and started preparing for snacks, then fret not! Here are some easy yet scrumptious Diwali recipes you can prepare for this festival and enjoy with your nearest and dearest.
Tasty Diwali Snacks Recipes You Must Try!
This festival is enriched with various savoury Diwali snack recipes. Even though eating out is popular, making some lip-smacking snacks at home has its thrill! These snacks will be perfect when relatives arrive, exchange gifts, and watch fireworks.
Each family has its favourite meal and snacks for the festival. However, let’s move on from those stereotypical snacks and make something unique and palatable this year. Here are some of the easy Diwali Snacks recipes that will fill your festival with savoury flavours:
- Ribbon Pakoda
- Instant Chakli Recipe
- Ring Murukku
- Namak Para
- Crispy Thread Paneer
Ribbon Pakoda
Something unique and something crispy – these ribbon pakoras are fried crunchy ribbon-shaped savoury Diwali special recipes. They are easy to prepare and challenging to say no to! You can make these pakoras in no time and present something unique this Diwali.
Quick Stats
Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 500g
Ingredients
- 1 cup roasted chana dal
- Two dry red chillies, broken and seeds removed.
- One teaspoon of cumin seeds
- 1 cup besan (gram flour)
- 1 cup heaped rice flour
- 2 pinches of hing (asafoetida)
- Two teaspoon salt
- Two teaspoon white sesame seeds, optional
- Four tablespoons of butter or oil
- Half cup water or add as required
- oil for deep frying as required
Method to Prepare
- Add besan, rice flour, salt, red chilli powder, sesame seeds, and melted butter.
- Mix them thoroughly.
- Now, pour water as needed and knead into a soft yet firm dough.
- Meanwhile, add oil to a deep frying pan and heat it.
- Then, take a dough ball and put it in the sev Sancha machine with the ribbon plate.
- Once the oil is hot enough, set the flame on medium and press the dough into the hot oil.
- Fry until they are light golden brown. Once the sizzling stops, remove them onto a plate.
- Follow the same process for the rest of the dough.
- Serve this one of the crunchiest Diwali snack recipes to guests and enjoy its fantastic taste.
Instant Chakli Recipe
Crunchy and spicy, this spiral-shaped snack is one of the splendid options to serve guests during Diwali get-togethers. This is one of the best Diwali recipes that combines various flours, aromatic herbs, and warm Indian spices into one plate!
Quick Stats
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Servings: 30 chaklis
Ingredients
- 2 cups rice flour
- 1 cup maida
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp butter (room temperature)
- ½ tsp turmeric
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds/til
- pinch hing/asafoetida
- 1 tsp salt
- water (for kneading)
- oil for frying
Method to Prepare
- Firstly, take a large mixing bowl and add 2 cups of rice flour, 1 cup maida, and 1 teaspoon salt.
- Then, add turmeric, red chilli powder, sesame seeds, a pinch of thing, and 1 teaspoon salt.
- Mix well to ensure that everything is well combined.
- Then, add 2 tablespoons of butter, crumble, and mix until the flour is well combined.
- slowly add water and start kneading the dough.
- Knead into a smooth and soft dough by adding water as required.
- Now, take a star mould and fix the chakli maker.
- Grease it with some oil. Then, make a cylindrical shape out of dough and place it inside the maker.
- Start preparing chaklis on a wet cloth or butter paper.
- Seal the ends of chakli, so it doesn’t fall apart while deep frying.
- Take one chakli at a time and slide it into the hot oil.
- Fry on medium flame until both sides are crispy.
- Drain over a paper towel and remove the excess oil.
- Serve and enjoy.
- ing Murukku
Ring Murukku is a staple Diwali special recipe in Andhra cuisine. It is full of flavours and pretty easy to make. So, you need not spend loads of time in the kitchen preparing this snack. An easy-to-make crisp and tasty snack – try this snack at your home for something unique.
Quick Stats
Prep Time: 1 hour
Cooking Time: 45 minutes
Servings: 50 rings
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoon of moong dal
- ¾ teaspoon of salt
- One tablespoon of ghee
- a large pinch of hing
- 1 cup of rice flour
- ¾ teaspoon of red chilli powder
- One teaspoon of cumin seeds
- 1 cup of water
- One teaspoon of sesame seeds
- Oil for frying
Method to Prepare
- First, prepare the moong dal by washing and soaking it for about an hour. After 1 hour, drain the water and keep it aside.
- Then, take a pan and heat one cup of water in it. Add salt and ghee-soaked moong dal, and give it a quick mix.
- Once the water is boiled, gradually add rice flour and give it a good stir.
- Instantly, turn off the gas and keep stirring until a dough is formed.
- Keep the dough covered for about 12 minutes.
- After 12 minutes, add cumin, sesame, chilli powder, and asafoetida to the dough.
- Now, oil your palms and knead the dough well to make it smooth.
- Take a small ball of dough and make a grape-sized ball.
- Roll that ball into a thick rope and join the two ends of the rope to form a loop.
- Press the joint nicely to make sure that the loop doesn’t break. Repeat this process for the remaining dough.
- Now, take a deep frying pan and heat the oil on a high flame. Once the oil is hot, decrease the flame to medium.
- Fry the rings in batches on medium flame until they are nicely golden in colour and the bubbles subside entirely.
- Store these rings in an airtight container and enjoy!
Must-Try: Bombay Potatoes Recipes – Bring the Spicy Flavor of Mumbai at Your Home!
Namak Para
A popular Indian spiced fried cracker made with wheat flour, flavourful herbs, and fried in ghee to provide you with one of the best Diwali recipes. Plus, you can make these little diamond-shaped delights without investing too much of your time and effort.
Quick Stats
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 serves
Ingredients
- 1 cup wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon spice black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon asafoetida
- salt as required
- 1 teaspoon ghee
- 1 cup refined oil
Method to Prepare
- Firstly, take a large tray and sieve the flour.
- Add salt, pepper powder, and hing to the flour.
- Add ajwain if you like. If you want your namak para spicy, add red chilli powder.
- Now, add a little water and start kneading the dough.
- Ensure the dough is thick.
- Add ghee to accentuate the taste and flavours of the namak paras.
- Then, make small balls from the dough and roll them into medium-sized chapatis.
- Cut the chapatis into small diamond shapes and keep them aside.
- Now, heat oil in a frying pan on a medium flame.
- Add the namak paras to the hot oil and fry until golden.
- Remove them and drain excess oil.
- Serve them during Diwali get-togethers, and enjoy!
Crispy Thread Paneer
This will be the star of your Diwali snack recipes as it is a restaurant-style Indo-Chinese appetizer that you can easily make at home for this festival. These pieces of threaded paneer are crispy and have a coating of noodles to give you a special recipe for a crunchy Diwali.
Quick Stats
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 serves
Ingredients
- 500 gms paneer, cut into long and thick uniform pieces
- Two tablespoons of Kashmiri red chilli powder
- Salt to taste
- One tablespoon of ginger-garlic paste
- A pinch of chaat masala
- One tablespoon of tomato ketchup
- ½ tablespoon of soya sauce
- Three tablespoons of cornflour
- One packet of rice noodles
- Desi ghee
Method to Prepare
- First, let’s make the coating. For that, take a bowl and add Kashmiri red chilli powder, salt, ginger-garlic paste, chat masala, and tomato ketchup. Drizzle some soy sauce and cornflour.
- Make a smooth paste of it. Add a little water for a medium smooth consistency.
- Take the paneer pieces and cover them with the prepared paste.
- Sprinkle two tablespoons of cornflour on the coated paneer to prevent the coating from spreading out while frying.
- Keep them aside for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the noodles by boiling them in water.
- Now, add the noodles to a pan, boil them for around 3 minutes, and then strain the water.
- You can pour ice cubes or cold water over noodles to stop overcooking.
- Then, carefully wrap the coated paneer with the noodles. Repeat this process for all the paneer pieces.
- Now, heat desi ghee in a deep frying pan on a high flame. Ensure that ghee is flaming hot before you put paneer pieces.
- Once the ghee is flaming hot, put the paneer pieces one by one and fry them until they are golden brown.
- You can make them beforehand and fry them once guests arrive to serve them hot!
Diwali Sweet Recipes that are too Delicious!
Traditionally known as “Mithais,” – Diwali sweet recipes are considered pure and an offering to God. This is why we eat so many delectable sweets during this festival. These sweets are a small gesture of greeting friends and family with the joy of celebrating the festival.
You will find a hundred types of Diwali sweet recipes on the internet, from laddoo, barfi, besan, and gulab jamun to petha, halwa, and many more. However, this time, try some easy sweet recipes for Diwali that are effortless and unique.
What follows are some succulent Diwali sweet recipes:
- Karanji
- Tutti Frutti Burfi
- Peda Pies
- Butterscotch Toffee Sheera
- Berry Shrikhand
Karanji
As we all know that Diwali is just around the corner. The preparation is incomplete without preparing traditional Indian sweet recipes. Karanji is one such recipe that is traditionally known to be one of the most loved Diwali recipes. It is a deep-fried sweet dumpling that is filled with coconut, powdered sugar, and nuts.
Quick Stats
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour
Servings: 16 serves
Ingredients
For the pastry dough:
- 2 cup maida
- 2 tbsp rava (fine)
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 tbsp ghee
- water (for kneading)
- oil (for frying)
For coconut stuffing:
- 1 tsp ghee
- 2 tbsp cashew (chopped)
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 1½ cup dry coconut (grated)
- 2 tbsp poppy seeds
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ tsp cardamom powder
Method to Prepare
- Firstly, take a large bowl and add 2 cups of maida, 2 tbsp rava, and 1/4 tsp salt. Mix well.
- Then, add 2 tbsp of ghee, crumble, and mix everything well, ensuring the flour is moist.
- Now, pour warm water into the bowl and start kneading the dough.
- Knead it well, ensuring the dough is smooth and tight.
- Cover the bowl and let it rest for 15 minutes.
- Now, to prepare the stuffing, add 1 tsp of ghee to a pan.
- Then, add 2 tbsp cashew and 2 tbsp raisin, and roast until golden brown.
- Also, add 1½ cup dry coconut and 2 tbsp poppy seeds, and roast everything on low heat.
- Roast until it turns aromatic. Then, let it cool completely and transfer it to a large bowl.
- Now, add ½ cup powdered sugar and ½ tsp cardamom powder, and give it a good mix.
- Your filling is ready.
- After 15 minutes, your dough will be well rested. Knead it slightly and pinch a small ball-sized dough.
- Then, flatten and roll it slightly thin, ensuring it has a uniform thickness.
- Take one tbsp of filling and place it in the centre of the pastry.
- Spread water around the corners, fold half and seal by pressing gently.
- Now, you can decorate it by folding it with your hands, a pastry cutter, or a knife.
- Deep fry these pastries in medium hot oil. Ensure you drop them gently.
- Keep the flame low and stir occasionally.
- Fry until the karanji is golden brown and crisp.
- Transfer it to a paper napkin-lined plate and drain off excess oil.
- Your karanji is ready.
- Serve it to your guests, and enjoy!
Tutti Frutti Barfi
One of the easiest barfi recipes is made with sugar syrup, milk powder, and loads of tutti frutti. It is one of the most ideal Diwali recipes as it will hardly take more than 20 minutes to make this sweet dish. This barfi’s rich and luxurious taste will surely mesmerise your friends and family during Diwali get-togethers.
Quick Stats
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Servings: 10 pieces
Ingredients
- 3 cups of milk powder
- ½ cup ghee
- 1 cup sugar
- ¾ cup water
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ cup tutti frutti
Method to Prepare
- Firstly, take a large bowl and add 3 cups of milk powder.
- Then, add ½ cup ghee and give it a good mix using a spoon.
- Mix it gently, ensuring there are no lumps in the mixture. Keep it aside.
- Now, take a large kadhai and add 1 cup of sugar and ¾ cup of water.
- Stir well until sugar dissolves completely.
- Keep boiling till you achieve 1-string consistency.
- Now, keep the flame on low and add the milk powder mixture.
- Keep stirring until the mixture is well combined with the syrup.
- Continue cooking on low flame until the mixture achieves a silky smooth consistency.
- Then, add 1 tsp of vanilla extract and ¼ cup tutti frutti.
- Keep mixing until the mixture starts to hold the shape and separates from the pan.
- Now, transfer the mixture into the baking paper-lined tray.
- Top it with 4 tbsp of tutti frutti and press to level everything.
- Give the mixture an hour of rest and let it cool completely.
- After one hour, cut into pieces and serve.
Peda Pies
Peda pies are one of the unique Diwali sweets recipes that you will love to try during this festival of light. These pies are going to take your friends and family by surprise with their exceptional taste and delicious texture.
Quick Stats
Prep Time: 10 minutes + 30 minutes resting time
Cooking Time: 30 minutes
Serves: 2
Ingredients
For the Pastry
- 100gms Buckwheat Flour/kuttu atta
- 50 gms powdered sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder
- One teaspoon Ghee
- A pinch of salt
- Water to knead
For the Filling
- One medium-size bottle gourd, peeled, deseeded, and grated
- ½ teaspoon ghee
- 200 ml Milk
- Three tablespoons of Condensed milk
- One teaspoon of roasted nuts, coarsely crushed
Method to Prepare
- Take a bowl and all the pastry ingredients. Mix them well with a fork.
- Add water gradually and knead it to make a dough.
- Take another bowl and grease it. Place the dough, cover it with a damp cloth, and let it rest for at least an hour.
- Meanwhile, prepare the bottle gourd pedas.
- Take a heavy bottom pan and ghee, grated bottle gourd, and stir the milk.
- Thoroughly cook the bottle gourd in the milk.
- Add condensed milk once the bottle gourd is thoroughly cooked.
- When you notice the mixture leaving the sides of the pan, switch off the flame.
- Let the mixture cool. Once cooled, make small pedas of the filling.
- Dust the working floor and take small portions of the pastry dough.
- Roll these small portions of dough like flatbreads and cut them using a cookie cutter in your favourite shapes.
- Now, fill the dough with the bottle gourd peda and seal the sides using a fork.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 180 degrees C for 8 minutes.
- Line a baking tray with butter paper and place the peda pies in it. Brush the top of the pies with ghee or milk.
- Bake them at 160 degrees C until they are brown on the side and back or for 12 minutes.
- Serve them hot to your guests and family, and enjoy!
Also Try: Saffron Paneer Dessert Recipe – A Delightful Dessert Made from Paneer!
Butterscotch Toffee Sheera
Let’s get rid of the cliched sheera and make a new and succulent sheera this Diwali. This butterscotch toffee sheera will win over guests with its spell-bounding taste. It is easy to make and delicious to eat. So, what are you waiting for? Make this one of the best Diwali sweets recipes and enjoy something uniquely delicious.
Quick Stats
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4 serves
Ingredients
For the Sheera
- ½ cup Rawa or cream of wheat
- 2 cups milk
- Four packed tablespoons of brown sugar
- Pinch of salt
- Four tablespoons butterscotch flavoured instant pudding mix
- ½ tablespoon ghee
- Additional milk
- Colourful sprinkles for sprinkling
Method to Prepare
- Take a microwave-safe dish, and roast the rawa for around 4 minutes. Set it aside to cool.
- Now, take a saucepan and heat milk over medium flame. As it comes to a low boil, reduce the flame and stir in the roasted rawa.
- Ensure that you stir continuously to avoid lumps. Cover the pan and let the rawa cook on low flame for around 4 minutes.
- Now, throw in the brown sugar and salt. Then, sprinkle four tablespoons of butterscotch instant pudding mix over the cooked rawa and give it a good stir to blend it in.
- Add ghee to it, stir, cover, and cook for another two minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat.
- To make the sauce, combine the rest of the pudding mix with additional milk until you get a ‘sauce consistency.’
- Serve this warm butterscotch toffee sheera drizzled with cool butterscotch sauce.
- Top it off with colourful sprinkles, and enjoy!
Berry Shrikhand
Shrikhand is a straightforward sweet recipe for Diwali, as you will just need hung curd and some natural ingredients. One of the staple dishes in Gujarati and Maharashtrian cuisine – Shrikhand, is loved by all. So, let’s freshen up shrikhand with this unique berry shrikhand recipe.
Quick Stats
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 6 serves
Ingredients
- 6 cups of hung curd
- 4 cups of mixed berries
- One teaspoon of green cardamom powder
- 1 cup of sugar
Method to Prepare
- A day before you make this dessert, hang the curd in a muslin cloth overnight.
- Meanwhile, clean, wash and puree the berries.
- Take a pan and add pureed berries and sugar; keep stirring it on medium flame.
- Once the mixture thickens up, take it off the flame and drain it through a sieve to avoid the seeds while eating.
- Now, take a deep mixing bowl, add the hung curd, and sprinkle cardamom powder.
- Blend it thoroughly with a hand blender.
- Now, pour the berry sauce into the bowl and blend once again till it is smooth.
- Pour this shrikhand into individual serving bowls and slide them into the fridge overnight to chill them.
- Once chilled, garnish it with fresh berries and serve it to your guest.
Must Read: Delicious Homemade Instant Jalebi Recipe!
Final Words
Try these unique Diwali food recipes this festive season to add new and unmatched flavours to your menu. These recipes will make your Diwali full of deliciousness and mesmerize your guests with their second-to-none taste.
