Chhath Puja Celebration: Sacred Vegetarian Recipes with Phoran Masala
Deepa ShahShare
By Deepa Shah | Stone-ground spice expert & founder of Phoran Masala
Chhath Puja: Sacred Food for a Sacred Festival
Chhath Puja is one of India's most ancient and sacred festivals — a four-day celebration dedicated to the Sun God, observed with rigorous fasting, ritual bathing, and the offering of prasad. The food of Chhath is deeply traditional, strictly vegetarian, and prepared with great care and purity. No onion, no garlic, no artificial ingredients. Here's your guide to the sacred recipes of Chhath Puja, made with Phoran Masala's pure, unadulterated whole spices.
The Four Days of Chhath
- Day 1 – Nahay Khay: The fast begins. Devotees eat one meal of lauki (bottle gourd) sabzi and chana dal, cooked simply with turmeric and minimal spices.
- Day 2 – Kharna: A day-long fast broken in the evening with kheer (rice pudding) and roti — the prasad is shared with family and neighbors.
- Day 3 – Sandhya Arghya: The main puja at sunset. Thekua and other prasad are offered to the setting sun.
- Day 4 – Usha Arghya: The final offering at sunrise. The fast is broken after the morning arghya.
Thekua: The Sacred Prasad of Chhath
Thekua is the most important prasad of Chhath Puja — a crispy, sweet fried cookie made from whole wheat flour, jaggery, and ghee, flavored with Phoran Green Cardamom and fennel seeds. It is offered to the Sun God and then distributed as prasad.
Thekua Recipe:
Ingredients:
- 2 cups whole wheat flour (atta)
- 3/4 cup jaggery, dissolved in warm water
- 3 tbsp ghee
- 1/2 tsp Phoran Green Cardamom, crushed
- 1 tsp fennel seeds (saunf)
- Desiccated coconut (optional, 2 tbsp)
- Ghee or oil for deep frying
Method: Mix flour, ghee, cardamom, fennel, and coconut. Add jaggery water gradually to make a firm dough — it should not be soft. Shape into rounds or use a thekua mold. Deep fry on medium-low heat until deep golden brown and crispy. Cool completely before storing. Thekua stays fresh for 5–7 days.
Kheer: The Kharna Prasad
The kheer made for Kharna is special — cooked in a new clay pot, sweetened with jaggery (not sugar), and fragrant with Phoran Green Cardamom.
Method: Slow-cook rice in full-fat milk until very soft and creamy. Add jaggery and crushed cardamom. Simmer until thick. Serve warm as prasad.
Lauki Chana Dal: Day 1 Meal
The Nahay Khay meal is simple and pure — bottle gourd cooked with chana dal and minimal spices.
Ingredients: 1 cup chana dal (soaked), 300g lauki (bottle gourd), 1 tsp Phoran Turmeric, 1 tsp Phoran Jeera, ghee, salt.
Method: Temper jeera in ghee. Add lauki and cook 5 minutes. Add soaked chana dal, turmeric, salt, and water. Pressure cook 3–4 whistles. Serve with rice or roti.
Purity in Chhath Cooking
Chhath prasad is prepared with strict purity — no onion, no garlic, no artificial colors or flavors. This is why the quality of the spices matters so much. Phoran Masala's pure, additive-free spices are exactly what Chhath cooking calls for — nothing artificial, nothing adulterated, just the real thing.
