Kali Gajar ki Kanji or Black Carrot Kanji is a fermented drink made in North India with black carrots around the time of Holi, the festival of colours. Black carrots along with ground mustard are fermented in water to make a delicious beverage. This traditional fermented drink is healthy and aids digestion.
Before the 17th century, almost all cultivated carrots were deep purple, almost black in colour. Dutch farmers developed the modern-day orange carrot by crossing various cultivated and wild carrots. According to the World Carrot Museum, black or purple carrots are Middle Eastern in origin, and may have first appeared in Turkey or Syria. They are more common in countries like India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Egypt and Turkey.
While purple carrots provide many of the same health benefits as orange carrots, they also offer some extraordinary nutritional benefits due to their high concentration of anthocyanins, which give black vegetables and berries their intense hues and strong health-boosting properties. Anthocyanins in purple carrots may provide health benefits like anti-carcinogenic effects against colon cancer cells, strong anti-inflammatory properties, eye health protecting qualities and improved vascular health.
Maya Khanna is an exceptional cook and the person to go to for traditional Indian recipes, sweet or savory. Her skill in the kitchen has been enhanced by her having to entertain at home on her husband’s insistence. From having large family gatherings to entertaining business associates, she has cooked for all and her food is much appreciated for its taste and variety. Her expertise in the kitchen is much acknowledged by all and documenting her recipes is a must.
She shares with us the recipe of a traditional drink, kali gajar ki kanji. It’s generally made in the beginning of the year when black carrots are available in North India. She demystifies the making of this delicious drink with her super easy recipe. The only hard part is waiting for it to ferment so as to achieve the right degree of sourness.
Peeling the black carrots can stain your hands and clothes. If you are fussy, then you can wear gloves, but the colour comes off in a few washes. The red mustard should be ground fresh for best flavour. It is necessary in the recipe to impart the sourness, the main element of this drink.
In case the black carrots are not available, you can use regular carrots and add one beetroot to give the glorious maroon colour that makes this drink so appetising.
Kali Gajar ki Kanji
Fermented Black Carrot Drink
Ingredients ~
1/2 kg black carrots
2 lts water
5 tbsp red rai/mustard, ground
2 tbsp salt
1/4 tsp red chilli powder
Method ~
1. Wash the carrots, peel them and cut them into 2 inch batons.
2. In a steel vessel, boil the water. Add the carrots and bring the water back to a boil.
3. Take it off the stove and leave to cool uncovered.
4. When cold, add salt, ground mustard and chilli powder.
5. Cover the vessel with a muslin cloth.
6. Keep it covered for 5 days in the sun, for the flavours to mature.
7. The taste of mustard should have mellowed to give the sour element to the drink and it should be part sour, salty, with the heat provided by the chilli powder.
8. Once sour, convert into a glass, covered jug and refrigerate.
9. Serve cold in glasses accompanied with the carrots, which can also be eaten on their own as pickles.
10. This keeps well for 2 weeks in the fridge.