Til-or Laru (Sesame Balls)

Rongali Bihu is here again! And with it, the longing to have home-prepared til pitha (rice powder roll stuffed with jaggery, sesame seeds, etc), narikolor laru (coconut balls), gur-or logot cheera doi (dry flat rice with curd and a bit of jaggery) til-or laru (sesame seed balls), the list goes on.

Even though juggling a home and the corporate world leaves me with very little time to prepare these delicacies, this time I wanted to dish out home-made delicacies for sure. Preparing them at home has its own charm; perhaps the Bihu spirit becomes even more palpable! And more importantly, Abhijit is so fond of these! 

One of his favorites is Til-or laru (sesame balls).  I got sesame seeds and jaggery from the nearest Easy Day store and got rolling! 

 

Ingredients

• Sesame seeds – About 100 gm (or depending on the quantity you’re looking at.)

• Jaggery – About 50 gm 

Method

Wash the sesame seeds well with water using your hands and sundry them. (Most people skip this step, but it’s important if you want to maintain hygiene). Once clean and dry, roast them in a pan till you hear the popping sound. Be careful not to over roast; doing so might give your larus a burnt taste which may not be to your liking. Once done, keep aside. 

In a pan, heat the jaggery by adding some water. Once it gives out that sticky feel, add the roasted seeds and stir them well for some time.  Take off the fire and start preparing the larus while it’s still hot. 

Tip 1:  If you feel the heat while rolling the laddoos, wet your hands with some water.

Tip 2: While heating the jaggery, ensure it doesn’t become too mushy – maintain the right balance. 

Health quotient: Sesame seeds are rich in minerals like copper and manganese, and are a good source of iron and calcium too.

Coconut laddoo (Narikol laru)

Having missed Magh Bihu (Assamese harvest festival) for the last 6-7 years, this year I managed to be right there amidst all the action – ‘meji’, ‘jolpaan’, ‘til pitha’, (rice powder roll stuffed with jaggery, sesame seeds, etc), ‘narikol laddoo’ (coconut balls), ‘ghila pitha’ (ghila pitha is a type of pancake which gets its name from ‘ghila’ meaning knee cap in Assamese; it’s so called because the pitha resembles a knee cap) and ‘til laddoo’ (sesame balls) just to name a few.
I got coconut laddoos for my friends back in Delhi and they simply loved them. Even though coconut laddoos are a common sight elsewhere in the country, I ‘simply’ love the way it is prepared in Assam – simple & easy. All you need is:

Ingredients:

• One coconut
• One cup sugar (one may also use jaggery as a substitute
• Few cloves of cardamom (optional)

Method:

Grate the coconut white. Mix the coconut and sugar and then pour them in a hot pan (grind the clove seeds and add to the mixture if you want). Stir the mixture in low flame till you get a sticky feeling (remember the stickiness has to be right for you to make a laddoo); to gauge the same, try making a laddoo. If you are able to make one, it means the mixture is ready. Turn off the gas.
With these ingredients, you can roughly prepare about 15-20 laddoos.
(Tip: If it’s too hot for you to make the laddoos, apply cold water on your hands before doing so).