Kokum bonkers


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Preparation time  : 10 minutes + soaking of basil seeds for one hour
Cooking time       : 10 minutes
Serves                 : more than ten helpings

Description

Summer is back with the sun shining bright with us getting dehydrated often. So I made up my mind to make a mock tail. I check my refrigerator and find nothing at all. Take a walk into my pantry and find basil seeds.. I dig further to see a packet of Kokum. The bulb moment happened when I saw the Kokum which reminded me of having a rasam sort of a drink in goa made with Kokum and coconut milk. Not wanting a heavy drink, I omitted the coconut milk and went ahead with what I thought would pair well with Kokum. I was expecting a pale pink colour drink but it was a pitch dark brown colour instead. The final result was a pungent, flavourful drink that was tangy, sour, sweet and salty in one shot. I took it as a surprise treat to my fellow Zumba class mates. Every one enjoyed their glass of this cooler going on to say they feel so energetic and cool. I made sure to google and see the health benefits of Kokum and that’s when I got to know it’s a cooling agent and has so many other healing benefits too. A new recipe tried and learnt with awesome results and a bonus of knowing more about an ingredient. Now isn’t that a wow factor for a day well spent.

Ingredients to boil and grind

Ingredients
Quantity
Kokum1/4 cup
Green chillies2 chopped
Water1 litter
Salt1/2 teaspoon
Cumin powder1 teaspoon
Black salt1/4 teaspoon
Asafoetida1/4 teaspoon
Mint stem5
Sugarto taste

Method

  • Mix all the above ingredients together and boil for ten minutes. Remove from heat and cool completely.
  • Strain and grind the Kokomo and other ingredients together adding little of the strained water to a smooth paste.
  • Mix the paste to the reserved boiled water and mix well.
  • pour this mix into clean bottles and store in the refrigerator for further use as a crush when needed. Keeps well for two weeks.

Other ingredients

Ingredients
Quantity
Mint leaves2 tablespoons chopped
Coriander leaves2 tablespoons chopped
Sugar powder1 cup
Whole coriander crushed2 tablespoons coarsely
Red chilli flakes2 tablespoons
Chat masala powder1 teaspoon
Basil seeds ( sabja seeds )3 tablespoons soaked in water for one hour.

How to proceed

  • Place two tall clean glasses in the refrigerator.
  • Mix chopped mint leaves, coriander leaves, powdered sugar, coarsely crushed whole coriander seeds and red chilli flakes together in a flat tray.
  • Fill a flat shallow tray with 1 1/2 cups of water and keep aside.
  • Remove the tall glass from the refrigerator. Dip the top mouth of the glass into the flat shallow tray with water, wetting the rim of the glass all around.
  • Remove the glass in a inverted way and press over the sugar mix tray, making sure the sugar mix forms a border on the rim of the glass. Do the same with the other tall glass as well.
  • Add chilled water, sugar, chat masala powder, the remaining mint – coriander – sugar mix used to rim the glasses and salt to taste to 1 cup of Kokum juice. Taste and adjust sweetness.
  • Care fully pour in equal amounts of the Kokum juice into the two tall glasses making sure the sugar border does not get disturbed using a funnel 3/4 way full.
  • Top with 2 tablespoons of soaked basil seeds and serve chilled.