Eid 2017 Special: The Star of Meethi Eid, How to Perfect the Traditional Quemaami Sevai

What Plum Cake is to Christmas, Sevai is to the celebration of Meethi Eid. The significance of traditional sweets in Eid Ul Fitr cannot be stated enough. A couple of iconic preparations without which Meethi Eid celebrations would be incomplete are Sheer Korma and Quemaami Sevai. This piece is dedicated exclusively to the brilliance of the latter and exploring the nuances of cooking it to perfection. Different households have different ways of preparing this sweet treat. While some like to lap it up with khoya and a host of nuts and dry fruits, several others add in a dash of milk as well.

Before we go ahead and take you through the steps of cooking Quemaami Sevai to perfection, here are few tips that you must keep in mind:

- Raw sevai should always be fried in pure desi ghee

- Make sure that the flame is slow else you'll risk burning the vermicelli.

- The ratio of ghee to vermicelli should be perfect to get the best result.

- Go for fine vermicelli, finer threads come out better and taste fantastic.

Quemaami Sevai

Ingredients

Sevai - 250 gms

Sugar - 500 gms

Clove - 6

Green cardamom - 6

Bay leaves - 2

Ghee - 4 tbsp

You can add ingredients as per your convenience. Many people also like to add in more food items for a richer experience. You can experiment with items like khoya, more nuts and dry fruits like almonds, pistachios, makhanas, cashews, chironji and grated coconut.

Method

Fry vermicelli properly in a wok in ghee.

Now make sugar syrup by combining sugar in water and letting it boil.

Strain the syrup once it is done.

Now, add ghee in a wok and fry clove, cardamom and curry leaves. Then add dry fruits of your choice and let it cook for 2-3 minutes.

Once you start getting a warm aroma, add in sugar syrup and keep stirring.

Take it off the flame and mix sevai properly.

Garnish grated nuts and dry fruits atop.

Serve hot!

Recipe courtesy: Faisal Kidwai

Eid Mubarak!