Navratri 2026: 5 Easy Vrat Recipes To Add Variety To Your Fasting Menu

Navratri fasting often revolves around a handful of traditional favourites, but enjoying the same dishes throughout the nine-day festival can become repetitive. This Navratri 2026, why not add some variety to your vrat menu while continuing to follow the traditional fasting guidelines?

From crispy farali dosa and soft sama chawal idlis to delicious paneer seekh kebabs and creamy rajgira kheer, these easy Navratri recipes offer an interesting twist on familiar fasting ingredients. They can help make your meals more diverse, flavourful and enjoyable during the festive season.

# Sama Chawal Idli

Ingredients
Sama chawal – 1 cup
Sabudana – ½ cup
Water – as required
Baking soda – ¼ teaspoon
Sendha namak – as required
How to Prepare

Wash and soak the sama chawal and sabudana separately for a few hours. Drain the water and grind both ingredients with a little water to prepare a smooth batter. Cover and leave the batter to ferment overnight.

The next day, add sendha namak and baking soda and mix gently. Pour the batter into greased idli moulds and steam until the idlis are completely cooked. Serve hot with a vrat-friendly chutney.

# Singhara Atta Cheela

Ingredients
Singhara atta – 1 cup
Boiled potato – 1 medium
Green chilli – 1
Fresh coriander – 2 tablespoons
Sendha namak – ½ teaspoon
Water – as required
Oil or ghee – for cooking
How to Prepare

Mash the boiled potato and mix it with singhara atta, finely chopped green chilli, fresh coriander and sendha namak. Gradually add water and whisk until you get a smooth, pourable batter.

Heat a tawa and lightly grease it with oil or ghee. Pour a ladleful of batter onto the tawa and spread it into a thin cheela. Cook on both sides until golden and lightly crisp. Serve hot with a fasting-friendly chutney or accompaniment.

# Vrat Paneer Seekh Kebab

Ingredients

Homemade paneer – equal quantity
Hung curd – equal quantity to paneer
Sendha namak – as required
Black pepper – as required
Cardamom powder – 2 pinches
Cumin powder – 2 pinches
Fresh coriander – as required
Green chilli – 1
Vrat rice flour – as required

How to Prepare

Take equal quantities of homemade paneer and hung curd and gently rub them together until the mixture becomes soft and smooth. Add sendha namak, black pepper, cardamom powder, cumin powder, chopped coriander and green chilli.

Add enough vrat rice flour to bring the mixture together into a soft, semi-solid dough. Refrigerate or freeze the mixture for about an hour to make it easier to shape.

Shape the mixture around skewers or seekh and cook on a low flame for approximately 10 minutes on each side, turning carefully until the kebabs are cooked through and lightly golden.

Farali Dosa

Ingredients

Sama rice – 1 cup
Sabudana – ½ cup
Curd – ½ cup
Boiled potato – 1 medium
Ginger – 1-inch piece
Green chilli – 1
Cumin – ½ teaspoon
Black pepper – ¼ teaspoon
Fresh coriander – 2 tablespoons
Sendha namak – as required
Ghee – for cooking
How to Prepare

Soak the sama rice and sabudana for a few hours. Drain and grind them with curd and a little water to make a smooth batter.

Add mashed boiled potato, grated or finely chopped ginger, green chilli, cumin, black pepper, fresh coriander and sendha namak. Mix well and adjust the consistency with water if needed.

Heat a tawa and spread the batter into a thin dosa. Drizzle a little ghee around the edges and cook until the dosa turns crisp and golden. Serve immediately with a vrat-friendly chutney.

Rajgira Ki Kheer

Ingredients

Rajgira – ½ cup
Milk – 1 litre
Sugar – ½ cup
Almonds – 10
Cashews – 10
Raisins – 1 tablespoon
Saffron – a few strands
Cardamom powder – ½ teaspoon
How to Prepare

Add rajgira to milk and cook over a low flame, stirring occasionally, until the grains become soft and the milk thickens.

Add sugar, chopped almonds, cashews, raisins, saffron and cardamom powder. Mix well and simmer for a few more minutes. Turn off the heat and serve the kheer warm or refrigerate it for a chilled festive dessert.