Help with a big masla in storing

Lifestyle Parenting, Household Affairs and Cuisine corner
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Salam all,

I love this forum :slight_smile: you all are so talented and sugghar mashAllah…pls help me out… I buy sookhi laal mirchain and other daals and all and since its only me and hubby I don’t get to use them as much (I don’t cook very regularly) and two or three of those daals got keera in them (I don’t know what its called in english but I heard in urdu or punjabi its called soondhee) …can you give me tips on how to not have the keera in those stored daals or sookha khara masala…???

thanks you all

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Re: Help with a big masla in storing

i have never had this problem myself...but i had seen my mom facing this problem...especially with the daals...so she keeps hers in ziplock bags in the fridge....they stay perfect for a pretty long time...

i remember i once got some daal from a pakistani store here in the US...it was a rather dirty shop where he had stored all the daals in huge tank like tub things(i mean he sold open daals,not packaged...if u know what i mean...)..that was the only time i saw some 'keera' in daal....i threw that out and now i prefer to buy them from a clean place,in a packaged form...

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Re: Help with a big masla in storing

Internet to the rescue:
Source
Long before the existence of technology and modern methods of preserving food, our ancestors have come up with several ways to preserve staple food, especially raw grains from pests.
Grains like rice, wheat, oat and maize are major staple food for most the world’s population as they not only provide good sources of carbohydrate but also sources of energy. One of the common features of staple food is that it can be stored in bulk for consumption throughout the year. However, most staple foods which normally contain starch, are prone to be infected by fungi and attacked by pests.
Here are five ancient ways to preserve raw staple food, i.e. grains without the use of modern technology. However, first and foremost, the first rule to remember in preserving raw grains is to keep them absolutely dry and to store them in a cool, dry place.

  1. Place some sun-dried red chilies (5-10 pieces) inside the container containing grains Clean a couple of kaffir lime leaves with water and leave them to dry in the hot sun. Place the dried leaves (10 or more pieces) inside the container containing grains. Nztue=“0”>Alternatively, you can also use the leaves of plant. Clean a couple of leaves with water and leave them to dry in the hot sun. Then, place the dried leaves (2-3 pieces) inside the container containing grains. is known for its anti-bacteria properties and also a natural insect repellant. Clean a couple of lemon grass with water and leave them to dry in the hot sun. Place the dried lemon grass (about 3-5 pieces) inside the container containing grains.
  2. In*, *dried *neem *leaves are popularly used to preserve raw rice from pests. Place a couple of dried neem leaves (5-10 pieces) inside the container containing grains and then, secure the lid of the container.
  3. Alternatively, you can also use the leaves of star fruit plant. Clean a couple of leaves with water and leave them to dry in the hot sun. Then, place the dried leaves (2-3 pieces) inside the container containing grains.
  4. Lemon grass is known for its anti-bacteria properties and also a natural insect repellant. Clean a couple of lemon grass with water and leave them to dry in the hot sun. Place the dried lemon grass (about 3-5 pieces) inside the container containing grains.
  5. In Indiadried *neem *leaves are popularly used to preserve raw rice from pests. Place a couple of dried neem leaves (5-10 pieces) inside the container containing grains and then, secure the lid of the container.

For item 2 to item 5 above, alternatively, you can also place the leaves in a pre-heated oven (set at 250 degrees F”) for about 5-7 minutes to dry them up instead of drying them under the hot sun.

If it all fails put a pinch of DDT in the container of Daal and masala. Just kidding.:smiley:

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Re: Help with a big masla in storing

Simply keep the masalas and dalls in refrigrater or freezer,they will remain fresh for months,and no keera .

i have some pakistani formal wears
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:)..........soondhee is a good sign..................it is still edible................:D

it has no harmful preservatives...............best to store in deep freeze...

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put them in fridge or freezer...where do u live by the way? is it really a hot place?

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I live in the middle east and yeah its a scorching heat kind of place... I've been pestering my husband for a freezer.... inshAllah he will buy one for me before ramadhan...inshAllah .... so maybe then I can keep them in the freezer till then kya karoun...

oh yeah..I don't have a lot of place in the current fridge or freezer... :( .... already have frozen salans and tomatoes and giinger garlick paste...and I keep stuff like all nuts and fried piyaz and all in fridge...

Any other tips other than neem key pattey ...???

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Re: Help with a big masla in storing

Things like dhaniya/poodina and other greens...you can keep them as water plants...