5 delicious makhana recipes for kids’ lunchboxes!

People have become conscious about what they should eat and what is detrimental to their health. The concept of having lotus seeds, better known as makhanas, during snacking is becoming popular. Makhana, highly sourced with plentiful nutrients, including protein, fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants, is a nutritious food for growing children. But children are not fond of healthy things, so making tasty makhana recipes can become their go-to meal option during lunchtime. 

The traditional thought of eating makhana as a snack is past because people have started incorporating it into their daily routine as a main dish. This blog will shed light on a few lip-smacking makhana recipes for kids' lunch boxes to provide them with proper nutrition presented in makhana. 

5 tasty Makhana recipes for Lunchbox

Makhana Chat

If your kids love mixtures, you can make makhana chaat with vegetables and nuts at home. Makhana chaat, a nutritious and easy-to-make recipe, is perfect for kids' lunchboxes because it smells and looks like ‘sukha bhel puri.’ To make this chaat recipe, take ½ cup of Chappan Bhog makhana and ½ cup of peanuts and roast it in 2 tablespoons of oil with chopped tomatoes, onions, green chilli and coriander leaves. You can skip red chili powder as it is for kids, but a small pinch of chaat masala and salt should be added to make it look more tempting. You can pour 2 tablespoons of lemon juice before packing it in the lunchbox to enhance the tangy taste of it. 

Makhana Namkeen 

Kids often cannot decide what they want to eat. Sometimes, they do not eat their favourite foods due to mood fluctuations. Thus, mothers are always prepared with unique food items by experimenting differently. To make this recipe in the lunchbox, you can heat 2 tablespoons of ghee in a pan and add fox nuts of Chappan Bhog in the quantity you want, then roast it until they get crispy and golden brown. In the next step, take a pan and roast some almonds, cashews, peanuts, and pistachios in ghee, mixing them with the roasted makhana. Finally, add some pepper, sugar, and salt as per taste, and to make it more tempting, add amchur powder and serve it once it cools down.

Makhana laddoo

Makhana is always preferred during fasting in any kind of festive occasion. Various makhana recipes are served to God as ‘Bhog’, and people love these vegetarian makhana dishes during festivals such as Navratri, Diwali, and more. But, when it comes to kids, we should keep in mind that they eat foods according to their moods. Thus, preparing laddoos from makhana can be a productive option for them to eat healthy food at lunchtime. To make makhana laddoo, first take 100 gms of makhana, roast it in ghee, and grind it coarsely once it gets cool. Then, please bring it to another pan and mix the ground makhana powder with coconut powder in ghee. Add some nuts as per choice. In the last step, add sugar powder, and when the mixture starts cooling down, bind the laddoo in a round shape. You can preserve it for a longer time in an airtight container and serve it to your kids' lunchboxes as a sweet item.

Makhana Tikki 

Tikki is the all-time favourite of every child, whether it's aloo tikki or makhana. Because it contains vital nutrients and antioxidants, Makhana should be incorporated into kids’ dietary routines. You can make makhana tikki home with mashed potato and basic spices. Take 100 gms of makhana from the brand Chappan Bhog and coarsely grind them and then mix it with ground potatoes and gram flour, chopped onion, tomato and Indian spices. In the final step, make small round-shaped tikkis and fry them in small oil until both sides turn golden brown. Lastly, serve them with sauce and green chutney.

Makhana Curry 

Curry is an authentic Indian dish, and people can have it in any form and make it with different ingredients. Makhana curry is a popular recipe; kids will love it with roti or rice. To make it, stir fry onion and other vegetables in oil and add ½ cup of roasted makhana of Chappan Bhog and basic spices, including turmeric powder, red chili powder, garam masala, and salt as per taste. 

The reason why kids love Makhanas

Makhanas should be incorporated into the diet due to their plentiful nutritional benefits; however, compromising on taste can never be an option for kids. For their overall well-being, versatile, healthy makhana items can be prepared at home by encouraging them to practice healthy eating habits. 

Due to the crunchy texture and flavourful taste, makhana has become a popular snack choice for kids by replacing packaged foods on the market. People buy makhana to make it fit for multiple vegetarian recipes. From roasted makhana to delicious makhana curry, options are endless for kids' lunchboxes while retaining the health benefits.