Taler bora | Taal er bora | Taler pitha

Taler bora aka taler pitha is one of the most popular Bengali pitha recipes which is prepared in Bengali houses during the Janmashtami festival. Taal er bora is hugely popular in Bangladesh, West Bengal and Odisha. The fritters have the perfect outer crisp and are tender from the centre with a sweet taste and the amazing flavour of sugar palm and coconut. In this preparation, palm pulp is extracted from sugar palm. A batter is prepared with this extract, all-purpose flour, rice flour, grated coconut, sugar and then small portions of it are deep-fried till golden brown in colour. It is mostly served as snacks with tea but can be relished at any time of the day whenever hunger calls.

About the recipe
Tips and Suggestions
How to make Taler bora (step wise photos)
Recipe Card

Taal er bora is a Bengali delicacy and the name itself explains about the recipe. Here the word Taal or Tal means Sugar palm and Bora means Fritters. It is a sweet tasted deep-fried fritter prepared with the batter of palm pulp, all-purpose flour, rice flour, grated coconut, sugar.

Sugar palm is known by different names in different subcontinents. It is also called Toddy palm, Cambodian palm, Asian Palmyra etc. In Bengali, it’s known as tal, in Telugu it’s gomuti, in Tamil it’s nungu.

For Bengalis, Janmashtami is a big festival. On that holy day, Lord Krishna was born. This festival usually comes on August month in English calendar. According to our ancestors, Lord Krishna loves sugar palms. Hence, taler bora, taler kheer and a few other taler pitha is prepared and served to Lord Krishna as Prasad.

It’s not that Bengalis only prepare taal er bora on Janmashtami. Taler bora recipe is one of the most anticipating recipes for Bengalis for which they wait for the whole year to get black ripe sugar palm. During the month of August and September, ripe sugar palm is easily available in market. During this period, whenever they get the chance, they try to prepare it to satisfy their craving.

Whenever I talk about taler bora recipe, it always makes me feel nostalgic. I have thousands of sweet memories with it. I remember how my dad used to bring a pair of sugar palms from the market and mom and dad both worked so hard to extract the palm pulp from it.

My mom always used to divide the palm pulp into three portions and prepare three different recipes with it – taal er bora, taler kheer and taler luchi and they all taste heavenly. Taler pitha is an old recipe which has been prepared in Bengali kitchens for ages and till now the tradition is continuing. We have learnt these delicacies from our ancestors and we are so thankful to them.

I have learnt this authentic recipe from my mother and she from her mother aka my granny. I always consider myself lucky to have got the opportunity to taste and learn these traditional recipes.

Whenever I prepare taler bora recipe, I usually serve it as an evening sweet snacks with a cup of tea but cannot resist my kid and husband to grab some warm fritters during the time of frying them.

Taler bora recipe aka taler pitha is the easiest Bengali pitha recipe which is perfect for a novice if the palm pulp is extracted. Peeling the sugar palm and extracting the palm pulp from each kernel is the toughest job of the recipe. If this part is done then rest of the part of the recipe is pure bliss. It gets prepared very easily without investing much time and effort. In fact, it requires only few basic ingredients which are easily available in any Bengali kitchen pantry. The best part of the recipe is that it can be prepared in huge batches without investing any extra effort.

Taler bora recipe with step by step photos and instructions have been provided in the ‘Instructions’ section of the recipe. I have included all the tricks and tips below in the instruction section to prepare soft, fluffy, round and sweet taal er bora.

• Always try to use thick palm pulp to prepare the recipe so that maximum flavour and taste get induced into the bora.
• The consistency of the taler bora batter is neither too thick nor too thin.
• Follow the measurement for a perfect result. You can double or triple the quantity if you want to prepare in large batches.
• Whisk the batter thoroughly to make it airy during the time of preparing it. The more you whisk the batter, the more taler bora will puff up during the time of frying.
• Addition of grated coconut enhances the taste and flavour of taler bora recipe. So don’t skip it.
• Cover the batter and allow it to rest for at least 15 minutes before frying.
• Always fry the taler bora on medium to medium-high flame. Don’t fry it on low or highest flame.
• Always whisk the batter once before pouring it into the hot oil for frying.

Though taler bora recipe is a signature dish. But still in every house, it is prepared with different combinations and proportions of ingredients.

• Many people use jaggery as a sweetener whereas many others use sugar. The choice is completely up to you. The addition of jaggery gives darker shade to the sugar palm fritters.
• Many use coconut in the taler bora batter and many others totally skip it. If you like strong flavour of sugar palm, then you can skip it.
• Many uses flavouring agents like cardamom, nutmeg etc. But I don’t like any external flavouring agent and hence I skip it.
• For the taler pitha, many people use only rice flour for the batter. But after becoming cold, the fritters may get hard.
• People who love the tender version of taler bora prepare the batter using all-purpose flour and semolina.
• If you like, you can add dry fruits of your choice into the batter for richer version.

To prepare the taler bora, first we need to extract the pulp from the sugar palm. First of all, always select ripe black colour palm to prepare the recipe. Don’t pick younger palm for the recipe. Remove the thick skin of the sugar palm and then separate the kernels of the palm. Normally, there are 2 or 3 kernels in a palm. Then start grating each kernel with the help of bigger side of the grater to extract pulp. Dip the kernel in water in between to extract the pulp easily. But don’t use too much water or else the pulp will become thin and watery. In this way, extract the pulp from each kernel. If you feel, there is some impurity in the pulp then strain it once before use.

Now, take a large mixing bowl and add all purpose flour, rice flour, a pinch of salt, grated coconut and sugar, one by one into it and mix it with a spoon. Then add the sugar palm pulp aka taler rosh into the bowl and mix it thoroughly. Whisk the batter thoroughly in circular motion for at least 4-5 minutes. Cover the bowl and allow it to rest for 20 minutes.

After the resting time, whisk the batter once again for half a minute.

Put a pan on flame and add enough oil to deep fry the taler bora. Once the oil is hot, drop a small portion of the batter to check the temperature of the oil. If the batter floats then it’s perfect to fry the taler pitha.

Pour the batter into small portions with your hand or a spoon into the oil and deep fry them over medium flame till golden brown. Don’t overcrowd the pan. Drain the excess oil and transfer them to a tissue-lined plate for a minute to absorb excess oil. Repeat the process and fry bora or fritters with the rest of the batter.

Many Bengali pithe puli recipes have already shared in my previous post. You may like a few of them.

Poa pitha
Patishapta pitha
Rosh bora
Kolar bora

..And Many more…

1 cup = 250 ml

• 1 cup Taler rosh aka Palm pulp
• ¼ cup grated Coconut
• ½ cup all-purpose Flour aka Maida
• 2 tablespoons rice Flour aka chaler guro
• ⅓ -½ cup Sugar, adjust accordingly
• 1 pinch of Salt

1. Remove the thick skin of sugar palm and then separate the kernels of it. Normally, there are 2 or 3 kernels in a palm. Then start grating each kernel with the help of the bigger side of the grater to extract pulp. Dip the kernel in water once or twice in between to extract pulp easily. But don’t use too much water or else the pulp will become thin and dilute. In this way, extract the pulp from each kernel. If you feel, there is some impurity in the pulp then strain it once before use.
   Note: If you feel that your palm pulp has become thin then you can boil it in a separate pan for 4-5 minutes to evaporate excess moisture and allow it to come to room temperature before preparing the taler bora batter.
2. Take a large mixing bowl and add ½ cup all purpose flour, 2 tablespoons rice flour, 1 pinch of salt, ¼ cup grated coconut and ⅓ -½ cup sugar, one by one into it and mix it with a spoon.
3. Add 1 cup sugar palm pulp aka taler rosh into the bowl and mix it thoroughly. Whisk the batter thoroughly in circular motion for at least 4-5 minutes.
4. Cover the bowl and allow it to rest for 20 minutes. After the resting time, whisk the batter once again for half a minute.
5. Put a pan on medium flame and allow it to become completely dry. Add enough oil to deep fry the taler bora.
6. Once the oil is hot, drop a small portion of the batter to check the temperature of the oil. If the batter floats then it’s perfect to fry the taler pitha.
7. Pour the batter into small portions with your hand or a spoon into the oil and deep fry them over medium flame till golden brown. Don’t overcrowd the pan.
8. Drain the excess oil and transfer them to a tissue-lined plate for a minute to absorb excess oil. Repeat the process and fry bora or fritters with the rest of the batter.

Transfer the taler bora recipe on a serving plate. Serve this delectable sugar palm fritters as companion with a cup of tea and enjoy the Bengali delicacy.

It is always better to have it within 24 hours after cooling down. You can store it in an airtight container for 3 days in a cool dry place or refrigerate it for 1 week.

Taler bora | Taal er bora | Taler pitha

Serves: 6 Prep Time: 40 minutes (excluding resting time of the batter) Cooking Time: 25 Minutes 25 Minutes

Nutrition facts: NA calories NA fat

Rating: 5.0/5

( 2 voted )

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Ingredients

1 cup = 250 ml

• 1 cup Taler rosh aka Palm pulp
• ¼ cup grated Coconut
• ½ cup all-purpose Flour aka Maida
• 2 tablespoons rice Flour aka chaler guro
• ⅓ -½ cup Sugar, adjust accordingly
• 1 pinch of Salt

Instructions

1. Remove the thick skin of sugar palm and then separate the kernels of it. Normally, there are  2 or 3 kernels in a palm. Then start grating each kernel with the help of the bigger side of the grater to extract pulp. Dip the kernel in water once or twice in between to extract pulp easily. But don’t use too much water or else the pulp will become thin and dilute. In this way, extract the pulp from each kernel. If you feel, there is some impurity in the pulp then strain it once before use. Note: If you feel that your palm pulp has become thin then you can boil it in a separate pan for 4-5 minutes to evaporate excess moisture and allow it to come to room temperature before preparing the taler bora batter.
2. Take a large mixing bowl and add ½ cup all purpose flour, 2 tablespoons rice flour, 1 pinch of salt, ¼ cup grated coconut and ⅓ -½ cup sugar, one by one into it and mix it with a spoon.
3. Add 1 cup sugar palm pulp aka taler rosh into the bowl and mix it thoroughly. Whisk the batter thoroughly in circular motion for at least 4-5 minutes.
4. Cover the bowl and allow it to rest for 20 minutes. After the resting time, whisk the batter once again for half a minute.
5. Put a pan on medium flame and allow it to become completely dry. Add enough oil to deep fry the taler bora.
6. Once the oil is hot, drop a small portion of the batter to check the temperature of the oil. If the batter floats then it’s perfect to fry the taler pitha.
7. Pour the batter into small portions with your hand or a spoon into the oil and deep fry them over medium flame till golden brown. Don’t overcrowd the pan.
8. Drain the excess oil and transfer them to a tissue-lined plate for a minute to absorb excess oil. Repeat the process and fry bora or fritters with the rest of the batter.