Pheni & khajla become citizens’ favourites

ISLAMABAD:

With the arrival of the holy month of Ramazan, families who are fasting engage in preparing various types of dishes for sehri and iftar table spreads. One of the well-known dishes that are consumed around Pakistan is khajla and pheni, without which sehri is considered incomplete.

As soon as the blessings of the month of Ramadan begin, even shop owners become busy preparing for Ramazan. Stalls of pheni have opened up in different areas alongside sweet shops to cater to those fasting.

As is the custom in many cities of the country, it is considered almost essential to eat pheni and khajla for sehri in Ramazan in the federal capital. Therefore, in areas where there are a large number of citizens out and about, shop sellers are also busy making large quantities of pheni.

Pheni is a dish prepared from flour which is first kneaded into a dough and then made into patties using ghee before it is fried in ghee. Khajla is a kind of deep-fried break that is also prepared from flour and fried in hot oil.

Pheni is a dish which takes a lot of work to prepare. This is why preparations for it begin even before Ramazan. A worker, Sabir Butt said that the prices of gas and oil have increased due to which the cost price of pheni has also increased.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 13^th, 2024.