I’ve grown up seeing so many Gits products at home, as I’m sure many of my generation have. It was therefore a nice surprise when I received a mail from Gits asking us to publish an opinion on some of their products. The initial plan was to have a ‘Gits Dinner’ where we would cook the stuff and invite opinions from dinner guests. Something must have been lost in translation because we didn’t receive sufficient quantities, but quite enough to cook and try out their wares.
It’s been a while since I voluntarily used ready to eat, instant mixes and the sort. From a purist’s point of view, why settle for ready mixes, when it’s so much nicer to cook the stuff yourself. (Hark all ye who use pancake mixes from boxes). From the other extreme, why cook when it’s so much easier to use the stuff in packs. Me, I think I’d like people to cook stuff themselves, and if instant mixes provide a middle path to at least enter the kitchen and try banging around some utensils, so be it. Another interesting aspect of this exercise was that whenever we camp out and are purchasing ready to eat stuff, it’s always a very tentative experience, not knowing what to buy. Now we do.
I heated and ate some stuff myself, cooked some of the others and asked my mother to make some. Here’s the stuff they sent over:
- Gits Gulab Jamun Mix
- Gits Malai Burfi Mix
- Gits Idli Mix
- Gits Upma Mix
- Gits Paneer Tikka Masala
- Gits Dal Makhani
- Gits Veg Biryani
Gits Gulab Jamun Mix: The gulab jamuns were surprisingly easy to make and came out quite well too. If you’re making them, remember not to make the raw balls more than 2 cm in diameter. I remember the first time I tried making gulab jamuns a few years back. I made the balls the same size as what I thought the final product should look like and ended up with baseball sized gulab jamuns that broke apart at the first opportunity. Gits Gulab Jamuns tasted excellent. We shared them with the neighbours, all of whom thought they were quite delicious.
Gits Malai Burfi Mix: The malai burfi were easy to make too, and though they tasted good, they had a powdery texture, which wasn’t so nice.
Gits Idli Mix: We tried the Idlis next. Again, easy to make with minimal preparation required. They were soft, though not as soft as the ones made from scratch. Quite good and given the convenience, get full marks.
Gits Upma Mix: This unfortunately was one of two bummers in the lot. The texture wasn’t right and was full of chili seeds, which made it quite chili hot. The flavor too wasn’t quite up to the mark. Thumbs down for the Gits Idli Mix.
Gits Paneer Tikka Masala: This was the second bummer in the lot. It tasted horrendous with wonky textures and distorted flavors, which is par for the course when it comes to ready to eat foods and I wouldn’t ever buy it myself!
Gits Dal Makhani: The Dal Makhani was excellent and comparable to any other dal fresh or not. Creamy, buttery, delicious and full of flavor, this is now on top of my list for purchasing and keeping in the house for contingencies.
Gita Veg Biryani: Normally I would say, “Veg Biryani, what’s a veg biryani. Bah Humbug!”. This dish on the other hand was like the Dal Makhani – excellent! Each grain of rice was distinctly visible and the flavor of the vegetables were as if they were freshly cooked. Another ready to eat product that I wouldn’t mind stocking on a regular basis.
All the ready to eat food was easily heated by immersing them in a pan of boiling water and the ready to cook stuff was easy to cook and required very little preparation. Here’s a quick reference just in case:
- Gits Gulab Jamun Mix – Excellent
- Gits Malai Burfi Mix – Okay, good for emergencies
- Gits Idli Mix – Good
- Gits Upma Mix – Bad
- Gits Paneer Tikka Masala – Bad
- Gits Dal Makhani – Excellent
- Gits Veg Biryani – Excellent
End of the day, it was a nice experience reliving some childhood memories with the Gulab Jamun mix plus we had a bunch of fun cooking it all up. I do hope you try some of the above.
- Sid
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yes sid,
i totally agree wid u on d review about GITS ready to eat stuff.. being a chef myself, i luv 2 do all d hardowrk……but sometimes when u feel lazy dats d time dat gits gulab jamun mix comes in handy……..n believe me dat my 2yr+ daughter can make them on her own…………..
Such a sweet little synopsis of all your hardwork! The surprise item for me was the Dal Makani-have yet to find a packaged, edible one…can just imagine the husband doing cartwheels. Thank you for that. As for GJ’s have you tried Bapus-difficult to beat them in softness and authenticity. Difficult to find but worth the effort to rummage around dusty kinari shops!
@suparna: glad you agree.
@Monkess: Thank you. No I haven’t tried Bapu’s. Will stay on the lookout – thanks for the tip!
@Monkess: When I smelled the Dal, I immediately went over to Cherie [my 8 year old daughter] and asked her to take a sniff too. It was quite good – that batch anyway.
” ..that batch anyway..” ..is this your exit clause..lol? I am sure it is good-will try soon enough.
@Monkess: You caught me – yes, that *was* my exit clause/disclaimer
Hi Sid,
Thank you so much for such a comprehensive review… We have noted your feedback on our Paneer Tikka Masala and the Upma Mix and we will work towards improving it. Hope to see Gits in your shelves soon…
Thanks and Regards,
Gits Food
I would like to add that it is important to check the date on the packets of ready mixes you buy. For example and old packet of gulab jamun mix could mean that the gulab jamuns break on frying.