Jalebi reminds me of my hometown, Gwalior, which is famous for its chaat, poha and jalebi. Although this dish is made differently across different parts of the country, the taste of the jalebi from Gwalior is unattainable. Since I was in lockdown away from home, I couldn’t stop reminiscing about the amazing desserts from Gwalior.
Ingredients
- 1 Cup All-Purpose Flour (maida)
- 1/2 Cup Curd
- Ghee/Oil (for frying)
- Sugar (for chashni)
- Kesar, Pistachio and Almonds (for garnishing)
Preparation
Prep: 20 minutes
Cooking: 20 minutes
- Fermentation time – one / two hours.
- Mix all-purpose flour and dahi. Keep it to ferment in a warm place (microwave works best) for at least 1-2 hours for good results.
- Once fermented, whisk the batter and add warm water with a teaspoon if it feels heavy. The batter should be of pouring consistency.
- Pour the batter in the piping bag (or use a milk packet, place it on a glass, fill the batter, tie it together and slit the corner to make jalebis).
- Heat the oil or ghee (ghee recommended) in the flat base pan with at least 3 inches of height. As your palm starts feeling the warmth of the oil, put a drop of the batter to check the temperature. It should rise at the top.
- Now comes the best part, frying the jalebis. I had made a rhythm for it. Hold the cone with four fingers and a thumb at the top. Now make two full circles and end after halfway through the third circle.
- After a minute, the jalebi will turn brown, flip it using a pair of tongs and fry them from the other side as well.
- Make the sugar syrup of 1-string consistency. After the jalebis come to room temperature, dip them in the sugar syrup and serve (please make sure you don’t put hot jalebis in the hot syrup, the steam tends to take away the crisp leaving behind soggy jalebis).
- Garnish them with kesar, pistachio and almond shavings.
