THIS SWEET DIWALI TRADITION IS EVERYONE’S FAVOURITE

Try your hand at mithai-making for Diwali with recipes from Preena and Arvinda Chauhan.

GULAB JAMUNS

2 tsp green cardamom seeds

2 cups whole milk powder

¼ cup all-purpose flour

2 tbsp fine semolina (suji)

¼ teaspoon baking soda

¼ cup creamy dahi or Balkan-style yogurt plus extra if necessary

Sunflower oil for deep-frying

Pistachios, finely ground, to garnish

Rosewater syrup

4 cups water

3 cups raw cane sugar

1 tsp saffron

1 tsp rosewater

In a heavy mortar and pestle, coarsely grind the cardamom until all the seeds are cracked.

In a large paraat or bowl, combine the milk powder, flour, semolina, cracked cardamom and baking soda and mix thoroughly. Add the dahi and mix to form a firm dough. The dough will start off sticky but will come together as it combines. If it looks too dry, add more dahi, about 1 tbsp or more if necessary. If mixing the dough with your hands, remove any excess sticky dough by simply taking a little flour and rubbing your hands together. Set the dough aside for 5 minutes to rest.

For the rosewater syrup:

In a large pot, bring the water to a boil, then add the sugar and stir to dissolve. Bring the mixture back to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Simmer for 35 to 40 minutes to reduce to a syrup, making sure the syrup doesn’t get too thick. The desired consistency is neither too watery nor too thick. Stir in the saffron and the rosewater. With the lid on, keep the syrup on low heat, as the gulab jamuns should be placed in warm syrup.

Gently knead the gulab jamun dough and then make small, even-sized, smooth round balls 1 inch in diameter. Be sure that each ball is extremely smooth, with no cracks.

Line a tray with paper towel.

Fill a kadhai, wok or deep-fryer with oil 1½ inches deep. Heat the oil on medium. Test the oil temperature by dropping a little dough into the hot oil. If the dough immediately floats to the top, the oil is ready. At this point, start carefully adding the dough balls to the hot oil, deep-frying only a few at a time so as not to crowd them. Fry the balls evenly until they become dark golden brown on all sides, taking care that they don’t burn. You can use a fork to turn the balls in the oil. Drain on paper towel and transfer immediately to the warm syrup. Allow the gulab jamuns to soak in the syrup thoroughly before serving. For best results, soak overnight.

Sprinkle with pistachios. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week.