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Bombai motai (Sri Lankan candyfloss)
බොම්බයි මොටායි (bombai motai): pink, rose-scented spun sugar pulled into fluffy nests at home without a machine
On Galle Face Green at sunset, and at every Vesak fair, the bombai motai seller walks with a glass box of pink candyfloss and a little bell, handing it out in small cones. You can spin a home version without a machine: sugar boiled to the hard-crack stage, then flicked from a fork in thin threads over two spoon handles. Children love to watch, but they must stay well back while the sugar is hot. Contains no major allergens. Chef's tip: make it on a dry day; humidity melts the threads back into sticky sugar.
- Total time
- 20 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 7 oz sugar
- ¼ cup water
- 3 drops pink food colouring
- ¼ tsp rose water (optional)
- 1 tsp vegetable oilfor the spoon handles
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Lay newspaper on the floor around a worktop. Tape two wooden spoons to the edge so their oiled handles stick out 20 cm apart, using 1 tsp vegetable oil.
3 minStep 2: Put 7 oz sugar, ¼ cup water and 2 ⅛ oz liquid glucose or light corn syrup in a small heavy pan and stir over a medium heat just until the sugar dissolves. Then stop stirring.
3 minStep 3: Boil without stirring for 8–10 minutes, until a sugar thermometer reads 300°F (hard crack). Common mistake: stirring once it boils; the syrup crystallises into grains instead of spinning into threads.
10 minStep 4: Take off the heat, swirl in 3 drops pink food colouring and ¼ tsp rose water, and let it cool for 1–2 minutes until it falls from a fork in a thin, continuous thread. Hot sugar burns badly: keep children well away.
2 minStep 5: Dip a fork (or a whisk with the end cut off) into the syrup and flick it quickly back and forth over the handles, so fine threads drape between them. Gather the threads into fluffy nests and repeat until the syrup thickens; rewarm it gently if needed.
8 minStep 6: Twist the nests into paper cones and eat at once.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 140 kcal
- Protein
- 0 g
- Carbs
- 36 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does bombai motai (Sri Lankan candyfloss) take?
- About 20 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 15 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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