IndianGujiya
Sweet filled pastries
गुझिया: Holi's crimped pastries filled with mawa, semolina, nuts and sugar
In Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and across the Hindi belt, the days before Holi are for making gujiya: the women of the house sit together rolling, filling and crimping hundreds of these half-moon pastries, which are then offered to guests between rounds of colour. The filling is mawa roasted until grainy and golden, mixed with ghee-toasted semolina, coconut, nuts and powdered sugar; Maharashtra's karanji is the cousin with a coconut filling. The common mistake is frying on high heat, which blisters the pastry and leaves it raw and chewy inside; gujiya should fry slowly until crisp and pale gold. Chef's tip: add the powdered sugar only once the mawa has cooled completely, or it melts and the filling turns sticky.
- Prep
- 60 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Serves
- 12
- Per serving
- 310 kcal
Ingredients
For the pastry
- 9 oz plain flour (maida)
- 2 ⅛ oz gheemelted
- ½ cup cold wateras needed
For the filling
- 7 oz mawa (khoya)crumbled
- 2 tbsp fine semolina (sooji)
- 1 tsp ghee
- 1 oz desiccated coconut
- 1 ⅜ oz almonds and cashewschopped
- ⅔ oz raisins
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- 3 ⅛ oz powdered sugar
To fry
Tick what you have; the rest goes in the basket.
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Rub 2 ⅛ oz ghee into 9 oz plain flour (maida) until a handful holds its shape when squeezed. Add ½ cup cold water little by little and knead to a stiff, smooth dough. Cover and rest 30 minutes.
35 minStep 2: Toast 2 tbsp fine semolina (sooji) in 1 tsp ghee over low heat for 3 minutes until fragrant. Add 7 oz mawa (khoya) and roast, stirring, for 6–8 minutes until it turns grainy and light golden and smells of caramelised milk.
10 minStep 3: Tip into a bowl and cool completely, then mix in 1 oz desiccated coconut, 1 ⅜ oz almonds and cashews, ⅔ oz raisins, ½ tsp ground cardamom and 3 ⅛ oz powdered sugar.
20 minStep 4: Roll small balls of dough into 10 cm circles, place 1 heaped tbsp filling on one half, wet the edge, fold and press. Crimp the edge by twisting it over itself, or trim with a gujiya mould. Keep covered.
30 minStep 5: Heat 3 cups ghee or neutral oil for deep-frying in a kadhai or deep pan, filling it no more than a third of the way, to 300°F; a pinch of dough or batter dropped in should rise slowly with tiny bubbles. Never leave the hot fat unattended.
6 minStep 6: Fry 4–5 gujiya at a time over low-medium heat for 7–8 minutes, turning, until crisp and pale golden all over. Drain on a rack, cool fully and store airtight for up to 2 weeks.
30 min
KrazyBadal
Reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to cook it.
Rate this recipe
Sign in to rate and review this recipe.
You might also like
Chana masala
A North Indian staple that comes together from the store cupboard. Toasted cumin, slow-softened onion and a good spoonful of garam masala give tinned chickpeas real depth. Serve with rice, naan or a stack of warm rotis.
Kaju curryCashew curry
Walk along any wedding buffet in Pune, Mumbai or Ahmedabad and there is usually a chafing dish of kaju curry near the paneer, with guests going back for seconds. Whole cashews are fried in ghee until golden, which makes them crunchy outside and buttery inside, then folded into a rich onion and tomato gravy thickened with more cashews, finished with cream and kasuri methi. The gravy is orange, smooth and rounded with a touch of sweetness; it should taste of roasted nuts and gentle spice, not fire. Gujarati restaurants often serve a spicier Kathiyawadi version, but the wedding style here is the mild one. Eat it with butter naan, tandoori roti or jeera rice. Common mistake: adding the fried cashews too early; they soak up the gravy and turn soft, so fold them in just before serving. Chef's tip: keep a few fried cashews back and scatter them on top at the table so every spoonful has some crunch.
Bagara bainganBaby aubergines in peanut sesame sauce
Bagara baingan is a Hyderabadi wedding dish of small aubergines cooked whole in a dark, tangy gravy of roasted peanuts, sesame, dried coconut and tamarind. Unlike a Gujarati stuffed brinjal, the aubergines here are only quartered at the base and fried until silky, then left to soak up a thin-but-rich sauce that is finished with a tempering, the 'baghar' that gives the dish its name. It's sour, nutty and gently spiced, and is served with biryani, bagara rice or plain rice. Chef's tip: choose small, glossy purple aubergines that feel heavy for their size; soft, light ones are full of seeds and turn mushy before the gravy has a chance to cling.