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Gulab pak
Rose milk fudge
ગુલાબ પાક: Kutchi rose fudge of mawa cooked with sugar and gulkand, topped with pistachios
The sweet shops of Bhuj and Mandvi in Kutch sell gulab pak in pale pink slabs that smell of summer roses, and it is a favourite to carry home after a trip to the Rann or a family wedding. Mawa is cooked down with sugar and gulkand, the sun-cured rose-petal preserve, so the fudge is soft and grainy with little chewy flecks of petal through it. The mistake to watch for is adding the gulkand too early: cooked for long, it darkens and turns the fudge brown and toffee-like. Chef's tip: a few drops of rose water stirred in right at the end lift the perfume without making it taste soapy.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 16
Ingredients
For the pak
- 14 oz fresh mawa (khoya)grated
- 4 oz sugar
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp rose water
- 1 drop pink food colouring (optional)
- 1 tsp gheefor the tray
To top
- ⅞ oz pistachiosslivered
- 1 tbsp dried edible rose petals (optional)
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Grease an 18 cm square tray with 1 tsp ghee.
1 minStep 2: Cook 14 oz fresh mawa (khoya) in a heavy non-stick pan over low heat, stirring, for 6–8 minutes until soft and glossy.
8 minStep 3: Add 4 oz sugar and stir continuously. It will turn runny, then thicken again in 8–10 minutes; cook until it starts to leave the sides of the pan.
10 minStep 4: Stir in 2 ⅞ oz gulkand (rose-petal preserve), ½ tsp ground cardamom and 1 drop pink food colouring and cook 3–4 minutes more, until the mixture gathers into one soft mass.
4 minStep 5: Take off the heat, add ½ tsp rose water and spread into the tray. Scatter ⅞ oz pistachios and 1 tbsp dried edible rose petals over and press them in.
3 minStep 6: Cool for 2 hours, then cut into 16 squares. Keep chilled for up to a week.
120 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 130 kcal
- Protein
- 3 g
- Carbs
- 16 g
- Fat
- 6 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does gulab pak take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 16 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
- What can I use instead of ghee?
- Butter, same amount (keep the heat a little lower, butter burns sooner).
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