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Osmania biscuits
उस्मानिया बिस्कुट: Hyderabad's sweet-and-salty butter biscuits for dunking in Irani chai
Osmania biscuits are named after the last Nizam of Hyderabad, and they have been baked in the city's Irani bakeries for generations: round, crumbly, melt-in-the-mouth butter biscuits that are gently sweet with a distinct salty edge and a hint of cardamom. In old-city cafés, men linger over a plate of them and a cup of Irani chai in the early morning or after the evening prayers, dunking each one until it is just about to collapse. Chef's tip: chill the dough before cutting and baking; it keeps the biscuits round and thick instead of spreading thin.
- Total time
- 47 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
For the biscuits
Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Beat 4 ½ oz unsalted butter and 2 ⅞ oz icing sugar together in a bowl with a wooden spoon or electric whisk for 3–4 minutes, until pale, light and creamy.
4 minStep 2: Add ¾ tsp salt, 2 tbsp milk powder, 1 tbsp custard powder and ¼ tsp ground cardamom and beat again until smooth. The salt is part of the classic sweet-salty taste, so don't skip it.
Step 3: Sift in 7 oz plain flour (maida), ½ tsp baking powder and ¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda. Mix with a spatula, adding 1 ¼ tbsp milk a little at a time, until it just comes together into a soft dough. Common mistake: kneading it like bread; overworked dough gives hard, tough biscuits instead of short, crumbly ones.
Step 4: Wrap the dough and chill it for 20 minutes. Heat the oven to 350°F (300°F fan) and line a tray with baking paper.
20 minStep 5: Roll the dough out between two sheets of baking paper to 8–10 mm thick and cut out 6 cm rounds. Re-roll the trimmings once. Place them 3 cm apart and brush the tops with the remaining ¾ tbsp milk.
Step 6: Bake for 18–22 minutes, until the edges are light golden and the tops have fine cracks and a pale gold glaze. They will still feel slightly soft in the middle.
22 minStep 7: Cool on the tray for 10 minutes, then on a rack; they crisp as they cool. Store in an airtight tin for up to a week.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 280 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 33 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does osmania biscuits take?
- About 47 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 22 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- What can I use instead of unsalted butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
- What can I use instead of icing sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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