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Pakan pitha
Fried rice flowers in date syrup
পাকান পিঠা (pakan pitha): flower-shaped fried rice pitha dipped in date-jaggery syrup
Pakan pitha belongs to the long nights of the Bengali month of Poush, when village kitchens in Rajshahi, Bogura and the Mymensingh plains make batch after batch for guests and for relatives coming home for the harvest. Smaller and quicker than nakshi pitha, each cake is cut into a flower and stamped with a carved wooden pitha mould or the tines of a fork, fried until crunchy, then dipped in syrup made with khejur gur, the date-palm jaggery that gives it a smoky, caramel colour and taste. The outside softens slightly in the syrup while the centre stays crisp, and they are eaten warm with tea or kept in a tin for visitors. Frying straight from the board with the dough warm and sticky makes the shapes collapse, so let the cut flowers dry for 10 minutes first. Chef's tip: a little sugar in the dough helps the pitha colour evenly.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
For the dough
- 1 ¼ cups water
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 9 oz fine rice flourplus extra for dusting
For the syrup
- 1 ¾ oz sugar
- ¾ cup water
To fry
- 2 cups vegetable oilfor deep frying
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Bring 1 ¼ cups water, 1 pinch salt and 1 tbsp sugar to the boil, add 9 oz fine rice flour all at once and stir hard until it forms a lump; cover off the heat for 10 minutes.
3 minStep 2: Knead the warm dough for 5 minutes until smooth.
5 minStep 3: Roll out to 5 mm thick and cut out flowers with a 6 cm flower cutter. Press a pattern into each with a wooden mould, the tines of a fork or the tip of a knife, and leave on a dusted tray for 10 minutes to dry a little.
15 minStep 4: Simmer 7 oz date-palm jaggery (khejur gur) or other jaggery, 1 ¾ oz sugar and ¾ cup water for 8–10 minutes until it thickens to a light syrup that coats a spoon.
10 minStep 5: Heat 2 cups vegetable oil to about 325°F and fry the pitha in batches for 4–5 minutes, turning, until crisp and golden.
25 minStep 6: Dip each batch into the warm syrup for 30 seconds, lift out and drain on a rack. Serve warm or keep in an airtight tin for 3 days.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 3 g
- Carbs
- 62 g
- Fat
- 8 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pakan pitha take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 35 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.
- What can I use instead of date-palm jaggery (khejur gur) or other jaggery?
- Dark brown or muscovado sugar, same amount.
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