Lakri mithaiSugar-coated spiced dough sticks
Diwali is a public holiday in Fiji, and Indo-Fijian families spend the week before it frying sweets by the tin to share with friends and neighbours; lakri, 'wooden sticks', is the one children reach for first. Short sticks of dough flavoured with ginger and cardamom are fried until hard and crisp, then tossed in a sugar syrup cooked until it seizes, so each stick is coated in a dry, frosty white crust. Common mistake: tossing too early or too late; cook the syrup to the soft-ball stage, when a drop in cold water forms a soft ball, then keep stirring the sticks off the heat until the syrup turns white and grainy and clings. Chef's tip: let the fried sticks cool completely before coating, so they stay crunchy under the sugar.























