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Chikki

A jaggery syrup made with as little water as possible, rolled to six or eight millimetres.

Vegetarian, but not vegan — contains dairy (ghee).

Ingredients

Method

  1. A JAGGERY SYRUP MADE WITH AS LITTLE WATER AS POSSIBLE, ROLLED TO SIX OR EIGHT MILLIMETRES. Its article gives the whole sequence and both of those numbers: preparation CONSISTS OF FIRST PREPARING THE HOT JAGGERY SYRUP WITH A MINIMUM OF WATER, ADDING NUTS TO THE SYRUP TO COAT THEM, AND THEN TRANSFERRING THE NUTS TO A WOODEN MOULD, THEN ROLLING THEM TO A THICKNESS OF ABOUT 6-8 MM USING A WOODEN ROLLER, THEN PLACING INTO A STEEL PLATE FOR COOLING, CUTTING INTO SLABS.
  2. THE MINIMUM OF WATER IS THE INSTRUCTION THAT MATTERS. Two tablespoons to three hundred grams of jaggery. Every extra spoonful is more boiling to drive off, and jaggery boiled long goes bitter before it goes hard.
  3. AND EACH VERSION TAKES THE NAME OF WHATEVER IS IN IT, WHICH THE ARTICLE SPELLS OUT: the varieties are distinguished by THE INGREDIENTS USED, WHICH INCLUDE PUFFED OR ROASTED BENGAL GRAM, SESAME, PUFFED RICE, BEATEN RICE, OR KHOBRA (DESICCATED COCONUT), AND OTHER NUTS SUCH AS ALMONDS, CASHEWS AND PISTACHIOS. Peanut is the common one and the method is the same for any of them.
  4. WARM THE NUTS BEFORE THEY GO IN. Cold nuts dropped into hot syrup chill it and it sets before it is spread. Five minutes in a low oven is enough.
  5. MELT THE JAGGERY WITH THE WATER AND TAKE IT TO THE HARD-CRACK STAGE. A drop in cold water should snap rather than bend. This is the difference between a brittle and a chewy toffee, and there is no going back from under-done.
  6. THE GHEE GOES IN AT THE END OF THE BOIL, NOT THE START. A tablespoon stirred through just before the nuts. It keeps the slab from welding itself to the board.
  7. STIR THE NUTS THROUGH AND TIP IT OUT AT ONCE. Onto a greased board or a greased tray. You have about forty seconds of working time.
  8. ROLL IT THIN WITH A GREASED ROLLER AND SCORE IT WHILE IT IS WARM. Six to eight millimetres, as the article says, which is one nut thick and no more. Score into squares after a minute and snap along the lines when cold. In a tin it keeps for weeks.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under India · All recipes