Shankarpali

Semolina in the dough with the maida, which is what makes it snap.

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

Ingredients

300 g maida, plain white flour
80 g fine semolina
120 g granulated sugar
100 g ghee
150 ml whole milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
oil for deep frying

Method

SEMOLINA IN THE DOUGH WITH THE MAIDA, WHICH IS WHAT MAKES IT SNAP. Its article's ingredient list is four things and the fourth is the one that matters: a DOUGH OF SUGAR, GHEE (OR BUTTER), MAIDA FLOUR, AND SEMOLINA. Maida alone gives a soft biscuit; the semolina gives the short, sandy break that this is eaten for.
AND IT NEED NOT BE SWEET AT ALL, WHICH THE ARTICLE SAYS OUTRIGHT. IT CAN BE SWEET, SOUR OR SPICY DEPENDING UPON HOW IT IS MADE. The version below is the sweet one; leave the sugar out and add salt, ajwain and chilli and the same dough is a savoury snack.
DISSOLVE THE SUGAR IN WARM MILK BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE. Granulated sugar rubbed into flour stays as grains and those grains burn in the oil, leaving dark specks.
RUB THE GHEE INTO THE FLOUR AND SEMOLINA FIRST. A hundred grams into three hundred and eighty. Squeezed in your fist it should hold its shape.
BRING IT TOGETHER WITH THE SWEETENED MILK AND KNEAD IT STIFF. Stiffer than a pastry. A slack dough puffs up in the oil like a puri instead of staying flat and hard.
REST IT TWENTY MINUTES, THEN ROLL IT FOUR MILLIMETRES THICK AND CUT DIAMONDS. A knife or a pastry wheel, cutting the sheet into strips one way and then across at an angle.
FRY THEM AT A LOW HEAT FOR TEN MINUTES, NOT A HIGH ONE FOR THREE. They should be pale gold and completely dry inside. This is the difference between something that keeps a month and something that is stale on Tuesday.
COOL THEM COMPLETELY BEFORE THEY GO IN A TIN. Its article notes the long shelf-life and that the sweet is eaten at Diwali, and traces its name to the Persian SHEKARPAREH.

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