Jalebi Indian Desert #NorthIndianDish #SweetDish #sweettooth

Ingredients

for jalebi batter:

• 1 cup all purpose flour (maida) or 125 grams maida
• 2 tablespoon besan (gram flour)
• 1/8 teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
• 1 pinch baking soda Or ¼ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup water or 250 ml water
• 1 to 2 tablespoon all purpose flour (maida) to be added later after the batter has fermented

for sugar syrup:

• 1 cup sugar or 150 grams sugar
• ½ cup water or 125 ml water
• ¼ teaspoon saffron strands (kesar)
• oil for deep frying (you can also use ghee for frying)

Instructions

preparing jalebi batter:

1. in a mixing bowl, take 1 cup (125 grams) all purpose flour or maida. add 2 tbsp besan or gram flour, a pinch of baking soda and 1/8 tsp turmeric powder.
2. mix all the above dry ingredients with a spoon or spatula.
3. then add water. the amount of water to be added depends on the quality of flour used. i added 1 cup water. depending on the quality of flour and besan, you can add from ¾ to 1 cup water.
4. with the spatula or spoon, first mix. break the small or tiny lumps with the spatula or spoon while mixing.
5. then in round circular directions stir the batter briskly for 4 minutes. this adds volume to the batter and makes it even and smooth.
6. the batter should have a flowing consistency. cover and keep the batter to ferment in a warm place for 12 to 15 hours. i kept for 15 hours. if you live in a cold climate, you can keep for 20 to 24 hours.
7. this is how the batter looks the next day. you will see small bubbles on the top.
8. stir the batter and if you carefully see, the batter would have become thinner than what it was before fermentation.
9. so to thicken the batter again, add 1 to 2 tbsp of all purpose flour.
10. with a spoon mix very well.
11. now pour this batter in the squeezy tomato ketchup bottles that we get in the market. you can also use coconut shell and make a small hole in it. you can also use a piping bag or make your own with butter paper. depending on the capacity of the bottle, you can pour less or more in it.

preparing sugar syrup:

1. take 1 cup sugar in a pan. add 1/4 tsp saffron strands to it. do add saffron as it gives a nice orange yellow color and also its aroma to the jalebis.
2. add 1/2 cup water.
3. keep this pan on stove top on low flame and begin to stir, so that the sugar dissolves.
4. on a low to medium flame, cook the sugar syrup.
5. cook till you get one string consistency in the sugar syrup.
6. once you get the one string consistency, switch off the flame and add 1/4 tsp lime or lemon juice. stir well. keep the sugar syrup on the burner itself so that it remains warm when you add the jalebis in it.

frying jalebis:

1. heat oil for deep frying in a kadai or pan. you can also use ghee or half-half of oil and ghee. ghee gives a better flavor.
2. to check the temperature of oil, add a tiny amount of batter to the oil. if it comes up quickly and gradually the oil is hot enough for the jalebis to be fried. the frying temperature is 350 degrees fahrenheit/176 degrees celsius.
3. now squeeze the bottle and make concentric rings with the batter.
4. either start from the center and move outside or vice versa. be careful while making the jalebis as the oil is hot.
5. you won't get perfect shapes as the jalebis keep on moving while you make the circles. this does require practice and it also depends on what equipment you are using to make the jalebis.
6. when one side is partly cooked, turn over and fry the other side.
7. some jalebis will be cooked faster than others.
8. fry till the oil stops sizzling and the jalebis are a light golden. remove with a tongs or a bamboo skewer. while removing shake to drain the extra oil.
9. then immediately put the fried jalebis in the sugar syrup. the sugar syrup should be slightly hot or warm when you add the jalebis in it.
10. turn over after after a minute so that both sides are coated with the syrup.
11. keep them in the syrup for about 2 to 3 minutes. if you keep for two minutes, they will be lightly colored and if you keep for 3 minutes, they will have a deep color.
12. remove with a wooden skewer or tongs. shake lightly so that the excess sugar syrup falls back in the pan. place them in a plate or tray lined with a foil or butter paper.
13. prepare all jalebis this way. its better to have a help while doing so. otherwise its kind of multi tasking.
14. serve jalebis hot, warm or at room temperature. the leftovers can be kept in an airtight container and refrigerated.