Mawa Gujiya(Chashni wali Gujiya)
Wishing you all a very happy and colorful Holi!!!
The most colorful and vibrant festival of India - Holi.
It’s time to brush aside our weaknesses, pain and bitter past memories and smear each other with the colours of love, happiness, joy, harmony, trust and tolerance.Let’s paint this World with beautiful colors of joy, happiness, smiles and laughter.
With Holi just round the corner, I am sure every household is gearing up to prepare their favorite sweets. No Indian festival is complete without the sweets.
But the most quintessential sweet without which Holi is incomplete is Gujiya. Gujiya is one of the staple desserts prepared on Holi.Gujiyas are sweet dumplings or fried crispy flaky pastries stuffed with sweet Mawa filling. The filling is extremely simple to make. Mawa combined with desiccated coconut, sugar and dry nuts creates the most yummy filling. This filling is stuffed in circular discs, folded, edges are sealed, then they are deep fried on low heat and get a glaze of sugar syrup.
Nowadays people make Gujiyas in different ways- baked versions, air fried versions, or healthy versions, but the recipe I am sharing today is of timeless classic version, deep fried and drenched in sugar syrup. Just the way I like them!!
There are six main steps in making this traditional dessert-
1. Making the dough
2. Making the filling
3. Filling and Shaping the gujiyas
4. Frying the gujiya
5. Making the sugar syrup
6. Dunking the Gujiyas in sugar syrup
If you don’t want to dip them in sugar syrup you can skip that.
TIPS FOR MAKING PERFECT GUJIYAS
— Always add warm ghee in the flour.
— Pastry dough should be stiff.
— Give the dough resting time of minimum 30 minutes. Cover it with a moist cloth.
— Do not over fill the Gujiyas. Otherwise filling might come out of the Gujiya while frying.
— Always seal the edges properly with the help of water. I forgot to seal my first few and they opened while frying.
— For making best crispy crusty gujiyas the temperature of the oil is the key. You have to fry them at medium-low temperature of oil/ ghee. Correct temperature of frying will give you the best gujiyas, but you have to be very patient here.
— The sugar syrup should not be of a stringy consistency. We want a thick viscous sugar syrup, like honey.
— Do not dunk hot Gujiyas in sugar syrup, otherwise your Gujiyas will become soggy.
Gujiyas should be at room temperature and sugar syrup should be just warm when you dunk your Gujiyas in it.
— Do not leave Gujiyas in the sugar syrup for more than 3-4 minutes.
— Let them air dry for some time and then store in airtight containers.
Now, let’s start making Gujiyas.
INGREDIENTS:
—For dough (Gujiya Pastry)
All purpose flour/ Maida- 3 cups
Clarified butter/ Ghee- 1/4th cup+ 2 tablespoons
Water- 1/2 cup
—For filling
Ghee/ Clarified butter- 1 teaspoon
Mawa/ khoya- 200 grams
Desiccated Coconut- 1/2 cup
Sugar powder- 3/4th cup
Almonds- 15, chopped
Cashew- 15, chopped
Pistachios- 15, chopped
Raisins- 2 tablespoon
Chironji- 2 tablespoon
Cardamom powder- 2 teaspoon
Fennel powder- 1 teaspoon
Saffron strands- 15-20
Rose water- 1 tablespoon
— For Sugar Syrup or Chashni
Water- 1.5 cup
Sugar- 2 cups
Saffron strands- 25-30
— For frying
Oil or Ghee
— For Garnishing
Dried Rose petals, Pista slivers and Silver Varq
DIRECTIONS:
1-MAKING THE DOUGH
Take flour in a bowl.
Heat ghee in a small pan or bowl. Pour this hot ghee on the flour.
Rub flour and ghee with your fingertips to form a bread crumb like texture. Rub for about 4-5 minutes.
Start adding water little by little and bind the dough. Knead the dough for about 4-5 minutes.
Knead it till it becomes firm to touch.
Cover the dough with a moist cloth and keep aside for 30 minutes.
2- MAKING THE FILLING
We will start by roasting the nuts first.
Heat a non stick or heavy bottom pan.
Add ghee.
Add in chironji and roast it for about a minute on medium flame.
Add in rest of the chopped nuts too and roast them for a minute.
Add in desiccated coconut. Mix and roast everything for 2 more minutes.
After that switch off the flame.
After that add in Rose water and mix everything well.
Add in cardamom powder, fennel powder and saffron strands.
Take out this roasted mix in a bowl.
Wipe clean the same pan put crumbled mawa in the pan. Keep the heat on low.
Keep stirring the mawa. It will start melting.
Cook the khoya properly until it releases fat and comes together. It will look like dough.
It will take about 4-5 minutes to roast the mawa.
After that switch off the heat.
Mix the roasted nuts in the roasted mawa.
When the mixture comes to room temperature add in the sugar powder and mix everything well.
(If you will add sugar powder in the hot mix, it will start melting)
If you feel that the stuffing is dry then add few teaspoons of warm milk.
(1 or 2 tablespoon will be enough)
Stuffing or filling is ready.
3- FILLING AND SHAPING THE GUJIYAS
Give it a quick knead to the dough.
Divide the dough into about 20 equal parts.
Roll each part in your palms to make small balls.
Keep them in a bowl or plate. Keep them covered with a moist cloth.
Next, take one ball and with the help of a rolling pin roll it to a circle of about 3 to 4 inches in diameter.
Place this rolled out disk into the Gujiya mold.
With your fingertip, apply water all over the circumference edge.
Put about 1-1.5 tablespoons of the filling mixture in the center and fold the mold to close it. Press firmly.
Make sure the edges are completely sealed otherwise the gujiya may break in the oil.
Remove the excess dough from the sides.
You can make all the gujiyas in the same way.
You can keep the removed excess dough together and use it to make more gujiyas.
Arrange all the rolled and filled gujiyas on a plate and keep them covered with a moist cloth.
4- FRYING THE GUJIYAS
Heat enough oil, ghee or mixture of both in a heavy bottomed kadai or pan on medium heat.
Before frying, test the temperature of oil. To test if the oil is hot enough, drop a small piece of dough into the oil. If the dough sizzles right away and comes to the surface gradually the oil is perfectly hot.
If the dough sits at the bottom, the oil is still cold. If the piece of dough comes up briskly and quickly, the oil is too hot.
Next, gently slid the 4-5 gujiyas (depending upon the size of your kadai) in the oil.
Do not overcrowd the kadai.
Once they come up slowly, turn them gently so as to fry the other side too.
Deep fry till they have become golden brown on all the sides.
Each batch will take about 10-12 minutes to fry.
Once they are done take them out with the help of a slotted spoon and drain them on an absorbent paper.
Similarly fry all the gujiyas.
5- MAKING THE SUGAR SYRUP
For making sugar syrup, boil water and sugar in a pan until sugar dissolves.
Add in saffron strands too.
Keep cooking till syrup is slightly thickened and sticky.
It should be viscous like honey.
Switch off the heat and Let this sugar syrup become warm.
6- DUNKING THE GUJIYAS IN SUGAR SYRUP
Once the sugar syrup becomes warm and all the fried gujiyas come at room temperature dip gujiyas in sugar syrup gently.
Leave them for 3-4 minutes.
After that take them out in a plate. Let them air dry for some time.
Let the gujiyas cool completely before storing them in an airtight container.
Garnish prepared Gujiyas with Dried Rose petals, Pista slivers and Silver Varq.
Enjoy the scrumptious treat with family and friends!!
Recipe Card
Mawa Gujiya(Chashni wali Gujiya)
Gujiya is a very popular Indian sweet shaped like empanadas or dumplings that are filled with a stuffing of mawa, coconut and nuts. These Gujiyas are the perfect and popular festive sweet made specially during the festivals and especially on Holi. Holi and Gujiyas are almost synonymous.
INGREDIENTS:
—For dough (Gujiya Pastry)
All purpose flour/ Maida- 3 cups
Clarified butter/ Ghee- 1/4th cup+ 2 tablespoons
Water- 1/2 cup
—For filling
Ghee/ Clarified butter- 1 teaspoon
Mawa/ khoya- 200 grams
Desiccated Coconut- 1/2 cup
Sugar powder- 3/4th cup
Almonds- 15, chopped
Cashew- 15, chopped
Pistachios- 15, chopped
Raisins- 2 tablespoon
Chironji- 2 tablespoon
Cardamom powder- 2 teaspoon
Fennel powder- 1 teaspoon
Saffron strands- 15-20
Rose water- 1 tablespoon
— For Sugar Syrup or Chashni
Water- 1.5 cup
Sugar- 2 cups
Saffron strands- 25-30
— For frying
Oil or Ghee
— For Garnishing
Dried Rose petals, Pista slivers and Silver Varq
DIRECTIONS:
1-MAKING THE DOUGH
Take flour in a bowl.
Heat ghee in a small pan or bowl. Pour this hot ghee on the flour.
Rub flour and ghee with your fingertips to form a bread crumb like texture. Rub for about 4-5 minutes.
Start adding water little by little and bind the dough. Knead the dough for about 4-5 minutes.
Knead it till it becomes firm to touch.
Cover the dough with a moist cloth and keep aside for 30 minutes.
2- MAKING THE FILLING
We will start by roasting the nuts first.
Heat a non stick or heavy bottom pan.
Add ghee.
Add in chironji and roast it for about a minute on medium flame.
Add in rest of the chopped nuts too and roast them for a minute.
Add in desiccated coconut. Mix and roast everything for 2 more minutes.
After that switch off the flame.
After that add in Rose water and mix everything well.
Add in cardamom powder, fennel powder and saffron strands.
Take out this roasted mix in a bowl.
Wipe clean the same pan put crumbled mawa in the pan. Keep the heat on low.
Keep stirring the mawa. It will start melting.
Cook the khoya properly until it releases fat and comes together. It will look like dough.
It will take about 4-5 minutes to roast the mawa.
After that switch off the heat.
Mix the roasted nuts in the roasted mawa.
When the mixture comes to room temperature add in the sugar powder and mix everything well.
(If you will add sugar powder in the hot mix, it will start melting)
If you feel that the stuffing is dry then add few teaspoons of warm milk.
(1 or 2 tablespoon will be enough)
Stuffing or filling is ready.
3- FILLING AND SHAPING THE GUJIYAS
Give it a quick knead to the dough.
Divide the dough into about 20 equal parts.
Roll each part in your palms to make small balls.
Keep them in a bowl or plate. Keep them covered with a moist cloth.
Next, take one ball and with the help of a rolling pin roll it to a circle of about 3 to 4 inches in diameter.
Place this rolled out disk into the Gujiya mold.
With your fingertip, apply water all over the circumference edge.
Put about 1-1.5 tablespoons of the filling mixture in the center and fold the mold to close it. Press firmly.
Make sure the edges are completely sealed otherwise the gujiya may break in the oil.
Remove the excess dough from the sides.
You can make all the gujiyas in the same way.
You can keep the removed excess dough together and use it to make more gujiyas.
Arrange all the rolled and filled gujiyas on a plate and keep them covered with a moist cloth.
4- FRYING THE GUJIYAS
Heat enough oil, ghee or mixture of both in a heavy bottomed kadai or pan on medium heat.
Before frying, test the temperature of oil. To test if the oil is hot enough, drop a small piece of dough into the oil. If the dough sizzles right away and comes to the surface gradually the oil is perfectly hot.
If the dough sits at the bottom, the oil is still cold. If the piece of dough comes up briskly and quickly, the oil is too hot.
Next, gently slid the 4-5 gujiyas (depending upon the size of your kadai) in the oil.
Do not overcrowd the kadai.
Once they come up slowly, turn them gently so as to fry the other side too.
Deep fry till they have become golden brown on all the sides.
Each batch will take about 10-12 minutes to fry.
Once they are done take them out with the help of a slotted spoon and drain them on an absorbent paper.
Similarly fry all the gujiyas.
5- MAKING THE SUGAR SYRUP
For making sugar syrup, boil water and sugar in a pan until sugar dissolves.
Add in saffron strands too.
Keep cooking till syrup is slightly thickened and sticky.
It should be viscous like honey.
Switch off the heat and Let this sugar syrup become warm.
6- DUNKING THE GUJIYAS IN SUGAR SYRUP
Once the sugar syrup becomes warm and all the fried gujiyas come at room temperature dip gujiyas in sugar syrup gently.
Leave them for 3-4 minutes.
After that take them out in a plate. Let them air dry for some time.
Let the gujiyas cool completely before storing them in an airtight container.
Garnish prepared Gujiyas with Dried Rose petals, Pista slivers and Silver Varq.
Enjoy the scrumptious treat with family and friends!!