Rajasthani Ghevar

I have experimented with a lot of stuffs in my kitchen and making the spoons and ladles dance in the pan  is my hobby. Well, that surely explains that there must have been instances when the spoon fell, the oil splashed, the ladle over-danced, and a mess was ready to bewilder me. In all these days of experimental cooking, I've worked on sweets the most, and with no surprise, I love the name my hubby has given me: 'Chhotu Halwai'... :D

I have tried from Jalebis to Ras Malai, from laddoos to halwa, from burfi to kheer, but there is just one sweet that makes my heart pound whenever I go for it, because it is the only recipe I find not too easy to handle. The first reason being that I never saw my mom cooking it, and the other that I do not have the proper rings and molds required for it, so the confidence is always in a shaking mode when I plan for it. I have a strong thinking that if you know how to handle the spoiled, you can handle everything, so I always make sure that I do not lose my patience and calmness when I'm doing the thing I love, especially cooking and painting. If something goes wrong, I always try and find out a solution to that, rather than pushing it in the dustbin.

Well, after this long n boring lecture, I of course have an exciting recipe for you. I got this recipe from nishamadhulika.com and I tell you, if you follow the way she has explained, Ghevar is not going to be tough for you.

GHEVAR:

Ghevar is a Rajasthani sweet prepared with maida ( all purpose flour) and is known for its rich flavor and web-like forms. It is disc-shaped, and made from ghee, flour and sugar syrup. There are many varieties of Ghevar, such as plain, mawa and malai ghevar.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 45 minutes

Makes 6-7 small ghevars

 

Ingredients:

1. Maida (All Purpose Flour) : 1 and a half cup

2. Water: 1 and 3/4 cup

3. Milk: 1/2 cup

4. Ghee/ Clarified Butter: 1/2 cup

5. Dry fruits for garnishing

For syrup:

1. Sugar: 1 1/2 cup

2. Water: 1 cup

For the recipe of Rabdi, click here

 

Method:

1. Sift the flour, and keep it aside.
2. Take melted ghee and milk in a large pan and mix them well.
3. Add maida to it slowly, and keep mixing very softly. Do not over-mix.
4. Now add water to this dough gradually, and not in one shot. Pour in a little water and mix with the dough; be careful that there are no lumps formed. Keep on adding water slowly, and make a smooth, lump free batter.
5. Take a round deep vessel ( I used a 1/2 kg capacity wali Patili/ Tapeli) and fill more than half of it with ghee. Heat it on high flame till the ghee gets really hot. Check the correct temperature by dropping a small portion of the batter and see if it immediately comes up, and doesn't stick to the bottom.
6. Once the ghee is optimally hot, take a spoonful of batter ( I use a big spoon), and pour it in the middle of the vessel in a thin stream from 1 foot height. You could actually increase or stretch the height as much as you can; greater the height, better the texture. I stretch out my hand fully over the vessel to reach the best height I can before I pour in the batter. 
7. As soon as the batter touches the hot ghee, bubbles start to appear. Be sure that the ghee bubbles do not start jumping out of the vessel. If you see that the bubbles are getting high enough, stop pouring for a while, and continue later.
8. After the first spoon, wait for a few seconds till the bubbles settle, and then pour the second spoonful. Repeat this for 3-4 times. This actually depends on the size of the vessel; the bigger the size, more are the number of spoons required.
9. If the ghee is not hot enough, the batter will start sticking to the bottom, so keep the flame on medium to high depending on the temperature required. 
10. When you pour in the batter, you'll see that the batter starts scattering and collects near the sides in a circular fashion. As you keep increasing the batter, the disc starts taking its correct shape. In the meanwhile, if the batter sticks in the middle after pouring, use a thin rod ( I used the back of a Phirni/ Mathni) to detach that. Keep on increasing the centre space by using that rod after the batter has settled. After 3-4 pourings, a complete disc will be formed. 
11. Let this disc go golden brown on medium flame. The sides will be slightly more golden. 
12. Once it is properly fried, take it out very carefully by inserting that thin rod in the middle and lifting the whole ghevar with it. 
13. Keep the ghevar slightly tilted on a plate to remove excess ghee. Similarly, make 6-7 ghevars.
14. For preparing syrup, take 1 and a half cups sugar and 1 cup water in a pan. Bring them to boil with occasional stirring. After the boil, heat it on low flame for 5-6 minutes till you get a one-string consistency.
15. Now immerse the ghevar in the hot syrup with the help of that rod, and take it out after 5-10 seconds. Do not keep the ghevar in the syrup for long, as it will make them very soggy and wet.
16. Again keep them tilted in a plate to remove excess syrup.
17. Let them dry in open for about 1 hour.
18. Now you can store them in closed containers and refrigerate for further use.
19. If you wish, you could garnish the ghevars with sliced almonds and pistachios.
20. For making Malai/Rabdi Ghevar, apply a coat of Rabdi on the top and sprinkle dry fruits on it.

Suggestions:

1. Dry ghevars without syrup can easily be stored for 15 days. When you want to have them, dip them in the hot syrup an hour back and serve then.
2. While making the batter, if lumps still go stubborn and trouble you, simply use a blender/mixer for getting the smooth consistency. Be careful not to blend it for a long time else the ghee would separate; just 1 round of mixing is enough to break the lumps.
3. If you find the batter sticking to the bottom, do not panic; take a break, a deep breath, put the flame on high, and try after 1 minute. I'm sure the trick will work. 
4. Pour the batter in very thin streams, almost like pouring drops.
5. Keep the height for pouring at its max.
6. Do not overdo pouring. Begin with 3-4 spoons and gradually increase if you go successful. 
7. After dipping in the syrup, keep them for some time; do not just be ready to jump over and eat, else you'll find them a bit harder.
8. For preparing instant rabdi, use this recipe. Top up the sweet ghevar with rabdi and sliced nuts.

Submitting this recipe to:
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