JALEBI for the Festival of Lights - Diwali

I
f you are a follower of my blog, you would have noticed that I usually do not celebrate a lot of festivals here. It's not because I am partial towards any,it's just that I am not sure whether I'd be able to follow it every year. But Christmas is celebrated big and wide here :-) And I am so waiting for this year's X'mas, as it is our first X'mas together, my first white X'mas and also my first X'mas outside India and my family being SO far away.

I had been planning to try out Jalebi for sometime now and it just happened to be today and so I thought I'd rather kill 2 birds with one stone :-) This is not the first time I am making Jalebi's. When I was in India, I had tried it out once and it did come out pretty nice.So this time around I thought I'd use a different recipe so that I can compare the results between the previous recipe. I would say, this recipe had a better outcome. Or maybe I have become a better cook now :-)

Anyhow, this recipe is a keeper and you all should try this sometime. You may have to be a bit patient, though. I tried squiggling with the batter and the batter wouldn't come out. It let out air into hot oil and I was seriously loosing my patience.My friend, Reeta, who was with me when I tried it out last afternoon , suggested that I keep the squeeze bottle nozzle - side down so that the batter will flow down...and it did! :-) Then we both had a great time making Jalebi's :-) Oh by the way, try to have it as hot as possible, there's nothing like it!

JALEBI
Recipe source: Hetal & Anuja
Please note that I made only half the quantity and it yielded me about 20-22 jalebi's.

Ingredients:
All purpose flour/Maida- 2 c
Cardamom powder-1/8 tsp
Yeast-1 tsp
Warm water-1/4 c
Cornflour/Cornstarch-2 tsp
Oil-1 tsp
Yoghurt-1 tbsp
Warm water- 3/4 c

For the syrup:
Sugar-1 1/4 c
Water-1cup
Lime juice-1 tsp
Red food colour- a pinch
Cardamom powder-1/4 tsp

Method:

• Dissolve the yeast in 1/4 c warm water and keep it aside for 10 mins until frothy.
• Mix rest of the ingredients together and add in the yeast mixture.
• Place this bowl in another bowl filled with some warm water. Cover the bowl with the mix with a lid.
• Leave this in a warm place and let the mix rise for 45 mins.
• Once it's risen, stir with a spoon , just to mix everything together.
• Pour into a mustard/sauce bottle and keep aside.

During the last 5 mins of the dough rising, make the syrup for the jalebi and also heat the oil for frying.

For the syrup:

• Heat everything together on high for 2 mins. Reduce the flame to a simmer.

Making the Jalebi:

• When the oil is hot, squeeze out some batter from the bottle and move your hand in a circular motion till you form one jalebi. You might have to go round and round 5-6 times. Make sure you don't leave any loose ends because the jalebi will be open, otherwise.
• Fry till golden on one side, the flip it over. When the bubbles subside, they are done.
• Transfer the hot jalebi's into the simmering sugar syrup. 
• Do not leave it for more than 30 seconds in it.Turn them and make sure the sugar syrup is coated on either side.
• Transfer them to a plate and serve them hot!

Verdict:
It was perfectly sweet, juicy and crunchy.We really enjoyed this treat! I don't think it can get any simpler or easier to make at home. If you are having guests coming for lunch or dinner, you can surely make this ahead and serve it to them. Jalebi's have a very high 'oomph' factor attached to it :-)

So here I am, wishing all my readers a very happy & safe Diwali! ~*Enjoy your day*~