Homemade Mawa Gujiya (Chashni Wali Gujiya)
Gujiya is deep fried, indian festive sweet made by stuffing flour pastry with mawa & nuts filling & coating in sugar syrup(chashni) for glossy finish.
Ingredients
For The Mawa & Coconut Filling
- 1 tablespoon ghee divided
- ¼ cup dessicated coconut
- ½ cup mixed nuts finely chopped ( I used almonds, cashews & pistachios)
- 3 tablespoon raisins
- 5 oz mawa (~150g) grated or crumbled
- ½ cup fine sugar
- ½ teaspoon green cardamom powder
For The Gujiya Dough
- 2 cup (300g) maida or all purpose flour
- 4 tablespoon (60g) ghee melted & slightly cooled (measure after melting)
- ½ cup (75ml) water cold or as needed
For The Chashni (Sugar Syrup)
- 1.5 cup sugar
- 1.5 cup water
- 6-8 saffron strands
- Ghee or Oil for frying
Instructions
Make The Gujiya Dough
- Sift the all purpose flour with a pinch of salt in a wide dish (parat) or a large mixing bowl.
- Add melted ghee and, using your hands, work the ghee into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse sand. The flour will feel silky soft once the ghee is incorporated.
- Slowly mix in the water and gently bring together to form make a firm dough. Do not knead the dough else gluten will form and your gujiya won't be soft. We have to make a stiff dough but it should not be dry. Don't worry about smoothening the dough too much. It takes 1-2 minutes for dough to come together. The amount of water needed will depend on the absorption quality of flour.
- Cover the dough with a damp cloth and set aside to rest for 30 minutes.
Make The Mawa Filling (While Dough is resting)
- In a heavy-bottomed pan (preferably non-stick), heat 1 teaspoon of ghee on low flame. Add the desiccated coconut and lightly toast it. Do not brown the coconut. Transfer the toasted coconut to a large bowl.
- Next, melt 2 more teaspoons of ghee in the same pan and add the chopped nuts and raisins. Toast them until they are lightly browned, then transfer them to the bowl with the coconut.
- Add the crumbled or grated khoya (mawa) to the same pan and cook on very low heat pressing with a spatula (if needed) until it softens. Stir continuously with a spatula to prevent it from sticking to the pan. Once the mawa softens, immediately transfer it to the same bowl with the coconut and nuts. Be careful not to let the mawa change color.
- Allow the mawa mixture to cool completely. Once cooled, add the cardamom powder and powdered sugar (boora), then mix well. The filling should be slighly moist or resemble a crumble. Set the khoya mixture aside or refrigerate it if you're preparing it a day in advance.
STUFF & SHAPE THE GUJIYAS
- In a small bowl, make a thick paste by mixing 2 tablespoon of flour with a 3 water. This flour glue will be used to seal the gujiya while folding.
- Once the dough has rested, divide it into equal portions and keep them covered with a damp cloth or damp paper towel. Apply some ghee on your hands and gently press and roll each portion between your palms to form a smooth ball.
- On a flat rolling surface, use a rolling pin to roll out each portion into a 3.5 to 4 inch circle. Try to keep the edges slightly thinner than the center. No dusting the surface with flour. If needed, use a little oil or melted ghee to help with rolling.Tip - If you have trouble rolling out even rounds, use a cookie cutter to achieve a perfect shape.
- Dip a finger into the flour glue we made earlier and spread it all around the edge of the rolled dough.
- Pick up the rolled dough and pinch the center of the edge on one side(see image). Press it to slightly close one end and form a pocket.
- Spoon a tablespoon of the mawa filling and bring all the edges of the dough together to form a crescent. Make sure the edges are completely sealed, else the filling will come out while frying.Tip :-Do not overstuff the gujiya else when you fry the gujiyas will puff up too much and tear.
- Make sure the edges are completely sealed, else the filling will come out while frying.Tip :-Do not overstuff the filling else when you fry the gujiyas will puff up too much and filling will come out.
- You can use the back of a fork or create a decorative edge by pressing the dough together. I personally use my hands to pinch and fold the dough over itself to create a pleated pattern. Alternatively, you can use a gujiya mold, which is available online, for a more uniform shape.
- Shape and stuff all the gujiya in similar manner. Keep all the shaped gujiyas on a tray covered with a damp cloth till ready to fry.
DEEP FRY THE GUJIYA
- Heat ghee or oil in a heavy pot (such as a cast iron kadai or Dutch oven) for frying the gujiyas. The oil should be deep enough to fully submerge the gujiyas. If you're using oil, add 2-3 tablespoons of ghee to enhance the flavor. Let heat up on low heat.
- Checking the oil temperature without thermometer - Add a small dough portion into the hot oil and if the dough rises slowly to the surface without sizzling, the oil is at right temperature. If it comes sizzling up, oil is very hot. If the dough sits at the bottom, it is not hot enough.
- Deep fry the gujiyas in small batches (4-5 at a time) on low heat, until light golden brown in color. It takes time to fry the gujiyas, don't rush please. Drain fried gujiyas on a paper towel. Your gujiyas are ready. If you dont want to coat them in sugar, cool them fully and store in an air tight container for 2 weeks.
Make Sugar Syrup
- Bring the sugar & water to a boil in a pot. Once sugar is dissolved and boiling,simmer for 5-6 minutes. We are not looking for any taar(string consistency). The sugar syrup should not thicken else your gujiyas wont be glossy. It should be thin & sticky (similar to honey). Add a few saffron strands to warm syrup and mix well.
- Place slightly cooled gujiyas in sugar syrup for at least 2 minutes. You can dunk longer (3-4 minutes) if you like softer gujiyas. Don't let sit in syrup for too long else gujiya start breaking.
- Using a slotted spoon, transfer the gujiyas on a wax paper or parchment paper lined plate. Let dry for 10 minutes.
- Store the chashni coated gujiya in a single layer in the refrigerator for up to a week. This version has a short shelf life.
Video
Notes
RECIPE TIPS
- Don't over cook the mawa - I learned this after a few failed attempts. When preparing the filling, cook the mawa just until it softens slightly, then mix it with the other ingredients. During deep frying, the filling heats up significantly, and overcooked mawa can brown too much or even burn.
- Avoid over stuffing the gujiya - This happens because, during deep frying, the dough pocket fills with steam. If the gujiya is overstuffed, the dough may tear.
- Deep Fry on Low Heat - There are two reasons for this. First, on high heat, the outer shell cooks too quickly, leaving the inner dough layer raw. Second, the dough is rich in fat, making it soft. On high heat, small air bubbles form quickly on the surface and burst, spoiling the appearance of the gujiya.
- Troubleshooting :-If a gujiya opens while frying, immediately take it out with a slotted spoon and you will have to discard it. Switch off the stove, strain the oil or ghee that you were using for frying and then start frying again. Else the other gujiyas will have black specks.
- Gujiya Without Mawa /Vegan Gujiya - You can easily make gujiya filling without mawa. My grandmother made suji ki gujiya for variety and they are quite delicious. Substitute mawa with fine semolina in the filling recipe. Roast fine semolina in ghee to light brown and mix with nuts, sugar and green cardamom. Use oil instead of ghee for dough, filling & frying. Roast the semolina in vegan butter or coconut oil.
Nutrition
Calories: 326kcalCarbohydrates: 53gProtein: 5gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 18mgSodium: 37mgPotassium: 96mgFiber: 2gSugar: 25gVitamin A: 55IUVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 91mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!