Gulab jamuns

Yo! Today it’s gulab jamun time, my favouritest dessert of all times. One of the best gulab jamuns I’ve had was from a famous shop in the narrow streets of Jaisalmer, where I had gone on a “study tour” from college. They were huge, and cost a whopping 10 Rs per piece (this was more than a decade ago, circa 1997). Though nothing really beats my mother’s gorgeous home made gulab jamuns. She says she got the recipe from a friend’s dad who ran a professional catering business. And this recipe is the real deal. All of my extended family have been using this recipe for years and it has always given us perfect gulabjamuns that are juicy and soft (to the core). I like my gulabjamuns, both hot and cold (Ya, I’m greedy that way).

These days restaurants, shops and even at homes, people microwave the gulab jamuns to heat them up, and I absolutely HATE that. You can easily tell when a gulab jamun has been nuked, because it is sure to actually burn your tongue or at least numb it a little and ruin the experience. The core of microwaved jamuns is always unrealistically hot, which I can never be prepared for. Anyway I digress, getting back to the gorgeous gulab jamuns,

To make gulab jamuns (makes 28-30 pieces), you’ll need

1. 250 gms unsweetened mawa/khova/khoya (Buy the freshest mawa that you can get. Ask for “gulab jamun mawa” or unsweetened mawa.)
2. 62 gms of maida (Rule: 1/4 weight of mawa. I didn’t have a weigh scale so I used the cup equivalent – 1/4 cup and it was perfect)
3. 30 pieces of sakariya (opaque sugar balls often used for prasad. Please refer to the first picture below)
4. 30 pieces of elaichi seeds (You can throw the cardamom peels in your chai patti jar. Gives a nice flavour to chai)
5. 1 tsp of rose water
6. Baking soda
7. Oil for frying

For the sugar syrup

1. 500 gms of sugar (Rule: double the weight of mawa. I tried to make do by using just 2 cups, but I had less syrup and the jamuns were crowded.)
2. Water (Same volume as that of sugar. If you’re using 3 cups of sugar, use the same amount of water)

Pass the mawa through a fine sieve (the one used to sieve flour), by rubbing it on the sieve using your thumb or palm. This will remove any granules or lumps in the mawa for sure (unlike the kneading method which is vague and requires good expertise). Mix the mawa and maida and turn into a dough (no water or anything). Cover it with a damp kitchen cloth.

To make the sugar syrup, heat the water and sugar till you get a syrup of 1 string consistency. When you test a drop of syrup between your thumb and index finger, you should see a small and thin string form between your fingers, for the fraction of a second. Switch off the stove immediately. Add the rose water.

Heat the oil on low-medium flame. Pinch out a portion of the dough (I used 1/4th of the total dough at a time) from under wraps. Dip the face of your thumb in water and then in the baking soda. Your thumb will be covered with soda. Now knead the portion of the dough that you pulled out, with the soda on your thumb for a minute. Divide into 7-8 portions. Press each portion gently between your palms and make a ball. With your finger make a small dent in the ball and put one sakariya and one elaichi seed into it. Roll it back into a smooth ball, so that the sakariya and elaichi are sort of in the centre and fully covered with dough.

You need to fry these 7-8 jamuns in low-medium hot oil. To check if the temperature is right, throw a tiny piece of dough into the oil. If it floats on top immediately, the oil is too hot. At the right temperature, it should settle at the bottom and take about two seconds or so for it to float on top. Stir the oil gently with a wooden spatula and slowly add the jamuns. Keep stirring the oil with the wooden spatula, while avoiding touching the jamuns. This is so that they get evenly coloured. In about 8-10 minutes, they will get a perfect dark red colour. If they’re done too early, they’ll be uncooked inside. Drain the jamuns and dunk them into warm sugar syrup. If the syrup has turned cold, heat it on low flame to keep it warm. Lather rinse repeat for the remaining 3/4th of the dough. Keep the jamuns dunked in sugar syrup for about an hour and a half.

While the sugar syrups permeates the jamuns from the outside, our little sakariya would’ve melted and will also work its magic from the inside. This ensures that the core of the jamun too gets even sweetness. When you eat the jamun, there will be no trace of the sakariya, just sweetness and a grain of elaichi for subtle flavour.

Close your eyes and pop in a jamun. It’s sure to give you a glimpse of heaven. :)

I am sending these gulab jamuns as the 29th December entry for the one week recipe marathon from December 25th to 31st at Nupur’s One hot stove.

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