Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Badam Puri - A layered, soft-yet-crispy sweet


At lunch table, when we were discussing about what sweet dish to prepare for Deepavali, someone suggested Badam Puri. And immediately the memories of my first birthday after marriage came up. MIL had prepared a very tasty meal of Peas Pulav and Badam Puris for me. I had happily hogged all that I could.

I remembered that and decided that Badam Puri would be the sweet for one of the days of Deepavali. I just couldn’t resist my temptation to have those slightly crisp, golden colored, sugar coated melting sweet, but I had no choice but to wait till the festival. This sweet is generally made in weddings, but I bet home-made version cannot just beat the taste and is also healthier, mainly because we use ghee at home instead of vanaspathi (dalda).
I learnt making it from my MIL, and it did come out very well.
Here’s the recipe...
Badam Puri

Preparation time : 20 min
Cooking time : 20-25 min
Makes : ~20

Ingredients:
All Purpose Flour (Maida) – 2 Cups
Ghee – 1 ½ Tbsp
Baking Powder – ½ teaspoon, optional
Food color – 1 pinch/drop, preferably saffron or yellow
Salt – a small pinch
Cooking oil for deep frying
Water

For Sugar Syrup:
Sugar – 1 Cup
Water 1 Cup

Method:
Dough:
• In a bowl, add ghee, baking powder, salt and food color and beat it for 5-10 minutes continuously with your fingers
• Once the ghee forms a very smooth paste, add flour and mix thoroughly
• Add a little water and form a soft dough, neither too tight nor too loose
• Knead the dough for at least 8-10 minutes ensuring there are no cracks in it
Sugar Syrup:
• Meanwhile in another vessel mix water and sugar and boil it
• Food essence may be optionally added for enhanced aroma
• A pinch of color can be added as well for attractive color
Badam Puris:
• Now make small TT-ball sized balls out of the dough
• Roll out puris of about 4” diameter
• Fold it first into half and then again, making it 4 layered
• Slightly press it, using the rolling pin so that the layers are held closely
• Heat oil in a frying pan and fry these rolled and folded puris one by one in medium low flame till golden brown. The puris puff up and increase in size when fried.
• Drain excess oil by spreading it on a kitchen towel / tissue
• Drop the puris one by one as they are fried into the sugar syrup prepared
• After 5-6 minutes take out the sugar soaked puris from the syrup, in the order that they were dipped, and spread them out on a dry plate.
• The coated syrup is absorbed and the Badam-puris become dry in sometime
Serve it immediately when still hot or after cooling

Tips n Tricks:
• Knead the dough enough to get a uniform texture
• The sugar syrup should be thicker than that for Gulab Jamuns, so that the puris do retain crispiness, yet absorb the sweetness
• Do not wait for too long after the syrup is made, as the syrup starts solidifying when cooled

7 comments:

  1. Wow, never had such puris, but they look amazing!

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  2. I was thinking of almond....anyways puri's look yummy....love those layers...never tasted them...have to try these...

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  3. Tested and tried on Ugadi 2010. Delicious.!!

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  4. Dear Sum,
    I made the Badam Puris for the first time
    Ever and followed your recipe to the T.
    I would know the verdict on the taste this evening:-)
    If you accept pictures I would like to email one.
    Thanks
    Preeti

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  5. Hey Preeti!!
    thanks a lot for ur comment.... Sorry couldn't reply back immediately... So what was the verdict??
    I'll be happy to accept a pic from you...

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  6. there is no badam used?

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  7. how come no badam used in making badam puri?

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