At celebrations or group festivals, you possibly can wager your final paisa {that a} piece of barfi will discover its approach onto your plate, particularly in the event you dwell in northern or western India. Come Diwali, it’s nearly unimaginable to discover a dwelling with out at the least one field of kaju barfi.
Constructed from condensed milk, ghee, and sugar, barfi is cooked right into a clean paste, set to chill, after which reduce into diamond or sq. items, typically adorned with varq, or edible silver leaf. Fudge-like in texture and fewer candy than many Indian confections, there are numerous the explanation why barfi is a well-liked dessert. The candy was supposedly named after the Persian and Urdu phrase baraf, which suggests snow as a result of when these diamond-shaped sweets are stacked collectively, they resemble snowy white peaks. I’ve by no means discovered any written documentation of this.
Barfi is resilient—it withstands the warmth of North India and the humidity of the West, and if saved in an hermetic container, barfi can retain its texture and flavour for months. This makes it a perfect present, and is one motive for its reputation.
Like fudge, barfi is available in quite a lot of flavours. From chocolate, rosewater, and cardamom the flavours vary to pistachio and even fruity choices like orange, mango, and strawberry. The enduring kaju barfi––widespread and costly––made with floor cashews, has a clean, ivory hue, whereas pista barfi, crafted from pistachios, has a vibrant inexperienced color. Every ingredient contributes to its distinctive look, with sugar binding it collectively.
Only a few sweets can boast historical past as wealthy as barfi. Whereas it gained pan-Indian reputation in the course of the Independence motion, you possibly can hint its origins to the Sikhs and finally, the Persians. Regardless of its historic provenance, barfi’s kind continues to suggest a morsel of slow-cooked sugary goodness.
One story connects kaju barfi to the Mughal period throughout Jehangir’s reign, who imprisoned Guru Hargobind, the sixth Sikh guru within the Gwalior Fort. When Jehangir introduced the Guru’s launch, he decreed that any prisoner holding onto his gown as he exited may additionally acquire freedom. In response, Guru Hargobind had a gown made lengthy sufficient for each prisoner, symbolically releasing all of them on Diwali. That is now celebrated as Bandhi Chhor Diwas by the Sikhs. In gratitude, Jehangir’s royal chef ready kaju barfi.
Virtually all references to kaju katli, as kaju barfi is usually known as, present that it originated in western India. Essentially the most genuine model of this candy may be present in cities like Mumbai, Ahmedabad, and Surat.
One other extraordinarily widespread number of barfi is dhoda barfi––which originated in Pakistan as khushabi dhoda––and has a wealthy, grainy texture. Its origin may be traced again to Khushab, a metropolis in Pakistan’s Punjab province. It’s a type of prized recipes that each store within the area claims to have invented.
The Persian connection may be discovered right here too. The phrase ‘Khushab’ is a mix of two Persian phrases, “khush” that means candy and “aab” that means water; the title of the candy deceptively referring to “candy water”. In keeping with native folklore, Persian invaders from the West first used this phrase to explain the waters of the Jhelum river, on the banks of which sat the historic metropolis of Dhodha. Folklore has it that the dhoda barfi was supposedly invented by an area wrestler named Pehlwan Hans Raj in Khushab in 1902. He needed to create a snack to eat throughout his wrestling periods which was dry, straightforward to cart round, and stuffed with vitamins. There isn’t a written proof of this, but it surely’s an city legend typically repeated. After Partition, when the household moved to Kotkapura, Punjab, India, they launched the recipe to the native candy makers.
The dhoda barfi may be purchased in most elements of south Asia, packaged in air-tight packing containers. It will also be made at dwelling simply. The components are simply procured: milk, sugar, damaged wheat, clarified butter, dry fruits comparable to pistachios, walnuts, cashews, and even peanuts. The damaged wheat must be soaked in milk until it absorbs all of the milk and turns into grainy and thick. It’s then cooked with sugar until it sticks collectively. The brown color of the dhoda barfi comes from the gradual cooking and is an indicator of it being cooked via. After cooling, it’s transferred to a tray greased with ghee or clarified butter and flattened out. Slivered cashew nuts, pistachios, walnuts, and almonds are sprinkled on high. The barfi is then reduce into squares.
In an earlier article, I’ve talked about the genesis of the tiranga barfi — or the tricolour barfi — of Benaras, and the way it was used to commemorate the unfurling of the flag on the banks of the Ravi river by Jawaharlal Nehru.
The Independence motion and the Partition led to many culinary creations in India. Some have been to appeal the Mughals, some to the British, some to rejoice victories, and others as offshoots of being forcibly evicted from their homelands. Each time you chew right into a barfi, in a approach, you’re biting into extra than simply slow-cooked damaged wheat and sugar—it’s actually a stroll via India’s historic previous.
KAJU BARFI
SERVES: 8
PREPARATION TIME: 30 minutes
INGREDIENTS
Cashews 1 cup, chopped
White sugar ½ cup
Water ¼ cup, room-temperature
Cardamom powder a pinch, freshly floor
Ghee 1 tsp
METHOD
Grind the cashews to powder kind.
In a sizzling frying pan, stir sugar with water. Set the flame to low and maintain stirring till a sugar syrup varieties. Add the bottom cashews and blend properly. Add the cardamom powder and proceed to combine till the combination turns into doughy. Add the ghee and stir till the ghee melts via the dough combination. Take the pan off the range.
Empty the combination in your counter or in a bowl, grease your arms with ghee, and knead till the dough is clean. Type a ball with the dough and canopy it with a barely damp material. Take a baking tray, or a flat tray, and place a sheet of butter paper on it. Grease the butter paper with some ghee. Place the dough on the baking sheet and use a rolling pin to unfold the dough flat. Preserve the thickness to ¼ of an inch. Let this set within the fridge for an hour.
Lower the dough into diamond shapes with a pointy knife. Sprinkle with dried fruits, or varq, earlier than serving.
Subsequent week, because it’s social gathering season and many people will probably be spending time internet hosting – I’ll share a few of my favorite kitchen hacks, from make a straightforward and fast mayonnaise to what to do in the event you add an excessive amount of salt to the meals and extra…
