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Mysore pak
Mysuru's rich, porous gram flour and ghee fudge (makes 16 pieces)
Mysore pak was first made in the kitchens of the Mysuru palace in Karnataka, and it's still the sweet that every Mysuru sweet shop is judged by. Roasted gram flour is cooked in a sugar syrup while hot ghee is poured in a spoonful at a time, until the mixture froths up and sets into a golden, honeycombed block. This home version is the softer, melt-in-the-mouth style, with a fine porous crumb; cook it a minute or two longer for the harder, crunchier traditional slab. It keeps for a week and is made for Diwali, weddings and Dasara. Chef's tip: keep the ghee hot on a second burner the whole time; hot ghee hitting the batter is what makes it froth and form those little air holes, and cold ghee gives a dense, greasy fudge.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 16
Ingredients
Method
0/9 doneStep 1: Grease a 18 cm square tin or thali with a little of the 10 ½ oz ghee and keep it by the stove; once the mixture is ready there's no time to hunt for it.
Step 2: Put a small pan with the remaining 10 ½ oz ghee on a low heat and keep it hot (not smoking) for the whole cooking time.
Step 3: Warm 2 tbsp of the hot ghee in a heavy, wide pan over a low heat. Add 5 ½ oz gram flour (besan) and stir constantly for 3–4 minutes, just until it smells nutty and loses its raw, beany smell; it should stay pale, not turn brown. Tip it into a bowl and whisk in another 4 tbsp of hot ghee to make a smooth, runny paste with no lumps.
5 minStep 4: Wipe the pan, add 10 ½ oz white sugar and ½ cup water and stir over a medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Boil for 4–5 minutes to one-string consistency: take a drop between your thumb and finger (carefully, once slightly cooled) and pull apart; it should form a single thread that doesn't break straight away.
6 minStep 5: Lower the heat to medium-low and pour the besan paste into the syrup in a thin stream, whisking constantly so no lumps form. Keep stirring for 1–2 minutes until it thickens.
Step 6: Now add the hot ghee one ladle (about 3 tbsp) at a time, stirring continuously. Each time, the mixture will sizzle and soak up the ghee; wait until it's absorbed before adding the next. Keep scraping the base and sides.
10 minStep 7: After 8–10 minutes, the mixture will start to froth and bubble, turn lighter and more aerated, and pull away from the sides of the pan in one mass, leaving ghee behind. It should smell like toasted nuts and be a light golden colour. Stir in ¼ tsp ground cardamom if using. Stop now for soft Mysore pak; cook 1–2 minutes more for a firmer one, but don't let it turn dark brown.
2 minStep 8: Immediately pour it into the greased tin; don't spread or press it, or you'll push out the air holes. Just tap the tin once on the counter to level it.
Step 9: Leave for 5 minutes, then cut into 16 squares with an oiled knife while still warm. Leave to cool and set completely for 1 hour before lifting the pieces out. Store in an airtight box for up to a week.
5 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 270 kcal
- Protein
- 2 g
- Carbs
- 22 g
- Fat
- 19 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does mysore pak take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 10 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 16 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of ghee?
- Butter, same amount (keep the heat a little lower, butter burns sooner).
- What can I use instead of white sugar?
- Caster sugar, same amount.
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