Gujiya is a popular Indian Mithai, that is made in various food cultures of India and is known by varied names- Gujiya in Uttar Pradesh, Perukiya in Bihar, Karanji in Maharashtra, Kajjikaya in Andhra Pradesh and Ghughra in Gujarat.
This crescent shaped sweet is made of plain flour dough, stuffed with a sweet filling of Rava, Khoya, Sugar, dry nuts and raisins and deep fried.
I have fond memories associated with this Indian Mithai and have grown up eating this delicacy that was made primarily as a part of Diwali preparations. Mom would make tons of preparations-sweet and savory for Diwali which was offered to Goddess Lakshmi and then distributed to our neighbors and friends. Of the several preparations that Mom would make, I would wait with all eagerness for two of my favorite Mithais that she would prepare on the day prior to Lakshmi Pooja- Mava Gujiya and Gulab Jamuns. Considering the lesser shelf life of Gujiyas and Gulab Jamuns, she would schedule its preparation on the last day, and we all knew it. It was an annual ritual for us and I grew up knowing it quite well. I knew that on the morning of Lakshmi Puja, I would wake up to the pleasant aroma of deep fried Gujiyas and Gulab Jamuns emanating from the hot Kadhai.
Not completely awake, I would sleep walk into kitchen, guided by the aroma, attempting to peek inside the large vessel where she stored Gulab Jamuns and Gujiyas. I would be greeted to sight of neatly arranged Gujiyas- neatly placed one beside the other in concentric circles and that of Gulab Jamun dipped in sugar syrup. That sight would fill my heart with unbounded joy and happiness. It was a feeling of pure happiness and delight. As we grow up and we learn to check our emotions, now I am finding it difficult to recollect the moments that have filled my heart with such pure joy in recent past. Aah I so miss that innocence of childhood.
Coming back to Gujiyas, I was very possessive for these two Mithais. While I wouldn’t mind Mom sharing the Ladoos, Mathri, Chakli and other sweet and savory items with our neighbors and friends, I would get cold feet when it came to Gujiyas and Gulab Jamuns. I would fight with Mom, insisting to share a piece each of Gujiyas and Gulab Jamuns with our neighbors and nothing more than that. She would smile and try to convince me that sharing was an essential part of Diwali, and I had to agree with her albeit reluctantly.
We had planned to share Mava Gujiyas for this Diwali, but were occupied with the festivities and couldn’t post it earlier. While we had shot the video, its editing got delayed and now when I am relatively free, I decided to publish this video. While Diwali is a popular time in India for Gujiya, it is also prepared during festivals like Christmas, Holi and Ganesh Chaturthi.
Make this yummy Gujiyas- with a crunchier fried coating stuffed with delicious sweet filling of Khoa (Mawa), Rava, Sugar, dry nuts and raisins. Remember to share your feedback with us in comment section below.
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 25-30
- 2 Cups=250 gms Plain Flour (Maida)
- 1=tbsp Semolina (Rava)
- ¼th Cup=50gms Ghee
- 2-tbsp Milk
- Water
- Stuffing: -
- ½ Cup=125 gms Khoya (Mawa)
- ½ Cup=100 gms Semolina (Rava)
- ½ Cup=100 gms Powdered Sugar
- ¼th Cup=25 gms grated Dry Coconut
- 1-tbsp Almonds
- 1-tbsp Chironji (Charoli)
- 1-tbsp Cashewnuts
- 1-tbsp Raisins
- 5-6 Green Cardamom (crushed)
- Ghee
- We will start kneading a dough for Gujiya. Wash and Clean your hands thoroughly. In a large bowl, put Plain Flour. Add Semolina (Rava) and mix well. Semolina makes the outer covering crispy.
- Now add melted Ghee. Ensure Ghee is lukewarm and not too hot. Mix well. Rub the flour between your palms. Now Knead the dough with ½ Cup lukewarm water. Add water gradually and knead a stiff dough. Cover this dough in a wet muslin cloth. Rest this dough for 30 mins.
- Let's start making the stuffing now. We will roast Semolina in Ghee. Add 2 tbsp Ghee in a Pan. Add Semolina (Suji/Rava) in this Ghee. Roast until Rava becomes light brown in color. Roast on low-medium heat.
- Semolina has become brown in color. We have roasted for 10 mins on low-medium heat. Remove from Pan. In the same pan, dry roast Nuts-Almonds, Cashewnuts and Chironji. We have roasted nuts for 2-3 mins until it becomes slightly brown. Remove from Pan and allow it to come down to room temperature. After that crush the nuts coarsely in a grinder jar.
- Dry roast grated dry Coconut in the same pan. Dry roast only until it begins to release a pleasant aroma. Remove from the pan after a minute.
- Now we must dry roast Khoya/Mava in the pan. Khoa reduced from Cow's Milk is yellow in color while the khoa made from Buffalo's Milk is white in color. We will roast Khoa on low heat to remove its moisture. Stir continuously while roasting.
- I have roasted Khoa for 5 mins on low heat. Khoa has lost its moisture. Remove from Pan.
- In a large bowl, we have put roasted Rava, Khoya and dry Coconut. Now add coarsely grounded nuts, cardamom powder and chopped raisins. Now add powdered Sugar.
- Gujiya stuffing is ready. The dough has been resting for 30 mins. Dough has become a bit soft. Divide it into 3 equal portions. Take a rolling pin and a board. Take a portion of dough and knead it well for a minute.
- Keep the other two portions covered in a wet cloth so that it does not become dry. Roll the kneaded portion into a long cylindrical shaped log. Cut the log into equal sized dough.
- Take a small portion and roll it into a ball. We have made dough balls. Now roll the balls into flat Pooris. Keep other balls in wet muslin cloth. Roll it into thin round Pooris until it becomes transparent.
- I have rolled this outer covering very thin and transparent. Apply some Milk at the edges. You can replace milk with water. Place a spoonful of stuffing in the center of Gujiya.
- Keep stuffing away from the edges. Keeping the other half on the board seal the edges with one half-(shaped like a Calzone). Press the edges to seal.
- We will seal the edges by making the traditional design that Gujiya is famous for. Please observe carefully how we shape it- Pinch and Turn. You can also make use of Gujiya molds or a cutter to trim the edges.
- Gujiya is now ready. We will keep it covered in a wet muslin cloth and till then we will make few more Gujiyas for frying.
- I have made 10 Gujiyas now. Let's start frying it. Heat Ghee on medium heat for frying. If Ghee is too hot, Gujiyas may get burnt while frying.
- Lower the heat and add Gujiyas for frying. Fry Gujiyas from both sides until it becomes light brown in color. Known as Pedukiya in Bihar and Karanji in Maharashtra, this delicacy is prepared during festivals like Diwali and Holi.
- Gujiyas have become light brown in 2 mins. Remove from Pan.
- You can make Gujiyas as your evening snack. We can make 25-30 Gujiyas in these measurements. You can store the dough and the stuffing in refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- You can store these Gujiyas in an air-tight container. These fried Gujiyas stay good for 1 week.
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