From Laddoo To Barfi & Kheer, India’s Got A Sweet Tooth – An Ode to India’s Classic Sweets

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By Petra Löwer On Aug 9, 2022

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From Laddoo To Barfi & Kheer, India’s Got A Sweet Tooth – An Ode to India’s Classic Sweets | The Economic Times

09 Aug 2022, 06:34 PM IST

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An Ode to India’s Classic Sweets

India’s sweets or ‘Mithais’ are the hallmarks of Indian cuisine. As per the traditions Mithais are savoured after a filling dinner, and numerous festivals are also centred around sweets. They are a crucial component of the sacred offerings also, be it as ‘Khada Prasad’ in ‘Gurudwaras’ or ‘Boondi ladoos’ in temples. Every state has its own unique Mithai. Here is a list of India’s sweet dish delicacies all around the country.

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Sheer khurma, the beauty of Chhattisgarh, is a Persian dish. Its origins are unknown, however, it is believed to have been created somewhere along the silk road. Later it gained popularity throughout the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia. The dessert is prepared in different ways throughout the region. Vermicelli, dates and milk are the primary ingredients. However, it may vary as some add cashews, pistachios, coconut, almonds, chironji, or a mix of any of these. While cooking the dish sugar is used to sweeten it, and to add a pinch of flavour chief’s also include cardamom, saffron and rose. The name of the delicacy is ‘khurma’ which denotes ‘dates’ and ‘sheer’ refers to milk.

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Pootharekulu or Putharekulu Andhra Pradesh’s sweet delicacy is one of the most popular Mithai across the country. The dish is from a town called Atreyapuram. The term pootha means a coating, and rekulu denotes a sheet. The dish is as thin as paper and the main components are rice, jaggery and flour and homemade ghee. This Mithai is available in different tastes and types such as kaju bellam, sugar-dry-fruit putharekulu, sugar kaju putharekulu, and bellam putharekulu. It is also known as ‘Atreyapuram Bellam Pootharekulu’ (paper sweets).

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Thekua holds special significance in Chhath Puja. The sacred dessert from Bihar is made of Ghee, Wheat Flour, and Chasni (melted sugar). Many people prefer substituting sugar with jaggery. These four ingredients serve as the foundation for the dough. Many chefs also use cardamom as a topping to add flavour to the dessert which gives it a fresh taste. The dough is fried in vegetable or ghee oil until it turns reddish-brown. It can be stored for several days without any added preservatives.

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Koat Pitha is a dessert from Arunachal Pradesh. The dish is made of bananas, mustard oil and jaggery. The crust is crispy outside and has a soft interior and is incredibly delicious. Not just Arunachal, the deep-fried fritters are equally popular across the seven northeastern states.

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Delhi’s favourite dessert. The origins of Kulfi go back to the 16th century during the Mughal empire. The Mughals chefs reshaped the dessert by mixing pistachios and saffron with condensed milk, packing it into metal cones, and freezing it with an ice-salt slurry. In the early ’90s the dessert was widely popular. The first kulfi shop was opened in 1906 at ‘Chawri Bazaar’ in old Delhi which exists even today. The name of the dish was derived from the Persian language from the word ‘Qulfi’ which means ‘covered cup’ and it signifies the making of kulfi as it is prepared in closed cones. With time, the variety of kulfi flavours has evolved such as mango, pista-badam, malai (cream), chocolate, rose and many more.

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