The colourful and tasty magic of Indian sweets |
Posted: January 15, 2015 |
When one looks at the Indian culinary landscape it is quite obvious that some of the most delicious sweets are available in this land. The mouth watering delicacies are available all year round. They are available in festival time, they are available to accompany a thali, and they are available if you just were to march down to the local sweet shop and take a quick glance at the counter. If one were to glance at the culinary landscape of different states all across India then they would find a rich repertoire of different sweets that are unique to that particular state, but are enjoyed by people all over the country and indeed all over the world. The best part about many of these sweets is that they are given at the end of a mouth watering thali. Once the thali has been consumed and its contents emptied off the plate then the waiter comes with the final course and for many the best course, the sweet. Sometimes it is a rasgulla, at other times it is a jalebi, there are times when it is a son-papdi, and there are times when the diners are treated to faluda or ras-malai. These sweets have become so legendary that they have passed into everyday lexicon, and now diners all over India have heard of them. No party and no function are complete without a bite of these tasty sweets, and only when they have been consumed can the guests claim to say that they have eaten something quite special. Sweets from this land can be classified mainly into two categories. The first category belongs to the milk based sweets. Ras-malai, Kheer and Rabri fall under this category. The second category includes the flour based sweets. Some of the greatest sweets and the largest variety of sweets can be found in this category. Malpua, Gulab Jamun and Halwa can be found in this range. One of the amazing features of Indian sweets is that they come in such a large variety of colours and it is during festival time when they are arranged in a row and they are stacked next to each other that they look like a colourful rainbow. This colourful rainbow can also be spotted at Indian weddings when the hosts go out of their way to make sure that the guests are able to feast on some of the sweetest dishes that the cooks are able to serve up. Bengal is a state that is famous for its sweets, and during festival time it is the sweets that originate from this state that are most keenly sought after. Who has not heard of the famous Ras-malai or the even more famous Rasgullas. Then there are the famous Gulab Jamuns which are a much sought after sweet not just in India, but in the surrounding countries of the sub-continent as well. The concept of this sweet is actually quite simple with all that is required for their preparations is to deep fry waffle shaped balls and dip them in a sugary syrup. Another variation of this sweet, which is also drier, is the Kala Jamun. These kinds of sweets are generally found to be larger and less sweet than the Gulab Jamun. Ladoos are made of many different varieties and it is quite amazing how many versions there actually are. They are found in different sizes and they are also found in different colours as well. They can be made of basin, chocolate, flour, and just about any other ingredient that the imagination feels fit to conjure up. They are relatively simple to make which is why they are made so much in homes during festival time. They are also found in large quantities in weddings and at children’s birthday parties. With Indian cooking now experimenting with fusion cooking foreign sweets are also making their way to the Indian palate, and the sweets that are enjoyed by the diner is much greater in number. The traditional favourites are still there and they will never go away, but the new combination of foreign and Indian sweets means that the options available are more than ever.
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