A60E20 – Jalebi (Amritsari Sweets) | #Amritsar60

Punjab – being a dwelling place to people with different religions and cultures, you will find that the choices in their tastes are not different at all. It doesn’t matter from which city, town or village of Punjab you reside in, their common love for cultural Punjabi cuisine automatically comes to light as soon as they get in touch with any. So here we are again, bringing you with another juicy sweet-flavored episode of our Amritsar 60 series.

You have always read that sweet dishes are the conclusion to your meal, but here in Punjab, sweet dishes don’t need any specific time to be eaten. The theory what people of Punjab believe in is that “Life is uncertain. Eat dessert first.”

Either it is Vaisakhi or Dussehra, this crispy sugary spiral is always in the limelight due to its aromatic flavor which fuses with the essence of the culture of that festival. This delightful saffron-colored evening dessert is loved by people of all ages which makes it hold a prime position among all the other desserts. Though it can be served alone, yet in Punjab getting it to taste with piping hot milk gives your taste buds a brilliant experience. In Gujarat, it is mainly served with Fafda, a salty Gujarati snack that makes them the most sought-after combination in Gujarati cuisine during Dusshera.

How it is prepared

This crispy sweet dish is easy to make and can be prepared in a matter of time if all the ingredients are there with you. The fundamental rule for the preparation of Jalebis is the good fermentation of the batter which will be used as the main ingredient. So let us take a sneak peek into the recipe of this most adored sweet dish by the Punjabis:

1. As batter decides the crispiness of the Jalebis, it should neither be too viscous nor too thin. If too thin it will spread over the refined oil and won’t be able to make spirals and if too thick it would absorb the sugary syrup and won’t give that crunch to your item.
2. The batter is filled inside the muslin cloth with a small outlet from it is squeezed out and poured over the hot refined oil in a deep frying pan.
3. To give Jalebis a saffron tint, you can add soaked saffron water in the batter or the sugar syrup. The saffron color of the Jalebis adds a delightful touch to this savor.
4. Pour the batter in spirals over the sufficiently hot oil and shallow fry them until they turn crispy and lightly golden. Turn them over with the help of tong to fry the other side too.
5. Get the concentrated sugar solution ready in another pan. This solution should be a little hot and should have the required consistency. Immerse the fried Jalebis into it for some seconds and while pulling it out of the syrup shake the excess solution off the Jalebis.
6. It is totally up to us if we want to experience the tempting taste of Jalebis alone or with Rabri, which is thickened milk. But the latter will give you a whole new experience of taste.

Being so commended by the people, that even the leftovers of the Jalebis are enjoyed by them as they can be refrigerated and devoured later anytime. During the festive seasons like Vaisakhi and Dussehra, you will often find the joints serving Jalebis flooded with people. It is also consumed as a street food item because in Amritsar you will find many cart vendors selling this delicious mouth-watering item.

Famous Jalebis serving joints in Amritsar

Here in Amritsar, you can find many joints serving you with the authentic taste of the Jalebis. Almost every “Mithai” shop prepares Jalebis along with other sweets. Mainly the cart vendors make this during the evening but there are some famous shops that are well acclaimed in the city for their juicy Jalebis which they prepare from dawn to dusk.

1. Gurdas Ram Jalebi Wala
2. H.R Sweets