For the Mumbaikar in me, a Diwali faral platter looks incomplete without these half-moon beauties. I am not the biggest fan of karanjis myself, but they are a big hit with everyone we share our platter with. And so, every Diwali, they find their place again.
Mom learnt this recipe from an upstairs Tulu neighbour in our childhood home, whom we fondly called Mith da Amma. One piece of advice stayed with Mom and has now stayed with me: fill the karanjis properly. Mith da Amma had no patience for hollow ones with a little filling rattling about inside!
That is the lovely thing about recipes passed from one home to another. You inherit the little instructions along with the ingredients. Here, it is a flaky cover and a generous coconuty filling, with roasted rava, til, poppy seeds, nuts and cardamom tucked inside.
Mine are never perfectly shaped. Like most of my Deepavali preparations, they have their own little quirks. But that is the beauty of homemade faral. The taste lies in those imperfections, and in the love with which we make and share it.
The quantities below are adapted from similar dry-coconut karanji recipes, keeping the ingredients from my Instagram recipe. They are a measured starting point rather than Mom’s recorded measurements.
Karanji (Nevri / Gujiya)
Ingredients
For the cover
- 2 cups plain flour (maida), plus a little for rolling if needed
- 2 tablespoons melted ghee
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- About ½ cup water, adding only as needed to make a stiff dough
For the filling
- 1 cup unsweetened desiccated coconut
- ¼ cup fine rava (semolina)
- 2 tablespoons til (sesame seeds)
- 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped almonds
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped cashews
- 2 tablespoons raisins, chopped if large
- 1 tablespoon ghee, for frying the nuts and raisins
- ¾ cup powdered sugar, or to taste
- ½ teaspoon ground cardamom
For shaping and frying
- A little water, for sealing
- Oil, enough for deep frying
Instructions
Method
- Make the cover. Mix the flour and salt. Rub in the melted ghee until it is evenly distributed. Add water a little at a time and knead to a smooth, stiff dough. Cover and rest for 20–30 minutes while you prepare the filling.
- Roast the first four filling ingredients. Roast the coconut, rava, sesame seeds and poppy seeds separately over low heat, stirring often. Each should smell fragrant and lose its raw taste. Let the rava turn lightly golden, and watch the coconut and seeds carefully so they do not burn. Transfer to a bowl and let everything cool.
- Fry the nuts. Heat the tablespoon of ghee and gently fry the almonds and cashews until lightly golden. Add the raisins briefly, just until they plump. Take off the heat and cool.
- Mix the filling. Combine the roasted ingredients, nuts and raisins with the powdered sugar and cardamom. Taste and adjust the sweetness. Keep the filling dry and let it cool completely before shaping.
- Roll and fill. Divide the dough into about 20 pieces and keep them covered. Roll each into a thin, even circle, approximately 10–11 cm across. Spoon a generous tablespoon of filling onto one half, leaving a clean border. Add a little more if it fits comfortably. Remember Mith da Amma's tip: a properly filled karanji, with enough room to close it securely.
- Seal the half moons. Lightly dampen the border with water, fold the empty half over the filling and press the edges firmly together. Crimp with your fingers or a fork, or trim with a pastry cutter. Check for gaps and keep the shaped karanjis covered while you finish the rest.
- Fry patiently. Heat the oil over medium heat. A small scrap of dough should rise steadily with gentle bubbles rather than brown at once. Fry a few karanjis at a time over medium-low heat, turning carefully, until the covers are crisp and pale golden. Avoid crowding the pan.
- Cool and share. Lift onto kitchen paper or a rack to drain. Cool completely before packing into an airtight container or adding to your Diwali faral platter.
Notes
- Cool the filling before adding sugar and before stuffing the karanjis.
- Generous filling and a secure seal go together. Keep filling away from the edges so they close properly.
- Keep the dough and shaped karanjis covered so the covers do not dry out and crack.
- Use sugar ground to a powder; commercial icing sugar may contain added starch.
Continue the Diwali cooking with Besan Ladoo and Chakuli.
