Deepavali is here, thinking of making sweet and kara at one shot? Here is extremely delicious, crispy and crunchy, and I must say very addictive, Sweet and Kara Boondi :). This is one of the kids finger food, especially the sweet boondi. My daughter and I just love the sweet one, it just melts in our mouth. This brings back my childhood memory too. During Navarathri season we used to go to my grand parents house in Anekere, a small village in Karnataka. There we used to celebrate 9 days of navarathri. Every evening ajji (Grandma) used to call so many people, I could say the whole village was present. She used to prepare Gojjavalakki, different kinds of sweets, and particularly my favorite Sweet and Khara Boondi. I miss my grandmother’s cooking :( she was an amazing cook. Navarathri was the best time for me to enjoy all kinds of snacks.
For making the sweet and kara boondi we need to know how to make the perfect boondi. This multi purpose boondi can be used to prepare Boondi Raitha, Boondi for Chats too. The same boondi we are using here to make this sweet and kara.
Ingredients
- 1 cup Laddu Besan Gram flour, also known as garbanzo bean flour, chickpea flour
- 1/2 to 1 cup water depends on the type of flour
- 2 tsp oil
- Boodi making Ladle/jhaara
- oil to fry boondi
- To Make Sweet Boondi( for 1/2 cup Besan)
- 1/2 to 3/4 cup sugar
- 5 to 6 cardamom
- 2 TBSP raisins
- 10 cashews broken into small pieces
- 1 tsp ghee to fry cashew pieces and raisins
- 1/4 cup grated coconut
- To Make Kara Boondi (For 1/2 cup besan)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup peanuts
- 10 to 15 cashew halves
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- handful of curry leaves
- few dried coconut pieces
Instructions
- Powder sugar along with the cardamoms and keep it ready.
Sieve the Besan flour and keep it ready.
- Heat 2 tsp oil and pour it onto the mix. Mix it well.
- Now add water little by little to make the batter. Consistency should be like a this. Not too thin and not too thick.
- Keep the oil in kadai on medium heat (use enough oil to fry the boondi).
Meanwhile, heat a teaspoon of ghee and fry the cashew pieces (until cashew turns golden brown) and raisins( until the raisins puffs up) separately and transfer this onto a plate. Turn off the heat and put the grated dried coconut into the same pan and stir it, keep it aside.
- Use the perforated ladle or boondi plate/ jhaalara to make the boondi shape.
- Keep the boondi plate almost an inch and a half above the oil.
- Pour a ladle full of batter and do the circular motion like the way you make dosa or you can use hand to do it. Make sure it is just enough of boondis to float on top.
- Fry it until the sound nullifies and to check it is done take one or two boondis crush it using fingers. You should hear the crunch .
- Like this.
- Remove the boondi and transfer it onto a paper towel. Clean/wipe the boondi plate both sides with a paper towel or with a clean cloth before you make next set of boondi.
- Repeat the same procedure with remaining batter.
We have Basic Boondi ready.
- Reduce the heat and fry peanuts, cashews, coconut slices and curry leaves separately and keep it ready. Turn off the heat.
- Divide the prepared boondi into 2 equal parts. Put salt, chilli powder and fried peanuts, cashews, coconut slices and curry leaves to one half of boondi. Mix it well.
- Now mouth watering kara Boondi is ready.
- To the other half, sprinkle 4 to 5 TBSP powdered sugar, grated dried coconut, fried cashews and raisins. Mix it well.
- Both Kara and Sweet Boondi is ready to savor. With hot cup of coffee or tea and with Bisibelebath kara boondi is just awesome.
- and sweet boondi, crispy and crunchy, just melts in your mouth :)
Store the boondi in a airtight container.
Notes
For making the perfect boondi:
- Use laddu beasan, difference between the besan flour and laddu besan flour is, laddu besan is little coarse in texture compared the just besan flour.
- If you cannot find the coarse besan , add 2 tbsp rice flour to the besan flour to make it right.
- Water quantity depends on the besan variety. If the batter is too thin add more besan and if it is very thick add more water.
- Keep enough oil to fry.