Mysore paak

This traditional sweet is a must at any celebration and festival. Deepavali in our house would be heralded by the smell of this delicious sweet wafting around not just in our house but would also beckon the neighbours. The heady aroma of fresh ghee and sugar would draw us kids to the kitchen frequently, only to be shoo’ed off by my mother who, single handedly would be preparing Mysore paak, padusha, mixture and other delicacies for the festival. Any time we had surprise visitors, she would hurry into the kitchen and stir up a batch of Mysore paak or kesari.  This is her fail proof recipe for the tastiest, melt in your mouth Mysore paak. At one time, I used to make this very often and I have to thank my sister Anu for re-acquainting me with this gem of a recipe from my mother’s arsenal.
 
Ingredients
Besan (gram flour) 1 cup
Sugar – 2 cups
Ghee – 2 cups
Water – 1 cup
Cardamom powder – 1/4 tsp (optional)
 
Sieve the flour, and dry roast it in a heavy bottom pot, kadai or skillet  and set aside. This recipe gets very hot while making, so the skillet or kadai has to be a heavy bottom one. In the same pot, add the sugar and water and allow to boil. When the sugar has melted and the mixture comes to a rolling boil, add half the quantity of ghee and continue stirring.

After a minute or so, add the flour, a little bit at a time and keep stirring so that it doesn’t form lumps. I use a whisk when I do this step.

Once the mixture thickens add the remaining ghee, a little bit at a time while constantly stirring. You need patience because this step is a bit laborious and you have to be careful that it doesn’t stick to the bottom. Keep stirring even after all the ghee has been used up, till the mixture comes away from the sides and the ghee starts glistening on the mixture.

different stages of the mysore paak coming together

You have a very small window of about 15 secs to remove it from the stove and pour it on the greased plate. If you taken it out too early, the Mysore pahu will be too soft and if you wait too long, it will become very hard and the ghee will all come out of the mixture. If you are adding cardamom powder, do so just before removing from the stove and mix well before pouring in to the plate. Do not pat the Mysore pahu but use your hands to just shake the plate gently to level it out.

Cut into the desired shape after about five mins and leave it to cool completely. Remove from the plate carefully and enjoy. Below is a video showing the preparation of mysore paak. Do watch and try it out, and subscribe to our channel.

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