Mawa Gujiya Recipe (Karanji)

5 from 2 votes

Gujiya is a traditional Indian sweet made especially on the occasion of Holi. Learn tried and tested gujiya recipe in a few simple steps.

Prep Time40

Cook Time40

Total Time1 20

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian

Servings: Gujiya

Calories: 115kcal

For the dough, rub flour and ghee between your fingers for the next 5 - 6 minutes. Do not skip this step.
Adding ¼ cup water at time bind dough. The dough should be firm to touch. Knead it for 5 minutes. Perform dimple test (see recipe notes). Cover the dough with a wet muslin cloth and set aside.

To make the filling, in heavy-bottomed pan heat ghee on medium heat, add grated khoya and turn the flame to low.
On low flame stirring occasionally let mawa turn into light golden in color. At this stage, mawa will leave its own ghee and start leaving sides of the pan (refer to the step-by-step images above). Turn off the gas and set aside until it cools down.
Meanwhile, in a food processor blend raisins, pistachio, and almond to a coarse powder. You should feel the graininess of the dry fruits. Do not make a fine powder.
Once mawa cools down, mix in sugar, coconut, dry fruits mixture, chironji, cardamom powder, and saffron. Mix nicely and crumble the chunks of roasted khoya.
The ghujia stuffing should resemble a coarse powder with all the ingredients mixed nicely (refer step-by-step stuffing image above).

For making ghujias, knead the dough once again for a minute or so.
Divide the dough into about 50 equal sized small balls. Roll each ball into about 4 to 3 inch diameter (like a poori).
Place the rolled dough into gujia mould. Dip your finger in the water and spread it around the edges of the rolled dough.
Put about 1 tablespoons of the filling mixture in the center and fold it into a semi-circle along with the mold, press firmly. Make sure the edges are completely sealed otherwise they will open while frying and oil will get in and filling will come out.
Remove the excess dough and continue filling the rest of the gujia in the same manner.

Heat about 1-½ inches of oil in a heavy bottomed frying pan on medium heat. To test if the oil is hot enough, drop a small piece of dough into the oil. It should sizzle right away but come to the surface slowly.
Place the gujia in the frying pan 3 - 4 at a time. After gujiyas are floating on top of the oil, turn them slowly. Fry the gujias until they turn light golden-brown color on all sides. Don’t fry on high heat; the gujia crust will be too soft and not crispy.
Frying each batch of gujiya takes 10 - 12 minutes. So do not rush this process. And keep turning them while frying at regular intervals for even cooking and coloring.
When they are done cooking, lift them out of the oil with a slotted spoon and drain on an absorbent paper.

For making glaze, boil water and sugar in a pan until sugar dissolves and syrup is slightly thickened and sticky.
Dip in ghujias in the sugar syrup and and remove on a plate.
Let the ghujias cool completely before storing it in an airtight container.
Serve kesar mawa gujiya warm or at room temperature.

Dimple Test: Perform a texture test on the dough, press two finger into the dough, the perfect dough should be a little tough to push and should not stick to your fingers.
Allow khoya to cool down completely before mixing with other ingredients. It should not be warm to touch and easy to handle.
Taste while preparing the stuffing and adjust the amount of sugar accordingly. Do not add too much sugar at once.
Do not overstuff the gujiya with the khoya mixture else it might tear while frying.
After stuffing, make sure gujiya are sealed tightly. Apply little water to seal and secure the edges. If not sealed tightly, the stuffing will spill into the oil while frying.
Cover all the shaped ghujia with a moist muslin cloth before frying or the outer dough layer will become dry.
Always fry ghujia in a medium-hot oil over low heat. Keep on moderating the heat while frying. But never ever fry ghujia on high heat. They might burn and remain uncooked from inside.