Balushahi Recipe
Servings: 20 people
Calories: 187kcal
Balushahi (badusha) is a crispy and flaky Indian sweet made using all-purpose flour, ghee, and yogurt. It is popularly made during festivals, weddings, and special occasions. Make it using my tried and tested recipe at home!
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Ingredients
For The Dough
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (maida)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ cup ghee (clarified butter) at room temperature
- ¼ cup plain yogurt chilled
- ice-cold water approximately ½ cup, to knead the dough
- ghee for frying
For The Sugar Syrup
- 2 and ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 and ¼ cups water
- ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
- 1 pinch saffron
Instructions
Make The Dough
- Mix all-purpose flour (maida), salt, baking soda, and baking powder in a large bowl or a parat (a large Indian shallow plate).
- Add ghee and mix nicely with your fingertips.
- The ghee should be in a semi-solid state. If it is too hot where you live and ghee is melted at room temperature, then refrigerate it for a few minutes.
- Add chilled plain yogurt (dahi) and mix well using your fingers.
- Now add ice-cold water (approx ½ cup) little by little and knead to make a soft dough. Do not over-knead the dough. You just have to bring the ingredients together and not try to make the dough smooth.
- Cover the dough with a dish towel and keep it aside for 30 minutes.
- Make 20-22 equal-sized balls from the dough. Do not try to make them smooth. Handle the dough as little as possible for the best result.
- Press in the center of the dough ball with your thumb. Shape all the balushahi in the same manner. Keep them covered with a dishcloth to avoid drying.
Fry The Balushahi
- Heat 1-inch ghee for frying in a shallow non-stick pan over medium heat.
- When the ghee is barely hot, drop the Balushahi in the ghee very gently. Do not overload the pan and fry in batches. Balushai will expand while frying so make sure there is a gap between them.
- Reduce the heat to low and fry the balushahi until golden brown.
- Keep flipping the balushahi while frying. Each batch will take around 25-30 minutes for frying.
- Drain the balushai on a plate lined with paper tissues and let them cool completely. Fry all the batches and let all of them cool completely.
Make The Sugar Syrup
- Add granulated sugar, water, cardamom powder, and saffron to a pan and heat on medium heat for 10-12 minutes to make 2 thread syrup.
- The consistency of the sugar syrup is very important for it to crystallize properly over the balushahi.
- To check if the sugar syrup has reached the 2 thread consistency, take a syrup on the spoon. Let it cool for 4-5 seconds. Be careful because it is very hot at this stage. Now take a little syrup on one of your fingers and press it with the thumb. You should see 2 threads forming in between the finger and the thumb.
Coat The Balushahi
- Remove the pan from heat once the syrup reaches the desired consistency and immediately dip the balushai in the warm syrup one by one. Take them out using a fork and arrange them on a plate in a single layer. the sugar will crystallize in 5 minutes.
- Garnish the balushahi with silver foil and pistachio slivers and store them in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Refrigerating it will make it harder because of the ghee so avoid that.
Notes
Make sure to fry the balushahi only on low heat otherwise they will brown from outside but will be raw from inside.
In case the sugar syrup crystallizes, then add 2-3 tablespoons of water to it and heat on low heat.
Nutrition
Calories: 187kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 59mg | Potassium: 31mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 25g | Vitamin A: 3IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 1mg