Kaju Katli

Why does kaju katli turn grainy?

Because the sugar recrystallised. Syrup boiled past one thread is already close to the point where the dissolved sugar wants to come back out of solution, and stirring a supersaturated syrup gives it the nucleation sites to do exactly that. The result is a katli with a faint sandy crunch running through it instead of the smooth waxy bite it should have. Pull the syrup off at one thread, not beyond, and keep the flame low once the cashew powder is in. A grainy batch is not wasted: crumble it, add a spoon of milk and reshape it into ladoos.

How fine should the cashews be ground?

Fine enough to pass through a kitchen sieve, and not one pulse finer. Cashews are around forty per cent fat, and a grinder run continuously heats them until that fat is released and the powder collapses into butter, which makes a greasy dough that will not roll. Work in short bursts, let the jar cool between them, and sieve rather than grinding everything to the same fineness. Cashews straight from a cold fridge behave badly for the same reason, since condensation on the surface has the same effect as oil.

What is the right sugar to cashew ratio?

Roughly one part sugar to three parts cashew by weight, which is what gives kaju katli its restrained sweetness compared with most Indian sweets. Pushing the sugar higher makes the dough easier to handle and the sweet noticeably cheaper, which is why commercial katli varies so much in quality. Going much below this ratio leaves too little syrup to bind the powder and the sheet cracks when rolled. The nut content is also what makes it expensive, and a katli that tastes markedly sweet is usually telling you the ratio has shifted.

How do you know the mixture is ready to knead?

Push the spatula through the middle and watch the base of the pan. While the mixture is still wet it flows back and closes over immediately. When it is ready, it holds open for a moment and the whole mass moves as one lump that comes cleanly away from the surface. A second test is to touch a little of the cooled mixture: it should feel like soft dough rather than sticking to the finger. Err on the early side, because an undercooked dough can be returned to the pan while an overcooked one cannot be rescued.

Why has my katli gone sticky or chewy?

It came off the flame too soon, so there is still water in it. The dough stays tacky, refuses to roll without tearing and never sets firm enough to cut. Put it back into the pan on a low flame and cook it for another minute or two, testing as you go. Chewiness rather than stickiness usually means the syrup was under concentrated at the start, which is the same fault arriving from the other direction.

Rolling it thin without cracking

Knead while the dough is still warm, because the cashew fat is pliable then and stiffens as it cools. Two sheets of greased butter paper let you roll thin without the dough gripping the pin, and a flat bottomed steel katori works if you have no rolling pin small enough. If it cracks at the edges as you roll, the dough is too dry: knead in a teaspoon of warm milk and try again. Cut only once it is completely cold, or the diamonds distort. Stored airtight it keeps about a week at room temperature and two weeks refrigerated. For a comparably restrained sweet built on a different principle, sandesh relies on fresh chhena rather than syrup, and besan ladoo shows what roasting rather than syrup does. Nut portions in an everyday diet are discussed in how many almonds a day, and sweet making technique is part of the culinary nutrition course.