Sweet Mathari Indian Biscuits
Meethi Mathari
Mamta Gupta
The word Mathari is pronounced as Math-ri or mat-thi. This is a sweet snack, a kind of deep fried pastry that is often made on special festivals like Karwa Chauth.
Ingredients
250 gm. plain white flour or maida (you can use chapatti flour too)
250-300 gm. clarified butter or ghee or cooking oil
Water to make dough
Oil for deep frying
500 gm. sugar or shakkar
2 cups water for the syrup
Instructions
Place flour and ghee in a bowl and make a stiff dough by adding water slowly. Knead it well. Dough can be made quickly in a food processor. Keep it covered with a moist cloth for 10 minutes or so.
Break dough to make about 2 cm. diameter balls.
Roll each ball out on a flat surface, to a circle of 5 cm. approximately, and 0.5 cm. thickness (they are like small biscuits, with slightly rough edges). You may need to use a little oil to grease the work surface and your rolling pin.
Gently prick each mathari in a few places, with a fork. This stops them from ballooning during frying and keeps them crisp. Keep covered with a moist cloth, until you have 8-10 rolled out.
Heat oil in a wok or kadhai. It should not be smoking hot. The pastry should cook slowly or it will not get crisp. The best way to check if the oil is hot enough is to drop a small piece of dough into the wok. If it is ready, the pastry will sizzle and rise to the top slowly. Fry until light brown and crisp.
Repeat the same process until all the dough has been used. Allow to cool.
Make Syrup of 3 wire
Put 5-6 matharies at a time in the syrup, turn around/stir/mix quickly, coating each and every mathri with the syrup.
Take out and allow to cool on a tray or plate, making sure that they are not clumped together. Don’t worry too much if they stick, they can be separated when cold.
Cool and store in an airtight tin or box.
Serve with tea or coffee.
Notes
*The syrup must be 3 wire consistency or the shakar-paras will get soggy.
An alternative way of making the mathries is to make the dough with sugared water . Dissolve sugar in warm water. Allow it to cool and make a stiff dough with it. Roll out and deep fry the matharies as above. There is no need to dip them in sugar syrup.
You can flavour matharies by adding a teasppon of cardamom powder, if you wish.
