Adadiya Pak
A traditional Gujarati winter tonic sweet, Adadiya Pak is a rich, fudge-like confection made from coarsely ground urad dal, ghee, and a complex blend of warming spices. Renowned for its energy-boosting properties during cold months, this recipe combines the earthy nuttiness of lentils with the crunch of edible gum, nuts, and aromatic spices like dry ginger and pipramul. The result is a deeply satisfying, savory-sweet treat with a unique crumbly texture that melts in the mouth.
Ingredients
- 2 cups Urad dal flour (coarse/karkara) (Originally '2 Sher'. Scaled for home preparation.)
- 1 cup Gram flour (Besan, coarse) (Originally '1 Sher'. Scaled proportionally.)
- 2 cups Ghee (Clarified Butter) (Divided use for frying and roasting. Originally '4 Sher'.)
- 2 1/2 cups Granulated sugar (Originally '12 Sher' (likely a bulk ratio). Adjusted to a palatable modern sweetness level.)
- 1 cup Water (For making syrup.)
- 1/2 cup Wheat starch (Nishasta) or Wheat flour (Originally 'Wheat milk' (extracted starch). Can substitute with wheat flour if starch is unavailable.)
- 2 tablespoons Edible gum (Gundar/Dink) (Originally '0.5 Sher'. Scaled down.)
- 2 tablespoons Dry ginger powder (Sunth) (Originally '1 Sher'. Scaled down.)
- 2 tablespoons Adadiya Masala Powder (A traditional mix containing Ganthoda (Pipramul), Musli, Gokhru, etc. Replaces the long list of individual medicinal herbs in the original text.)
- 2 tablespoons Almonds (Chopped.)
- 2 tablespoons Pistachios (Chopped.)
- 1 tablespoon Charoli (Chironji)
- 1 tablespoon Poppy seeds (Khaskhas)
- 1/4 cup Dried coconut (Grated. Originally '1 cup'.)
- 1 tablespoon Melon seeds (Magaj) (Originally listed as various seeds (cucumber, pumpkin, etc.).)
- 1 tablespoon Raisins
- 1 teaspoon Cardamom powder
- 1/2 teaspoon Nutmeg (Grated.)
- 1/2 teaspoon Mace (Javantri) (Ground.)
- 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon powder
- 1/4 teaspoon Clove powder
- 1/2 teaspoon White pepper powder
Instructions
- 1Clean and sieve the urad dal and gram flours separately. Chop the almonds, pistachios, and coconut into small pieces. Clean the raisins and charoli.
- 2Heat about 1/2 cup of ghee in a heavy-bottomed pan. Fry the edible gum (gundar) until it puffs up completely, then remove and crush it slightly. In the same ghee, lightly fry the almonds, pistachios, charoli, melon seeds, and raisins separately until crisp. Remove and set aside. Fry the poppy seeds briefly in the remaining ghee.
- 3In the same pan, add a little more ghee if needed and fry the wheat starch (or wheat flour) until it turns a pale red/golden color. Remove and set aside with the other fried ingredients.
- 4Add the remaining ghee to the pan. Add the urad dal flour and gram flour. Roast on low-medium heat, stirring continuously, until the mixture turns golden brown and releases a nutty aroma. Be careful not to burn it.
- 5In a separate pot, combine the sugar and water. Bring to a boil to create a syrup. Cook until it reaches a 'one-string' consistency (sticky syrup that forms a single thread when tested between thumb and forefinger). Strain the syrup if necessary to remove impurities.
- 6Remove the syrup from heat. Add the roasted flour mixture, all the fried nuts, gum, wheat starch, coconut, dry ginger powder, Adadiya masala, and all powdered spices (cardamom, nutmeg, mace, cinnamon, clove, white pepper) into the syrup. Stir vigorously to combine everything into a uniform mass. The ghee should separate slightly and float to the top.
- 7Pour the mixture into a large, rimmed tray or thali. Flatten it to a thickness of about 2 inches. Allow it to cool and set completely. Once firm, cut into square or diamond-shaped pieces. Store in an airtight container.