Spusht: Recipe: Shakkar Para & Namak Paare

For some of the snacks that go along well with tea, Mathri wins hands down, but Namak Paare and Shakkar Para come quite close. And what I find the best part about making snacks like namak paare and shakkar paare is that I put the efforts to make them ONCE – and they last for a month – saves so much time!

Namak Paare (savory crackers) Recipe

What you need:

For Namak Para:

½ cup all-purpose flour (maida)

½ cup whole wheat flour (gehun ka aata)

2-4 Tbsp fine semolina flour (sooji)

~¾ tsp salt

½ tsp carom seeds (ajwain)

2 Tbsp oil

Around 1/3 cup water or as needed

Oil to fry

1. Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix in oil and rub until you see that when you take flour in your palm and close your fist it forms a lump.

2. Gradually add water, knead to make a slightly firm and smooth dough. Do not overknead. Cover dough and keep aside for 15-20 minutes. You can wrap in cling film and refrigerate for a day or two until you are ready to fry.

3. When ready, gently knead dough for a few seconds, divide dough in two portions, roll one out flat about 3mm (while keeping other portion covered so it doesn’t dry out). Prick rolled out dough with fork all over so they do not puff when frying. Then cut each of them into long or small pieces as you wish.

4. Heat oil in frying pan on medium heat. Add each batch of the namak paare at a time, giving them sufficient space in pan for frying and rotating instead of filling up pan and leaving no space for them to fry well. Fry the namakpaare on both sides until light golden-brown. Drain on paper towel; let them come to room temperature before storing them in air-tight containers.

It's a similar procedure for both, except the sugar syrup for shakkar paare, so I'm usually making both on the same day (plus, once you heat up oil for frying one thing, you might as well use it to fry something else too). In case you plan to do the same, when you cover or wrap them in cling film, just write on paper which one is what to avoid confusion (although it's easy to figure out since namak paare will have specks of carom seeds).

Shakkar Paare (sweet crackers) Recipe

What you need:

For Shakkar Para:

1 cup all-purpose flour (maida)

¼ cup or more fine semolina flour (sooji)

2 Tbsp oil

Around ½ cup water or as needed

Oil to fry

For Sugar Syrup:

½ cup sugar

½ cup water

½ tsp cardamom powder

¼ cup dry grated/desiccated coconut

1. Mix both flours in a bowl. Mix in oil and rub until you see that when you take flour in your palm and close your fist it forms a lump.

4. Heat oil in frying pan on medium heat. Add each batch of the shakkar paara at a time, giving them sufficient space in pan for frying and rotating instead of filling up pan and leaving no space for them to fry well. Fry the shakkar paare on both sides until light golden-brown. Drain on paper towel; let them come to room temperature.

5. In another medium pan, add water + sugar on med heat, stir to dissolve sugar, bring it to a boil until sugar syrup is just about one-thread consistency. The syrup consistency should not get too thick; it should be thin enough to coat the shakkar paare but not watery because then it will make the shakkarpaare soggy and would spoil the crispiness of paare.

6. Turn off heat; add the cardamom powder + coconut, mix quickly, then add the paares to this syrup right away and mix REAL QUICK to ensure all the shakkar paare are coated with syrup. Transfer shakkarpaare onto a plate and separate the paaras that are clumped together. Let them cool before storing in airtight container.

Why should you fry namak paara and shakkar paara on medium heat? Because if you fry them on high heat, they will become soft after cooling down instead of staying crisp. If you fry on low heat, they will become too hard. They should ideally be crunchy and crispy.

These savory namak paare and sweet shakkar para can be easily stored in air-tight container at room temperature for a month or refrigerate and munch for two months.