Bongtaste : Chitrokut (Popular Bengali Sweet)

Chitrokut is a very famous sweet in Bengal,It is first deep fried in ghee or oil and then dipped in the sugar syrup.
It is similar like khoya or mewa made gulan jamun,but the differences of chitrokut from gulabjamun are it is a rectangle shaped sweet and it is dipped in sugar syrup for long hours around 6 to 7 hours.

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Author -Moumita
Preparation Time-15 Minutes
Cooking Time -20 Minutes
Inactive Time-7 hours
Course-Dessert
Cuisine-Bengali
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Ingredients For Fried Chitrokut
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Khoya-100 grams
Maida or All purpose flour-4 teaspoons
Oil or ghee -2 cups

Ingredients For sugar syrup

Cardamom powder-1/2teaspoon
Sugar-150 grams or (1 and 1/4cup)
Water-375ml or ( 1 and 1/4 cup )

Ingredients For Garnishing
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Milk powder-2 teaspoons
Pistachios or pista-2 teaspoons(soaked, peeled and chopped)

Method Of Making Sugar Syrup
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Add sugar ,cardamom powder and water to a pan and bring to a boil. Turn the heat down until it is just bubbling. Cook the syrup until single string form .Watch the syrup carefully to make sure it doesn't burn.

The sugar syrup should reach the single thread stage..it means, dip a spoon into sugar syrup,lift it out. Wait a moment and carefully pick up a drop of syrup on your finger. Then touch your finger to your thumb and pull them apart slowly to see how many strings of syrup form. For this recipe, you want a single string syrup.If no thread forms, or it breaks quickly, your syrup is not yet cooked enough.If multiple strings forms, then it has been overcooked...and need to add some additional water or begin again. When your sugar syrup is ready,switch off the gas.

Method Of Making Dried Citrokut When you sugar syrup is been making ,side by side you have to prepare the fried chitrokut. For that take the khoya in a wide plate

Mix all purpose flour with khoya

Start kneading,knead it very well to make smooth dough,make sure there is no lumps

Roll the khoya dough like a chapati or roti with a rolling pin

Cut the khoya chapati or roti into 1 inch square pieces

Heat ghee or oil in a deep and heavy bottomed wok or kadai

Add khoya cube pieces into the hot ghee or oil (add them into the kadai according to your wok or kadai size),do not overcrowded the wok or kadai adding too much chitrokut altogether

Fry them on low flame until deep brown,keep rotating with wooden or plastic spatula

Remove from heat and keep them in a plate

Final Preparation
Warm up the sugar syrup for few seconds,then switch off the gas. Add fried chitrokut slowly in hot sugar syrup. Let them soak for 6 to 7 hours.

Take out from sugar syrup,keep them in a plate..pour sugar syrup on chitrokut,sprinkle milk powder,garnish with chopped pistachio.

Serve and enjoy.