Bihari Shakkar Pare

Cuisine: Bihar Category: Snack Prep: 15 min Cook: 20 min Serves: 8 Difficulty: Easy 🌿 Vegetarian

Sugar-coated fried diamond biscuits — the sweet Diwali counterpart to nimki in Bihar

Ingredients

Method

  1. About Bihari Shakkar Pare: Shakkar Pare are the sweet sister of Nimki — diamond-shaped fried biscuits coated in a sugar syrup that crystallises to a sparkly white shell. Made alongside Nimki at every Bihari Diwali, they keep for weeks in airtight tins and are gifted to neighbours and relatives. The contrast of crispy biscuit inside and sweet white sugar shell outside is irresistible.
  2. Use fresh maida: Use 2 cups of all-purpose flour (maida). The flour should smell clean and neutral. Old or damp flour produces tough or oily shakkar pare.
  3. Mix the dry ingredients: In a wide bowl combine the 2 cups maida, 1/4 tsp cardamom powder, and a tiny pinch of salt — about 1/4 tsp. Whisk briefly with your fingers to distribute evenly.
  4. Add the ghee: Add 2 tbsp ghee to the dry mix. Use cold or just-melted ghee, not hot. Adequate ghee is what produces crisp shakkar pare; too little gives tough biscuits.
  5. Rub the ghee in: With your fingertips, rub the ghee into the flour using a pinching, lifting motion as if making pastry. Continue for 2-3 minutes until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs. Squeeze a small handful — it should clump together briefly when squeezed in your fist.
  6. Add water gradually: Pour 1/4 cup warm water over the mixture. Mix with a fork at first, then your fingers. Add 1-2 tbsp more water as needed.
  7. Knead a stiff dough: Knead for 4-5 minutes into a very stiff smooth dough — much firmer than chapati or roti dough. Stiff dough is essential for crispy shakkar pare; soft dough produces puffed bread instead. The dough should not stick to your hands.
  8. Rest the dough: Cover with a damp cloth and rest for 20 minutes. Resting relaxes the gluten and allows the cardamom to flavour the dough fully.
  9. Divide and roll: Divide the rested dough into 4 equal portions. Roll each portion between your palms into a smooth ball. Keep three under the damp cloth.
  10. Roll thin but not paper-thin: Lightly flour a clean work surface. Press one ball flat. Use a rolling pin to roll into a 25cm circle, about 3-4mm thick — slightly thicker than nimki. Shakkar pare need to be a bit thicker so they have a proper biscuit-like centre under the sugar coating.
  11. Cut diamond shapes: Use a sharp knife or pizza cutter. Make parallel cuts down the rolled dough about 3cm apart. Now make diagonal cuts across at the same spacing. You will get diamond shapes about 3cm across.
  12. Do not prick — unlike nimki: Shakkar pare are NOT pricked with a fork. The slight puffing during frying is desirable — it creates a lighter, biscuit-like centre that absorbs the sugar coating beautifully.
  13. Heat the oil correctly: Pour neutral oil into a deep heavy pan to a depth of at least 5cm. Place over medium-low heat. The oil for shakkar pare should be cooler than for fritters — slow frying produces a uniformly crisp interior. Test with a small piece of dough — it should sink, then rise within 8-10 seconds with a few small bubbles.
  14. Fry slowly to even golden: Add 6-8 diamonds at a time — do not crowd. Fry on medium-low heat for 4-5 minutes per batch, turning gently with a slotted spoon, until pale golden. They should not be deep brown — pale golden gives the right base for the white sugar coating.
  15. Drain and cool: Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain on a wire rack. Cool slightly while you make the sugar syrup. Frying batches one after another while making the syrup parallel works perfectly.
  16. Make the sugar syrup: In a small saucepan combine 1/2 cup sugar and 2 tbsp water. Place over medium heat. Stir gently until the sugar dissolves completely.
  17. The critical syrup stage: Once the sugar dissolves, stop stirring (stirring at this point causes crystallisation). Let the syrup boil gently for 2-3 minutes until it reaches the one-string consistency. Test by lifting a tiny drop on a spoon, letting it cool for 5 seconds, then pressing between thumb and index finger. When you separate the fingers, a single thin sugary string should form between them. This is the right stage; over-cooked syrup turns the coating hard, under-cooked stays sticky.
  18. Reduce heat to lowest: Once at one-string consistency, reduce heat to the absolute lowest. The syrup needs to stay hot but not continue cooking, while you coat the shakkar pare.
  19. Coat the shakkar pare: Tip half the fried diamonds into the syrup pan. Toss vigorously with a wooden spoon for 30-60 seconds. The syrup will start crystallising on the diamonds, going from glossy clear to opaque white. Lift out quickly with a slotted spoon onto a wide plate. Repeat with the second half.
  20. Spread to dry and crystallise: Spread the coated shakkar pare on a wide tray, separating any that stick. As they cool over 10-15 minutes, the sugar coating turns from sticky to a dry crystalline white shell.
  21. Cool completely and store: Once fully cool with a dry sugar coating — about 30 minutes — pack into an airtight tin or glass jar. Stored at room temperature in a dry place, they keep for 3-4 weeks. Avoid the fridge — humidity makes the sugar coating sticky.

Recipe from samaiyal.com — Authentic Indian Recipes