Jalebi with Rabri

Ingredients

• 1 cup (120g) all-purpose flour (maida)
• 2 tablespoons besan (chickpea flour)
• 2 tablespoons plain yogurt
• 3/4 cup water, plus more as needed
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• A few drops of orange or yellow food color (optional)
• Ghee or neutral oil, for deep-frying
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon saffron threads
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 4 cups whole milk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• A pinch of saffron threads
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 2 tablespoons chopped pistachios and almonds

Before you cook

• Whisk the flour, besan, yogurt, and 3/4 cup water together in a bowl until completely smooth and lump-free
• Cover the bowl and set it in a warm spot for 8 to 12 hours, or overnight, until the batter smells faintly sour and shows tiny bubbles on the surface
• Soak a pinch of saffron for the rabri in a tablespoon of warm milk
• Fit a piping bag, squeeze bottle, or a cone made from parchment paper for shaping the jalebi

Steps

1. Pour the 4 cups of milk for the rabri into a wide, heavy-bottomed pan and set it over medium-low heat.
2. Bring the milk to a gentle boil, then lower the heat so it simmers steadily.
3. Scrape down the sides of the pan every few minutes and stir the skin that forms back into the milk.
4. Keep simmering and stirring for about 40 minutes, until the milk reduces to roughly a third of its original volume and thickens.
5. Stir in the 1/4 cup sugar, the saffron milk, and the cardamom.
6. Simmer the rabri for 5 more minutes, then stir in half the chopped nuts and take the pan off the heat.
7. Transfer the rabri to a bowl and refrigerate it until serving time.
8. Stir the baking soda into the fermented jalebi batter until fully combined.
9. Check the batter's consistency; it should flow off a spoon in a steady ribbon, so thin it with a splash of water if it feels thick.
10. Stir in a few drops of food color if using.
11. Pour the 1 1/2 cups sugar and 3/4 cup water for the syrup into a separate pan and set it over medium heat.
12. Stir until the sugar dissolves, then stop stirring and let the syrup come to a simmer.
13. Add the saffron threads and cardamom to the syrup.
14. Simmer the syrup for about 8 minutes, until a drop pressed between two fingers forms one soft thread.
15. Stir the lemon juice into the syrup and keep it warm over very low heat.
16. Heat ghee or oil in a wide, shallow pan over medium heat until it reaches about 175°C (350°F).
17. Fill the piping bag or cone with the fermented batter.
18. Squeeze the batter into the hot oil in tight, continuous spirals, working from the outside edge inward.
19. Fry each jalebi for about 1 minute per side, until the coils turn golden and crisp.
20. Lift the fried jalebi out with a slotted spoon, letting the excess oil drip off.
21. Drop the hot jalebi immediately into the warm syrup.
22. Let each jalebi soak in the syrup for 30 to 60 seconds, turning it once, then lift it onto a wire rack.
23. Repeat the frying and soaking with the remaining batter.
24. Serve the jalebi warm with the chilled rabri poured alongside, topped with the remaining chopped nuts.