Jalebi or The Indian Pretzel

A fond and distinct memory from my childhood, that of me having garma garam (hot) jalebis with rabri or sometimes milk, is quite vivid in my mind, even now I remember those days, those were some wonderful worth remembering carefree days, I wish they could come back. To speak of jalebi and my tryst and love for it, I have a ton of stories and for you to hear them will require some time for sure if not a lot.

I still remember in my childhood I used to refer to jalebi as 'round and stop', basically due to the fact that it is prepared that way, where one   round and round the jalebi batter and once certain rounds are done, he gives it a stop and there its done, then he soaks in in sugary syrup to give it its sweetness. During childhood, I used to love watching jalebi being prepared live in front of me.

One of India's most famous and loved dessert is the jalebi. Though jalebi is not Indian yet we Indians have taken it to our liking so much that it’s no longer foreign to us, it has become truly Indian now. As mentioned above, jalebi is said to have originated in the Middle East and it was brought to India during the Medieval Period. Moreover, the term 'jalebi' is derived from the Persian word 'zolbiya' or the Arabic word 'zolabiya' which mean a similar dessert. There are a number of stories and mentions of jalebi in numerous books and accounts of the Medieval Period, which throw light on the recipe and ingredients of the similar dish which is identical to the modern-day jalebi, thus creating a strong connection between the Medieval Period jalebi and the modern ones.

Indian desserts are famous throughout the world not just for their taste but also for the less number of ingredients used and the simplicity in which they are prepared, and so is jalebi. Most Indian desserts are simple comfortable snack which can be had anytime anywhere without any fuss, so is jalebi. We Indians are blessed to have a sweet tooth and we love our desserts so much may it be gulab jamun or rasgulla, may it be barfi or sandesh/peda, may it be gajar ka halwa or moong dal ka halwa and so do we love jalebi as well.

Jalebi is basically prepared by - making a batter out of maida (all purpose flour), then deep-frying it in oil, the shape has given is in the form of pretzel (a number of circles), once it is fried, the jalebi is soaked in sugar syrup and there you go, your juicy tasty jalebi is ready. Jalebi can be had either warm or cold, the taste is quite subtle mainly due to the less number of ingredients used, it has a chewy texture. Most people prefer jalebi warm or hot, however, I prefer them cold as the sweetness increases as it gets colder. Jalebi tastes best with milk or rabri or even kachori.

A simple delicious dessert loved by one and all, jalebi truly is one of the best desserts.