Meethi Tikiyan Recipe
When attending Eid-al-Fatha programs or niaz celebrations during the Islamic months of Ramadan and Rajab, there is nothing that I look forward to more than the food. The sweet fragrance of vibrant orange halva. The sizzling of flaky puris frying. The fusion of Middle Eastern and South Asian flavors completely satisfies my taste buds as I eat on the floor and listen to the surrounding laughter and conversations of others.
Meethi tikiyan are one of the most delightful dishes offered at these celebrations. Meaning “sweet pieces,” they are essentially fried cookies with a hard exterior and a soft, mushy interior. They taste similar to many Middle Eastern and South Asian desserts, yet they are not as sickly sweet. The flavor of meethi tikiyan is relatively subke, which is one of the main things I love about them. Further, they do not contain eggs and are made up of ingredients that may be foreign to many. When preparing to make meethi tikiyan, I recommend that you visit South Asian or Middle Eastern stores near you as they will likely have all the ingredients you need. I have included the names of some of the ingredients in Urdu as that is how they may be labeled in these stores.
A warning before you begin mixing and frying: meethi tikiyan take a while to make as they require elongated resting periods. However, if you have patience, you’ll find it worthwhile as you dig into the soft and slightly crumbly dessert. I recommend pairing with a glass of milk or perhaps a cozy fire and fluffy blanket.
Quick note on frying:
Frying is perhaps the most crucial step when making meethi tikiyan. Do not overuse the oil. You should not be deep frying. Rather, you should be low frying so that the meethi tikiyan dough balls are not fully submerged in oil. Try your best not to over fry them. They should be a dark brown color, but it is easy to burn them as the gap between being undercooked and overcooked is quite slim. Always have your eye on the meethi tikiyan as they fry.
Ingredients:
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1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (maida)
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½ cup cream of wheat (suji)
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3 black cardamom seeds (kali elaichi)
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¼ cup coconut powder
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½ cup vegetable shortening
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¾ cup sugar (chini)
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Have whole milk available. Amount varies
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Have vegetable oil on hand. This will be used for frying
Directions:
Place the sugar in a steel pot over a stove. Using a tablespoon, slowly pour milk into the pot so that it just covers the surface of the sugar. Then, turn the heat of the stove up to medium. Wait until the sugar is completely dissolved in the milk. You should be left with a sweet syrup.
Take out a bowl and dump in the cream of wheat. Then, use a tablespoon to carefully add in the milk. Again, the milk should just be covering the cream of wheat. This mixture should not be too thin and liquidy. Leave the bowl out at room temperature for at least two hours. You must allow the cream of wheat to completely soften within the milk.
While you are waiting, grab the black cardamom seeds, peel off their shells, and grind them with a mortar so that they form a powder. Then, pour the flour into a large bowl. Add the black cardamom powder on top along with the coconut powder. Using a whisk, mix the dry ingredients together.
Now, place your vegetable shortening into a heat-proof pot. On low heat, melt the shortening so that it liquifies. Occasionally, you may turn it around with a heat-proof wooden spoon, whisk, or spatula to ensure that it does not burn. Alternatively, you can also use a microwave for this step. Check on the shortening at 20-second intervals to make sure that it does not burst!
Add the shortening to your dry ingredients. Mix until completely combined.
Turn back to the cream of wheat and milk. In a large bowl, combine the dry ingredients, wet ingredients, and sugar syrup. Use a spatula for this step as it will be more manageable. You should end up with a large, doughy mass.
Grab a rolling pin and lightly flour it. Dust your hands as well. Have a 2-inch cookie cutter on hand as you will use it to shape your cookies. Flour this as well. Using the rolling pin, roll out the dough so that it is about ¼ of an inch thick. Turn the dough after every roll for uniformity and to ensure that it does not stick to the surface you are working on. After you are finished, begin cutting out circles using the cookie cutter.
Pour vegetable oil in a frying pan and begin heating it on a stove. The oil should come about ⅛ of the way up the frying pan. Again, the meethi tikiyan dough should not be completely submerged in the oil.
Carefully place about five meethi tikiyan circles into the frying pan. Turn the heat down to medium. Have a spatula ready, and after one minute, flip the tikiyan. Continue this process until they are a rich, dark brown color. Transfer to a prepared plate covered with a paper towel to absorb any excess oil. Repeat as necessary.
Allow the meethi tikiyan to cool. Once you believe they are ready, dig in! Share with friends and family. Trust me, you will be making this dessert over and over again!