Indian cooking
Indian cooking / Dishes / Coconut Gujiya
Coconut Gujiya (Deep-Fried Pastry with Coconut, Cardamom, & Jaggery)

Coconut Gujiya

Deep-Fried Pastry with Coconut, Cardamom, & Jaggery
VegetarianOrigin Mumbai

Coconut gujiya are crescent-shaped deep-fried pastries filled with coconut, jaggery, cardamom, raisins and poppy seeds. They are crisp outside and sweet, aromatic and slightly chewy inside.

Cardamom for the stuffing

0.5 gAdded with the coconut and jaggery at the start of frying (step 2)
01
0.5 g¼ teaspoon
spice
Keep ground; add it with the coconut and jaggery.

Poppy seeds for the stuffing

2.8 gStirred in with the raisins after the first frying (step 3)
01
2.8 g1 teaspoon
nut/seed
Keep whole; stir them in with the raisins.

Everything else

01
Plain flour · Maidaplus extra for dusting and rolling
170 g
flour
02
28 g2 tablespoons
oil/fat
03
~0.3 gpinch
salt
04
90 g90 ml
liquid
05
Milk · Doodhto seal the gujiya pastry
10 g2 teaspoons
dairy
06
120 g
fruit
07
80 g
sweetener
08
3 g1 teaspoon
fruit
09
Vegetable oil · Telfor deep-frying
to taste
oil/fat

Method

  1. For the stuffing, warm a medium frying pan over low heat.
  2. Add 120 g grated coconut, 80 g jaggery and the cardamom for the stuffing; fry for 8 minutes, stirring.
  3. Stir in 3 g raisins and the poppy seeds for the stuffing; fry for 2 minutes more.
  4. Take the pan off the heat and let the stuffing cool a little.
  5. In a large bowl, combine 170 g plain flour, 28.2 g melted butter or ghee and 0.3 g salt.
  6. Pour in 89.5 g water a little at a time, mixing until a smooth dough forms.
  7. Dust with a little extra flour and knead for 1 minute.
  8. Cover the dough and rest for 10 minutes.
  9. Divide the dough into 14 equal pieces; flatten each and roll on a lightly floured surface into a 4 cm disc.
  10. Put 1 tablespoon of the cooled stuffing in the centre of one disc.
  11. Brush the edge with 10.2 g milk, fold the disc into a half-moon, press the edge to seal and crimp with a fork.
  12. Set the gujiyas on a plate under a damp cloth while you fill and seal the rest.
  13. Pour vegetable oil into a saucepan or wok to about one-third depth and heat over medium heat.
  14. When the oil is hot, fry 2 gujiyas at a time, turning, until they are an even golden colour and crisp; they will swell a little.
  15. Drain on kitchen paper and keep warm while you fry the remaining gujiyas.

Don't have something?

Plain flour
  • Whole wheat flour

    Use the same weight, add 10–15% more water and rest the dough for 20 minutes; the result is heavier and nuttier.

  • Rice flour

    Use the same weight for crisp coatings; for doughs use no more than half rice flour with wheat flour, or it will be crumbly.

  • Cornflour

    For thickening use half the weight, mixed with cold water; it is not suitable for bread or chapati dough.

Ghee or butter
  • Ghee

    Use the same weight. Gives a richer aroma and nuttier taste; if the dish already uses butter for finishing, ghee can make it slightly heavier.

  • Butter

    Use the same weight. Lower smoke point than ghee, so keep the heat moderate; if unsalted, add a small pinch of salt.

  • Vegetable oil or ghee

    Use about 90% of the weight. Less rich flavour; good when you want a lighter result.

Water
  • Stock

    Use the same weight in savoury dishes; it adds body, so adjust salt.

  • Milk

    Use the same weight only in doughs or creamy dishes; it makes the result richer.

  • Coconut water

    Use the same weight in curries or rice; it adds sweetness and a faint coconut taste.

Milk
  • Whole milk

    Use equal weight; provides the standard rich dairy fat and body expected in creamy Indian bases.

  • Single cream

    Dilute 3 parts cream with 1 part water to match the weight; yields a richer, glossier gravy that resists curdling.

  • Plain yogurt

    Whisk thoroughly and use equal weight; adds extra body and a mild pleasant acidity, best added off the heat.

Coconut
  • Fresh coconut

    Use equal weight freshly grated or diced. Delivers the identical sweet, milky taste and juicy texture.

  • Desiccated coconut

    Use 60% of the weight and soak in hot water or milk for 15 minutes before using. The finished dish will be slightly sweeter and less fibrous.

  • Dried coconut

    Finely grate and use 50% of the weight, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes. Yields a firmer chew and a denser, oilier coconut aroma.

Jaggery
  • Granulated sugar

    Use 80% of the weight. Granulated sugar is sweeter by weight, but gives a cleaner, one-dimensional sweetness that lacks jaggery's caramel, molasses depth.

  • Raisin

    Soak and blend into a paste; use 100% to 120% of the weight. Adds rich, natural, fruity sweetness with complex, dark molasses notes that thicken the gravy.

Ground cardamom
  • Cardamom seed

    Grind the same weight; remove the pods first for a cleaner, stronger powder.

  • Green cardamom pod seed

    Grind the same weight of the seeds from green pods; discard the husks for the best flavour.

  • Ground green cardamom

    Use the same weight; it is the same spice and works directly.

Raisin
  • Dried plum

    Use equal weight, pitted and finely chopped. Lends a deeper, slightly more tart sweetness to curries and rice dishes.

  • Cashew nut

    Use equal weight. Fry lightly in ghee until golden; substitutes the burst of sweetness with a rich, buttery crunch.

  • Jaggery

    Use 30% of the weight, finely grated. Dissolve straight into the sauce to match the intended sweetness, though without the fruity chew.

White poppy seeds
  • Poppy seed

    Use the same weight; grey seeds make a darker paste but taste close.

  • White sesame seed

    Use the same weight, lightly toasted; the paste is nuttier and less thickening.

  • Cashew nut paste

    For 10 g poppy seeds use about 15 g cashew nut paste; it thickens more, so reduce other thickeners.

Vegetable oil
  • Peanut oil

    Use 1:1 by weight. Handles high-heat frying identically and introduces a very subtle, pleasant nuttiness.

  • Ghee

    Use 1:1 by weight. Yields a much richer, authentic aroma and a glossy, heavier mouthfeel.

  • Mustard oil

    Use 1:1 by weight. Heat until smoking, then cool slightly before cooking to temper its intensely pungent, sharp mustard kick.

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Kadalaparippu Payasam tastes softer, syrupy, and cardamom-scented with nutty chana dal and crunchy cashews, while this dish is crisp outside and chewy-sweet inside.
  • Same: Kadalaparippu Payasam shares jaggery, coconut, cardamom, raisins, and a ghee-or-butter fat with this dish.
  • Different: Kadalaparippu Payasam is a simmered chana dal pudding with coconut milk, coconut cream, lime juice, cashews, and ghee, while this dish is a deep-fried flour pastry filled with coconut, jaggery, cardamom, raisins, and poppy seeds.
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It tastes cooling, creamy, sour, and savory from the yogurt and mustard-chilli tadka, while this dish is crisp, sweet, and aromatic from jaggery and cardamom.
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  • Different: It is a yogurt-based chutney with a tadka of urad dal, mustard seed, and dried red chilli, and it lacks this dish's plain flour, butter or ghee, jaggery, raisins, poppy seeds, and ground cardamom; it is mixed and seasoned rather than made into a deep-fried pastry.
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Nariyal ki Chutney tastes fresh, herbaceous, pungent, and sour from lime, whereas this dish tastes crisp, sweet, aromatic, and slightly chewy.
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Puttu is light, crumbly and gently sweet with nutty coconut, while this dish is crisp outside and sweet, aromatic and slightly chewy inside.
  • Same: Puttu and this dish both use coconut as a main ingredient.
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