'Kulkuls are hot favourite across generations'

Everything from the plum cake to the achapams, from rose cookies to the home made chocolates and wine are cooked, brewed and made with great love and fervour. Recipes are handed over from generation to generation and the lingering taste of great grandma’s cooking remains long after the last carol is played. 

Today I am sharing an eggless kulkul recipe with you all. Easy to make and very tasty, kulkul is a hot favourite with every generation. I decided to share the eggless version as a lot of people have given up eating eggs these days. May the joy and merriment of Christmas be a part of every reader’s household. 

EGGLESS VERSION: CHRISTMAS SWEET 

SERVES: 20 PAX

PREP. TIME: 20 MIN 

COOKTIME: 20 MIN

TOTAL TIME: 40 MIN. 

INGREDIENTS 

1 cup: maida (all purpose flour) 

1/3 cup: sugar 

2 tbsp: melted butter 

A pinch of salt 

2 drops: vanilla essence 

Cooking oil to deep fry 

METHOD  

Take a wide bowl and add maida , salt and powdered sugar (if you powder 1/3 cup of sugar, you will get ½ cup. Use all the sugar.) Mix well and check for taste. If the sweetness is not enough, add more powdered sugar, to suit your taste.  

Melt the butter and add it to the maida. Use your fingers to blend the mixture nicely. 

Now adding a little water at a time, make a soft dough, should not be sticky at all. Cover the dough with a moist cloth and let it rest for 15 minutes.  

Make spiral shapes using a comb or fork as shown in the pictures below. Pinch small gooseberry sized balls from the dough and spread it as a thin layer on the comb or the back of fork. Roll it to make a spiral shape. Tightly roll it and close it well, else it will open up while 

frying. Arrange all the shaped kulkuls in a plate(Do not make it too thick because it will be crispy outside and soft inside. To avoid this, take less dough and roll it thin). 

Heat cooking oil and test it by dropping a pinch of dough. It should rise on top immediately. ( If you are a beginner, make a trial by frying 1-2 kulkuls before you put them in batches. Check whether it breaks in oil. If it breaks in oil, add little more maida and make the dough). 

Lower the flame completely and drop 5-7 kulkuls at a time. Flame should be low to medium. Let kulkuls cook for few minutes till one side turns light golden brown. Flip it and cook the other side till light golden brown. Don’t wait for all the bubbles to cease because kulkuls will cook even after removing from the oil. So while you take out from the 

oil, it looks and tastes soft. But when it cools down completely, it will become super crunchy. So please wait till it cools down to enjoy its best taste. Cook the remaining kulkuls in batches. Adjust the flame from low to medium. 

Store in an air tight box after it cools down completely. It stays good for a week or two. For me, the sweetness was perfect without coating the powdered sugar. If you want more sweet and a whitish, you can coat these kulkuls in powdered sugar after it cools down.  

Enjoy this crispy and yummy snack with your family!

TIP FOR THE DAY:  

Do not fry in very hot oil or less heated oil, the temperature must be right for the snack to cook inside and outside, without turning dark brown. 

Powdered sugar should be kept with a little bit of cardamom, to retain a nice flavour. 

Use paper towels to drain out excess oil from the snacks. 

Always maintain a check on the flame of the gas and temperature of the oil, to get right texture, colour and proper cooking.  

Clean vessels used for frying by scrubbing with fresh lime to remove oil stains.