Mawa Gujiya is a fried sweet dish specially made on occasions and Indian festivals like Diwali and Holi. With a crispy, golden exterior and a sweet filling of milk solids, desiccated coconut, powdered sugar, and nuts, this irresistible treat offers a perfect mix of flavors and textures that’s hard to stop at just one bite.
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The Karanji recipe I shared last Diwali is similar, with just a few variations in the outer covering and stuffing. The main difference in today’s recipe is the use of Mawa (or Khoya), which is milk solids.
Mawa is easily available in Indian grocery stores, typically sold in small blocks that can then be grated to be used. You also get the mawa milk powder in powder form, and it can be used in making many Indian sweets like gajar ka halwa in an instant pot (carrot pudding), sweet modak, peda with ricotta cheese, and milk peda.
Why you'll love this recipe?
- The taste is what makes this recipe irresistible, and the effort required to make it feels completely worthwhile.
- Great to share with friends and loved ones for festivals and special occasions.
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour or maida for the outer covering
- ghee clarified butter
- milk powder mawa or khoya grated
- coconut dessicated
- Powdered sugar, if using granulated powder, it
- nuts, pistachio, cashew, almond (powdered)
- cardamom (powdered)
How to make Mawa Gujiya?
Make the outer covering
The trick is kneading the dough with very little water. Crumble the all-purpose flour with clarified butter or ghee and a pinch of salt. With the tip of your fingers, mix the contents well and thoroughly. Combine such that when you form a fist with the flour, it all comes as a single mass.
Slowly add water and knead it into a semi-stiff dough. Cover with a wet cloth and keep aside for about 30 minutes. I kept it for about four hours as I had other stuff to do, but it is not required to rest the dough for so long; half an hour is good enough.
Make the stuffing
Grate the khoya or mawa and cook it with ghee on low heat till it softens and comes together. Transfer to a container and cool it completely. Add powdered sugar, powdered nuts, cardamom, and desiccated coconut and mix well.
Desiccated coconut is sometimes used in place of fresh coconut and can be used to make sweets like coconut rava ladoos, 7 cup barfi, karanji sweet, and many others. For a savory snack, you may want to try the murukku or air-fried sabudana vada
How to shape the gujiyas?
Divide the dough into small balls and roll them into small circles. Wet the outer circle with water. Add a little stuffing and close the ends to form a semi-circle. Pinch the ends so the stuffing is well-packed and does not spill out when frying. A similar technique is used in shaping Ganesh Chaturthi modak but in a slightly different way.
You can also use the shaping molds to get a perfect shape. It is important to deep fry the gujiya on low flame so the outer covering cooks thoroughly.
- Step 1: Crumble the all-purpose flour with ghee and salt and knead to form a semi-stiff dough.
- Step 2: Cook the grated khoya and mix it with desiccated coconut, powdered sugar, and nuts.
- Step 3: Roll the dough into small circles and place a spoonful of the sweet filling in the center.
- Step 4: Wet the corners of the dough and pinch the ends to form the shape of a dumpling.
- Step 5: Deep-fry the gujiyas on low flame so they cook evenly and get a nice golden brown color.
- Step 6: Drain the fried mawa gujiyas onto a serving plate lined with a paper-towel to drain out any excess oil.
The main effort in making this dish is making the stuffing and dough, rolling, and shaping the mawa gujiya. Deep frying is the easy part. The final dish is so delicious and irresistible that all the effort is truly worth it.
Recipe FAQs
Mawa Gujiya will stay fresh for up to 3 days at room temperature. For longer storage, you can refrigerate it for up to a week, but for the best flavor and texture, it's recommended to enjoy it within 2 to 3 days.
Both Gujiya and Karanji are similar in their outer covering, with the main difference lying in the filling. Gujiya features a rich stuffing of milk solids, desiccated coconut, sugar, and nuts, while Karanji typically contains coconut, sesame seeds, nuts, and sugar.
Heat the oil to the right temperature and fry the gujiyas in batches to maintain the oil’s consistency. For the dough, ensure it is semi-tight by crumbling it with ghee or oil, and check that it holds together when pressed into a fist.
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Mawa Gujiya
Ingredients
For Outer Covering
- 3 cups all-purpose flour or maida
- 1 pinch salt
- 6 tbsp ghee clarified butter
- ½ cup water extra 3 to 4 tbsp may be required sometimes
For Stuffing
- 1 ½ cup milk powder mawa or khoya grated
- ½ cup coconut dessicated
- ⅔ cup sugar powdered
- 8 tbsp nuts pistachio, cashew ,almond powdered
- 1.5 tsp cardamom powdered
- 1 tbsp ghee to fry mawa
Instructions
For Dough
- Crumble all-purpose flour and ghee with fingers for a couple of minutes until they come together when shaped with your fist.
- Add water as needed to form a semi stiff dough.
- Cover with a wet cloth and keep aside to rest for about half an hour .
For Stuffing
- In a pan add ghee and add mawa and sautee till it comes together and is slightly brown.
- Let it cool completely.
- Add desiccated coconut, powdered nuts , sugar and cardamom.
- Combine well with your fingers .
To make Gujiya
- Make small balls of dough and roll into circular shape
- Add water all around and fill a teaspoon of stuffing.
- Close the ends to form a semi circle shape.
- Deep fry on low flame for about 5 to 6 minutes till the outer covering is well cooked.
- Transfer to a container lined with paper towel.
- Enjoy the crispy and hot Guiiya.
Notes
- When making the dough, start by crumbling the flour and making sure it comes together when making a fist; finally, make a semi-stiff dough.
- Use milk or water on the sides of the dough so when you shape the dumpling by pinching the corners, they easily stick together and hold well, You do not want the filling to pop out when you deep -fry it.
- Deep-fry on low to medium flame, as high-flame will cook the outer covering, leaving the inner part uncooked.
Wow! Looking tasty.🙂🎉well shared thank you 🙂🎉💕
Thank you so much!
It's my pleasure 🤗💓God bless you.
This looks absolutely delicious and so perfectly made! Thank you for sharing your Mawa Gujiya recipe with us.
Thank you so much!
This looks so delicious, as a child growing up Divali was always a part of my culture. I only remember the savoury treats and not the sweet ones.
Wonderful to hear that , Thank you so much!
Absolutely delicious.
Thank you so much!
I have never tried it before! Sounds so delicious! Will make sure to try it
Thank you so much!
Those Mawa Gujiya look really delicious! I'm sure everyone will love having them during Diwali!
Thank you so much!
These look really nice and I would love to give these a try one day soon.
Thank you so much!
That looks absolutely scrumptious! Alas, I'd have to buy it as kneading is not my forte at all.
Thank you so much!
I'm not sure if I've tried this before. It doesn't look familiar. I've eaten quite a variety of Indian desserts/sweets as I have quite a few Indian friends. It sounds delicious!!!
Thank you so much!
Looks yummy. Thanks for the recipe. Happy Diwali!
Thank you so much!
These look so very tasty! 🙂
Thank you so much!