Chikki

[Suvir Saran]

Do you all know Chikki (nut brittle)?

In northern India it is mostly made with peanuts.

In western India it is made with mixed nuts, with peanuts alone, just almonds, or just cashews, or even all these nuts and some times sesame seeds are added.

What is your favorite brittle?

How is different from others?

WHere do you find them?

[Monica Bhide]

I have used this brittle as garnish for Shrikhand.. an Indian dessert prepared with thick creamy yogurt.

Do you use it?

[bague25]

All the chikkis from Matheran are yum!!

My fav is the cashew or almond ones. I crush a cupful and decorate cakes with them, I add them to chocolates, to bavarois, on crêpes, on ice cream and....on buttered lightly toasted bread

[deliad]

Do you all know Chikki (nut brittle)?

In northern India it is mostly made with peanuts.

Suvir,

There are many more types that are made in Northern India apart from peanuts. Some which I remember eating are made with Chana Dal, Sevian, Rice murmura and a couple more.

There is another variety called Gajjak. This is very soft and flaky. Made with either sugar or jaggery, so color could be whitish or golden.

My favorite one is Chana Dal chikky or Gajjak. We used to buy it in bulk from the guy who makes it fresh in Ramesh Nagar in New Delhi. There are many other small shops in Patel Nagar, Moti Nagar area still that make very good chikkis.

Fun food for winters!!!

It is a pity, I can not eat them now due to diabetic issues....

[Monica Bhide]

Gajjak - now that would be perfect for a rainy day along with a steaming hot cup of tea!

I miss eating it.. although in a way I am glad because I end up eating way too much of it and then get ill to my stomach!

[rajsuman]

This time in Ahmedabad I ate the most wonderful kind of sesame brittle - it was wafer-thin and scrumptious! Can't remember what it was called though. Should have brought back some. We do get revdis here...nice, but gajjak remains my absolute favourite.

Suman

[Vikram]

This time in Ahmedabad I ate the most wonderful kind of sesame brittle - it was wafer-thin and scrumptious! Can't remember what it was called though

Til-papad. Its my favourite type of chikki sweet and even better than the version made with white sesame seeds is the one made with black sesame. It looks sensational - wafer thin, jet black sheets and has a wonderful, complex taste and is also supposed to be very healthy for you. Also, please note for those on the non-dairy thread, absolutely no dairy in it, just sesame seeds, caramel and some chopped pistachios maybe. Its a wonderfully elegant sweet and something I think should definitely be used in different contexts - as a base for other desserts maybe, or broken into fragments on top of ice cream or something like this. Its the Indian equivalent of a tuile!

Vikram

[Episure]

It's also available in Bombay at the few shops opposite Matunga station on the Rama Nayaks side.

Edited April 17, 2004 by Episure (log)

[Guest nimki]

Hi suvir

this topic brought up some sweet memories.

classic peanut chikki at the onset of winters is a favourite. other times of the year, it just doesn't seem quite as special. I always associate the winter season with vast quantities of chikki, oranges, peanuts, gajjak, revri all washed down with endless cups of hot tea.

As a child the beginning of cool weather brought a sense of anticipation - of visits to the merchants who sold all the winter goodies. Things like dry fruits (pistachios, almonds, raisins, walnuts, chilgoze, khubanis), great lumps and flat pieces of spiced gur, a mixture of namak paare, meethe paare and (an orangy pinkish round sweet covered in sugar crystals whose name i can't quite remember), crisp mathris - methi, plain, with peppercorns, chikkis made out of - peanuts, sesame seeds (white and black), sev, almonds, revris, gajjak and so many others delicious things.

a lot of the chikki available today, pre packed in neat flat square or rectangular shaped packets just doesn't taste like the slightly uneven round thick peanut brittle of my younger days. maybe im just growing old.

another favourite is almond and pistachio chikki (though i havent heard it being called that). It is unbelievably good. it brings out memories of diwali (because we used to get boxes and boxes of the thinnest brittle - sharp gur with toasted almond and crisp salted pistachios......and i would eat myself sick). I always promise myself that I'm going to cure my addiction to these sinful sweets. Till the next festival season. oh well!

btw - in the north of the country peanut brittle (to my knowledge) is referred to as moofali ki patti ...is the term chikki more of pune/bombay thing? have also heard of peanut chikki being classified under gajjak (or gazzak).

[rajsuman]

This time in Ahmedabad I ate the most wonderful kind of sesame brittle - it was wafer-thin and scrumptious! Can't remember what it was called though

Til-papad. Its my favourite type of chikki sweet and even better than the version made with white sesame seeds is the one made with black sesame. It looks sensational - wafer thin, jet black sheets and has a wonderful, complex taste and is also supposed to be very healthy for you. Also, please note for those on the non-dairy thread, absolutely no dairy in it, just sesame seeds, caramel and some chopped pistachios maybe. Its a wonderfully elegant sweet and something I think should definitely be used in different contexts - as a base for other desserts maybe, or broken into fragments on top of ice cream or something like this. Its the Indian equivalent of a tuile!

Vikram

Thanks Vikram! At least now I know what to ask for when I go back home. I presume it's not easy to make at home?

Suman

Edited April 17, 2004 by rajsuman (log)