The BEST Instant Jalebi recipe

An instant version of Jalebis; sinful crisp fried spirals dunked in sugar syrup. This Indian version of Funnel cakes make a perfect dessert or breakfast recipe!

Jalebi, those rounds of crispy fried flour dunked in sugar syrup. The dessert that everybody enjoys! Some people dunk it in milk, some in rabdi and the rest enjoy it for breakfast with gathiya. 

Jalebi is one of the most popular desserts at weddings. A live counter of jalebi is pretty common now. A person makes fresh jalebi there and it is served with rabdi or vanilla ice cream. Everytime I think of a wedding, I instantly dream of the orange yellow rounds of goodness!

I have a traditional recipe of jalebi on the blog. However, it needs a lot of planning to make them. So I started making this instant version. Now, with this recipe, Sundays are so much better. We plan to make jalebi in the morning and we are enjoying hot breakfast in under 30 minutes! A typical Gujarati breakfast combination of home-made jalebi and store bought gathiya. Plus, fried chillies and papaya mixture. It is heaven on a plate to say the least! 

Everytime I visit India, I love to visit Shrinathji, a small town in Rajasthan. There is a famous temple there that I love to visit. But besides, I simply love all the food that can be enjoyed on the streets on the town! A typical day starts with a lovely breakfast of Jalebi, Gathiya, Kadhi and Masala Chai. Here is a glimpse of the breakfast combination.

Shrinathji is where I have had the best jalebi ever. When I am back from India, I crave this combination really often. So an instant version of jalebi comes to my rescue. 

Difference in this and the traditional version

The traditional recipe to make Jalebi requires mixing the ingredients and leaving it to ferment overnight. The fermentation depends on where you live and the temperature. It is sometimes dicey because I leave it to ferment overnight hoping to make jalebis the next morning but it does not ferment. So my plan goes for a toss! 

While the ingredients in this recipe are similar, the addition of fruit salt converts the recipe to an instant one. That is the ONLY difference between this and the fermented one! 

Variations

The ingredients in the recipe are such that every pantry will easily have them. Using cornstarch or besan gives the same result. You can make it with either of them. 

I used home-made yogurt that was thick. If your yogurt has water, add 3 teaspoon and reduce the water content. Make sure you use just enough water. Adding too much will make the dough drip and not form rounds. 

Adding color in the recipe is optional. Add it if you want bright colored jalebis. It does not alter the taste at all. 

Ingredients 

For the Jalebi 

All purpose flour/Maida 1 cup

Cornstarch/chickpea flour 2 tsp

Yogurt 2 tsp

Ghee/ Clarified Butter 2 tsp

Yellow/ Orange Food Color a pinch

Water ½-3/4 cup

ENO/ Fruit salt 1 tsp

Oil or ghee to fry

For the Sugar Syrup

Sugar ¾ cup

Water ¼ cup

Cardamom seeds 1-2 pods

Saffron a pinch

Method

To make the Sugar Syrup

Mix together sugar and water in a wide saucepan. heat on medium flame till the sugar melts and the syrup is thick. I did not check the string consistency, just ensured it is thick enough to coat the jalebis. 

Add saffron and cardamom seeds. Mix and keep on lowest flame till jalebis are made. 

To make the Jalebis

In a bowl mix together the flour with all the other ingredients except water, oil and fruit salt. 

Heat oil or ghee in a pan. Keep on medium flame. 

Add fruit salt to the jalebi mixture and mix well. Use water to make a pancake style batter. The amount varies based on the besan/cornstarch and all purpose flour brands. The mixture will froth and become light. 

Transfer to a jalebi maker/ empty ketchup squeezy bottle or a ziplock bag. If using a bag, make a small hole at one end. 

Make overlapping rounds of the batter in the oil/ghee. Fry till crisp on medium flame. Turn over and fry for a minute. 

Drain and add to the sugar syrup. Turn it around to coat completely. 

Serve immediately with gathiya, papaya sambar and fried green chillies.