Imarti is a Rajasthani dessert of Persian origin, once served in the courts of Rajputs and Mughals in India. Made from urad dal, rice, sugar, water, saffron color, rose essence, cardamom, and ghee, imarti is shaped like a circular pretzel and has a chewy, sugary texture. It is related to jalebi and is sold in many sweet shops in India.
Imarti, also known as emarti or jaangiri, is a Rajasthani dessert of Persian origin. It was once considered a royal pastry and served in the courts of Rajputs and Mughals in India. It has an orange-red color, is shaped like a circular pretzel, and has a chewy, sugary texture. Imarti is related to another pastry known as jalebi, which also has Persian roots and is very popular in the Indian subcontinent; many sweet shops in India, especially those in the northern parts, sell imartis and jalebis. These desserts are made on festive occasions and are also eaten as a warming food in the winter, usually with buttermilk.
The ingredients of Imarti are urad dal, rice, sugar, water, saffron color, rose essence, cardamom and ghee. The urad dal and rice are soaked overnight in water. The following day the water is drained and the soaked rice and dal mixture is ground.
A little water is added to the mixture as it is ground to form a thick batter. A few drops of saffron food coloring are also added to the batter and mixed well to give it an orange-red colour; saffron is a natural and quite healthy food coloring. Once the batter has become fluffy, it is set aside for 3-5 hours. The sugar is mixed in water and heated until a syrup forms, and cardamom, lemon juice and rose essence are added to the syrup. Ghee is heated in a pan.
Rice and urad dal batter is poured into an imarti bottle; these bottles can generally be purchased in an Indian appliance store, but, if not available, a plastic bag with a hole can be used. The batter is squeezed from the bottle or bag of imarti into the hot ghee in the pan to create the imarti pattern; the pattern consists of a circle with round swirls around it.
The heat is turned down and the confection is allowed to solidify in the hot ghee. The imartis should be fried on both sides and should be removed when crispy. The fried imartis are subsequently dipped in the prepared syrup and are soaked in it for several minutes. After the imartis have absorbed the syrup, they are drained and set aside. They are now ready to serve and can be served hot or cold.
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