Kulkuls, a great sweet to prepare with the family, are made all over India at Christmastime. They are most popular in the Goan region and may have come from the Portuguese community as a variation of Filhoses Enroladas, a rose-like rolled pastry. Kulkuls are often called kidyo in the Konkani language, which means worms. That’s not very appetizing, so it’s more appealing to think of them as shells or curls.
Indian (Goan) Kulkuls | Christmas Recipes
Course: Appetizers, SnackCuisine: Indian, GoanDifficulty: Medium4
servings20
minutes20
minutes300
kcal40
minutesKulkuls, a great sweet to prepare with the family, are made all over India at Christmastime. They are most popular in the Goan region and may have come from the Portuguese community as a variation of Filhoses Enroladas, a rose-like rolled pastry. Kulkuls are often called kidyo in the Konkani language, which means worms. That’s not very appetizing, so it’s more appealing to think of them as shells or curls.
Ingredients
1/4 kg Semolina (rava)
1/4 kg All purpose flour (maida)
1 egg
A splash of milk
3 tbsp clarified butter (ghee)
1/3 can coconut cream (400ml can) (You could also use about 150 ml freshly extracted coconut juice)
2 fat pinches of salt, or to taste
Superfine (or powdered) sugar, to taste (Start with a couple of heaped tablespoons and add more as needed)
Oil, for deep frying
Directions
- Knead all the ingredients to a dough using milk as needed.
- Kneading the dough once its done, should leave a slight trace of ghee on your hand, but only just. If your dough is on the dry side, add a little more ghee and knead again. This ensures that the dough doesn’t stick to the forms we’re using to shape the kulkuls.
- Taste a little pinch of the dough for sweetness. I tend to not make these too sweet so that it cuts through all the other sweetness on the plate. If you think you want the kulkuls sweeter, add some more sugar and knead into the dough.
- Cover the dough with a damp cloth and let it rest for about half and hour.
- To shape the kulkuls, you can use a variety of things. We now use these paddles that are specifically used for kulkuls. If you don’t have these paddles, you can use the back of a fork or a new, clean haircomb.
- Work with a small portion of the dough at a time. Keep the unused dough covered with a damp cloth while you work with the rest. Roll into a long sausage shape and cut into pieces.
- Working with one piece at a time, place the piece of dough on the paddle.
- Using your thumb, flatten the dough into a rectangular piece as shown in the pictures below.
- Starting with the end closest to you, gently life the dough and roll away from you, keeping the roll fairly tight.
- Lightly press the edge of the roll to seal it up so that it doesn’t open up while frying.
- Adjust the size of the pieces of dough to suit the size of the kulkuls you need.
- Repeat with the rest of the dough. As you shape the kulkuls, keep them on a flat tray. I turn a cookie sheet upside down and use the back of the tray.
- When they are all done, heat some oil for deep frying.
- Test that the oil is hot enough by gently dropping a small bead of dough into the oil. If it bubbles in the oil, instantly and comes to the top, the oil is hot enough.
- Keep the oil on medium heat.
- Gently tip the kulkuls into the oil. Don’t overcrowd the pan. Fry them in small batches as the oil may froth a little and bubble up and spill over. Start with the ones that were shaped first.
- When the kulkuls are golden brown, drain using a slotted spoon and place on some kitchen paper to drain off any excess oil.
- Repeat with the rest of the kulkuls until they are all fried up.
- When the kulkuls have completely cooled down, store in an airtight container.
- Enjoy this lovely addition to your Kuswar platter.
