Peanut Chikki (with jaggery)

Peanut Chikki

Serve: 4 – 5

Please use same measuring cup to measuring cup to measure peanut and jaggery.

Ingredients

1 cup peanuts(200 ml / 8 oz– measuring cup of 200 ml capacity)

1 cup melted and sieved jaggery (200 ml / 8 oz –measuring cup of 200 ml capacity)

¼ teaspoon dried ginger powder (chukku podi)

1 teaspoon oil / ghee (to grease steel thali/ plate / baking dish)

Method

For peanuts:

Heat an iron kadai or pan. Reduce heat to medium and dry roast (without oil) peanuts on a medium to low heat until crisp (approximate dry roasting time 15 – 18 minutes). Keep aside to cool for 20 minutes and gently remove the skin of the peanuts.

Grease a steel thali or plate with 1 teaspoon oil / ghee and keep it ready.

In a thick bottomed bowl / non stick pan, add melted and sieved thick jaggery and 1 tablespoon water. Boil on a low heat for 10 – 12 minutes (stir continuously) until thickens / lot of bubbles / thick syrup / leaves from the sides of the pan. To test the syrup is ready, drop a teaspoon of hot jaggery syrup in cold water. If it form a jaggery ball, then the syrup is ready ( If the syrup is not ready, it won’t form a ball and you can see jaggery dilute in water and cold water become yellow / light brown color). At this stage, mix dry roasted peanuts and dried ginger powder. Mix well until the peanuts well combined with jaggery.

Spread this peanuts – jaggery mixture into the greased steel thali and spread it evenly with the base of a flat spatula. Cut into desired shape and size when it is very hot (do not remove peanuts pieces / chikkis from the thali when it is very hot). Keep aside to cool for 20 minutes and remove carefully. Store in an airtight container.