MUMBAI BAKERY STYLE NAN KHATAI (BAKED BISCUITS EGGLESS)

MUMBAI BAKERY STYLE NAN KHATAI (BAKED BISCUITS EGGLESS)

If there is a biscuit that’s authentically and genuinely Indian then it’s the Nan Khatai.

Is it really of Indian origin?

Wikipedia says that, Nan khatai is believed to have originated in Surat(Gujarat) in the 16th century, the time when the Dutch and the Indians were the important spice traders. A Dutch couple set up a bakery in Surat to meet the needs of local Dutch residents. When the Dutch left India, they handed over the bakery to an Iranian.

Yet there is a version that says, that the word Nan Khatai is derived from the Persian word Naan, which is a type of flatbread and Khatai is an Afghan word and means biscuit. In fact, this biscuit is also famous in Iran and Afghanistan, that could be the reason that we see most Islamic bakeries make different assortments of these lovely baked biscuits. Now, yet another version doing the rounds is that the Parsi Bakers invented the Nan khatai.

It really doesn’t matter who invented these beautiful delicacies but I’m glad they did it.

In the yesteryears, Nan Khatai’s were baked in old style urn ovens using firewood.

Nan khatai is popular and available all over India and every region has its twist to it.

My daughter who loves baking says that Nan khatai cannot be classified as a cookie. It’s more like a biscuit. According to her cookies are much buttery and melt in the mouth and the texture of Nan khatai is like a biscuit.

The eggless version that we get in Singapore during Hari Raya known as Sugee Cookies, have a high content of vegetable shortening in it, which feels rich and soft but leaves a waxy coating on the roof of your mouth.  

The Nan khatai in India is not melt in the mouth (Although we can make it in that texture too) but my biscuits come with a crunch like the ones we get at The Mumbai Bakeries.

I personally love the home made ones as I know exactly the ingredients that go into the making and nothing tastes as good as homemade ones, so here’s a recipe if followed perfectly would result in awesome Nan khatai biscuits.

Ingredients

All purpose flour (Maida) - 1 cup + Standby (2 tablespoons)

Semolina (Rava/Suji) - 2 tablespoons

Caster Sugar - ½ cup

Unsalted Butter (or ghee) - ½  cup at room temperature

Baking Soda - ¼  teaspoon

A pinch of Salt

Cardamom Powder - ¼  teaspoon

Crushed Nuts - 1 tablespoons (Preferably Almond and Pistachio finely chopped)

Method

In a big bowl, Sieve the All purpose flour, semolina, baking soda and a pinch of salt.

In another Bowl take the melted butter, to it add the caster sugar, Using a whisk or hand mixer blend until smooth and frothy. Add in the cardamom powder and give it a good stir.

Add this mix to the Dry ingredients and mix well and knead into a dough.

In case the dough looks very greasy, add in the 2 tablespoons of flour that we kept as standby.

Knead well,

After this, divide dough into about 20 equal portions and make round shaped balls from it, press these between the palms and place it over baking tray. Line your baking trays with a baking sheet/parchment paper/aluminium foil and place the dough balls on it, allow sufficient space between the biscuits, usually 1.5 to 2 inches as the biscuits tend to expand in size during the baking. Top each one with a little bit of finely chopped nuts and press gently with your finger.

The next step…….Baking, if this goes wrong everything is wasted, so here I’m sharing some tips of how to bake the Nan khatai

Baking♨

·       For even baking, position the rack at the centre of the oven and bake one tray of the biscuits at a time. If you want to bake two trays, space the racks, and switch the racks from top to bottom halfway through the baking.

·       Always Preheat the oven 10 to 15 minutes before baking the first batch.

·       Check the oven temperature with an oven thermometer (if you have it or else you can go by Visual judgement).

·       Once pre-heated, bake your cookies for about 15-20 minutes @180 degrees centigrade (350 degrees Fahrenheit)

·       Visual judgement is the best when it comes to baking your biscuits, follow the abovementioned time and check for the colour (light beige golden)

·       Using a timer would be good. Most Ovens come with a recipe book or instruction printed on it, which includes a range in baking time; check what’s the range for your oven. If not follow the minimum time stated in the recipe. Example, my recipe says, minimum time is 15 minutes.

·       Every oven has different settings and it may take a little longer or shorter time based on the oven you use.

Once Baked…..♨

Remove the baking tray from the oven and transfer the biscuits to a cooling rack (or wire rack). The biscuits can’t be eaten yet. Internally the heat is still cooking it. After about half an hour you can indulge in these beautiful Nan khatai Biscuits. Store them in an airtight container.

Enjoy these beauties with your tea/ coffee☕. I love dunking them into my tea☕. Sweet and Sinful Indulgence.

Tips

·       Just follow the Recipe As-is

·       Ensure that the butter in the recipe is soft but not completely melted

·       If Caster sugar is not available, you can powder the coarse sugar in the dry blender

·       If you are using ghee instead of butter, it should have semi solid consistency. It should not be completely melted or look like oil.

VEGETARIAN / VEGAN ARROZ CALDO (FILIPINO RICE PORRIDGE)

VEGETARIAN / VEGAN ARROZ CALDO (FILIPINO RICE PORRIDGE)
Arroz Caldo is a simple Filipino rice porridge, “Arroz” means Rice and “Caldo” means soup.
The Filipinos are meat lovers and almost every dish would have meat in some form or the other.
This dish also has meat in it but since I'm a vegetarian, I'm sharing a vegetarian recipe with a slight Indian twist😉 (Turmeric and coriander).
It's usually made of shredded chicken, garlic, ginger, and chicken broth.
My Filipino helper introduced me to this simple yet healthy dish.
She first made it and it tasted exactly like our Khichdi minus the lentils.👍
My helper says that they used to get this for breakfast at the Government school they studied in back in Ilo Ilo, Philippines.
She says due to poverty, many kids going to the Government schools are malnourished.
The Government or people who are well to do donate Rice to the school and when they are blessed with these Rice donations, they make a simple Arroz Caldo and serve it to all the kids.
The kids themselves volunteer to cook it under the supervision of the teachers.👍
It's nutritious and filling and helps to satiate the pangs of hunger of these kids from the lower economic backgrounds who don't have enough to eat at home.👍

Arroz Caldo is a dish that I would recommend highly👍 as it is very light on the stomach and easy to digest.👍
A piping hot bowl♨ of Arroz Caldo will be perfect when you have a cold or not feeling well or when you are tired and lazy and want to rustle up something quickly.
Next time you are lazy make Arroz Caldo instead of a packet of Instant Noodles.
Although she says, sometimes they add a packet of instant noodles to the Arroz Caldo, but I won't recommend it.

Ingredients
Brown Rice /White rice - 1 cup
Oil - 1 tbsp
Ginger - 1/2 inch
Garlic - 3-4 pods
Red chilly flakes - 1/2 tsp
Coarse Black Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
Turmeric - 1/4 tsp
Salt as per taste
Coriander leaves - 1tbsp finely chopped (Optional)
Spring onion leaves - 1 tbsp finely chopped (Optional)
Drumstick leaves - 2 tbsps (Optional)

Method

Wash the rice nicely and Cook in a pressure cooker up to 3 whistles. My helper says they used to cook it in an open pot only.
Peel and chop the garlic and ginger finely.
In a wok, take 1 tbsp oil, once the oil is hot, add the ginger and garlic and fry for a minute or 2.
When it's brown in colour, then add the turmeric and the cooked rice and mix well.
Add salt to taste.
Give it a good stir.
Add 2 cups of water and cook until all the spices are blended into the rice.
Serve it piping hot with a dash of the chilly flakes and pepper powder.
You can garnish it with finely chopped spring onion leaves or coriander leaves or drumstick leaves. 

Dunk into the hot Arroz Caldo and enjoy.