Three of Siddhi’s festival sweets are made with jaggery and ghee: Til Chikki, Peanut Ladoo and Sukhdi. Til chikki and peanut ladoo are her Makar Sankranti and Uttarayan sweets, and sukhdi is cooked on festivals and auspicious days in Gujarat.
All three melt jaggery in ghee, but each handles it a little differently. This guide puts them side by side.
Every recipe linked in this guide is cooked in Siddhi’s own kitchen before it goes live.
The short answer
Melt ghee in a pan, add the jaggery and stir on a low to medium flame until it melts. Then add the main ingredient straight away, mix well and turn it out onto a plate greased with ghee.
- For chikki, spread the mixture, smooth it, cut it and let it set.
- For ladoo, grease your palms with ghee and roll the mixture into balls.
- For sukhdi, roast the flour in ghee first, add the jaggery, and stop when the ghee starts to separate.
The three sweets side by side
| Sweet | Jaggery and ghee | Goes in with | Set or shape |
|---|---|---|---|
| Til Chikki | ¾ cup grated jaggery, 1 tbsp ghee | 1 cup roasted sesame seeds | Spread on a greased plate, smoothed, cut, set for a few minutes |
| Peanut Ladoo | 300 g jaggery, 1 tbsp ghee | 300 g roasted, coarsely crushed peanuts | Rolled into balls with ghee on the palms |
| Sukhdi | ¾ cup jaggery, ¾ cup ghee | 1 cup wheat flour, roasted first | Spread, tapped smooth, cut, set under a fan |
Til chikki: do not overcook the jaggery
- Roast the sesame seeds on a medium flame until you hear them pop, then take them out.
- Reheat the pan, add the ghee, then the grated jaggery. Let it melt, and do not overcook it.
- Once the jaggery has melted completely and has a good consistency, immediately add the sesame seeds and keep stirring so they come together.
- Turn off the flame, spread the mixture on a greased plate, smooth it with a spatula and cut it into shapes. Let it set for a few minutes.
Peanut ladoo: add the peanuts in two goes
- Heat the ghee in a kadhai and add the chopped jaggery. Stir continuously on a low to medium flame until it melts.
- Add half a bowl of the crushed peanuts first and mix well.
- If the mixture is too sloppy, add more crushed peanuts until it has the consistency you want.
- Transfer it to a plate greased with ghee. Apply ghee to your palms and roll the mixture into balls.
Sukhdi: roast the flour first
- Heat the ghee in a thick steel kadhai, saving a quarter of it for later.
- On a medium heat, add the flour and mix well so there are no lumps.
- When the flour has roasted, changed colour and gives off a nice fragrance, add the jaggery and mix on a medium flame so it blends in.
- When the ghee starts to separate from the mixture, switch off the flame.
- Spread it on a greased plate, tap the surface smooth, cut it and let it set under a fan.
Sweets without jaggery or sugar
If you want a sweet with no added sugar or jaggery, Siddhi’s Khajur Burfi and Dry Fruits Ladoo are sweetened with dates. The dry fruits ladoo mixture is rolled once it cools from hot to warm, and the khajur burfi rolls set in the refrigerator for 2 to 2.5 hours.
FAQs
How do you know when jaggery is ready for chikki?
Siddhi melts the jaggery in ghee and says not to overcook it. Once it has melted completely and has a good consistency, she adds the roasted sesame seeds immediately and keeps stirring.
What if the peanut ladoo mixture is too soft?
Siddhi adds the crushed peanuts in two goes. If the mixture is too sloppy after the first half, she adds more crushed peanuts until it has the consistency she wants.
When is sukhdi ready to take off the flame?
Siddhi switches off the flame when the ghee starts to separate from the mixture, after the jaggery has blended into the roasted flour.
Which of Siddhi’s sweets have no sugar or jaggery?
Siddhi’s khajur burfi and dry fruits ladoo are sweetened with dates and have no sugar or jaggery in the recipe.