HYDERABAD: Burhanpur, a quaint little town with a historical significance, is located in the southern parts of Madhya Pradesh close to the Maharashtra border.
This was the place where Shah Jahan’s favourite wife Mumtaz Mahal passed away and initially, the emperor wanted to build the Taj Mahal right in this town. Today, apart from the forts and ruins, some dating to the pre-Mughal period, this place is famous for one more thing – its desserts like khowa jalebis and gulab jamuns.
Khowa Jalebi is a special sweet of Madhya Pradesh, locally known there as mawa jalebis.
While this delicacy is made in Indore, Jabalpur and many other towns and cities, Burhanpur is one place which really prides itself for this sweet.
Unlike the usual jalebis made of maida, this jalebi batter is made using a batter of khowa, and milk with a little maida just to bind it together.
The prepared batter is squeezed out from a cloth into jalebi patterns and deep fried in oil to get its dark brown colour. Finally, the jalebis are immersed in sugar syrup to soak up the sweetness. The sweet can be enjoyed standalone or it can be enjoyed with milk or malai.
Looking at the popularity of the dish, mithai shops from Burhanpur decided to take this sweet outside the town and set up outlets in other cities.
In Mohammed Ali Road of Mumbai, a branch of a well-known jalebi shop from Burhanpur is extremely popular, especially during Ramzan.
Shahjahanabad of Old Delhi is another place where this delicacy is available.
In Hyderabad too, Burhanpur Khowa Jalebi, a small shop in the Old City, is exclusively selling the khowa jalebis and gulab jamuns from Burhanpur.
Mohammed Dawood is the owner of Burhanpur Khoya Jalebi, an outlet opposite Mir Chowk Police Station on the Mur Alam Mandi Road. He set up the place about a decade ago when he migrated from Burhanpur where his relatives are still in the khowa jalebi business.
According to him the khowa jalebis of Burhanpur stand out due to the richness of extra khoya providing the taste. The jalebi is prepared in a huge kadhai right next to the shop. It is interesting to see the colour gradually turn into brown as it is gradually fried, and a garland of jalebis being transferred from the oil to sugar syrup.
Business is brisk throughout the day. People from all over the city flock to the shop and large orders are delivered regularly for various functions.
The jalebis are priced at Rs 300 for a kilo. The customers seem to love the taste of the jalebis, and the sweets get sold in no time.
As Mohammed, son of Dawood says about their product, “Dekh ne me kaala, lekin bada dilwala” – the jalebis may look black in colour but the taste touches the heart.
– Sabyasachi is a food enthusiast and blogs at www.foodaholix.in