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Quick answer
Surati ghari is a round, ghee-rich pastry filled with sweetened mawa and dry fruits, mainly badam and pista, flavoured with elaichi and often kesar, and Surat eats it in large quantities on Chandani Padvo. For a home batch of about a dozen, the filling needs roughly 250 g of mawa, 50 g of badam, 30 g of pista and half a teaspoon of elaichi.
We do not make ghari. We keep what goes into it, and here is how those dry fruits are used.
Ghari and Chandani Padvo
Chandani Padvo falls the day after Sharad Purnima, in autumn. In Surat it is the day for ghari, usually eaten with bhusu, the city’s spicy farsan mix, and many families sit out on terraces in the moonlight to eat it.
Ghari itself is a thin pastry case wrapped around a rich filling, fried and then coated in ghee, so that the outside sets with a pale layer of it. Sweet shops sell several kinds, and badam-pista and kesar-pista are among the best known.
What goes into the ghari filling
Recipes differ from maker to maker, and we would not claim to know any shop’s. The common base is:
- Mawa (khoya), roasted in ghee until it turns lightly golden and smells nutty.
- Powdered sugar, added once the mawa has cooled a little.
- Badam, powdered or finely chopped.
- Pista, chopped or slivered, which gives the green flecks.
- Elaichi, and in some recipes a little jaifal.
- Kesar, soaked in warm milk, for the kesar kinds.
The dry fruits are what make ghari feel festive rather than just rich. Mawa and ghee alone would be heavy. The nuts give texture, and the pista gives colour when you break one open.
Quantities for about 12 ghari
| For the filling | Amount |
|---|---|
| Mawa | 250 g |
| Ghee (for roasting) | 1 tablespoon |
| Powdered sugar | 100 g |
| Badam, powdered | 50 g |
| Pista, chopped | 30 g, plus a little for the top |
| Elaichi | ½ teaspoon powder, about 6 pods |
| Jaifal | A small pinch, optional |
| Kesar | A few strands in 1 tablespoon warm milk, optional |
For the case: 200 g maida, 2 tablespoons of ghee rubbed in, and enough water to make a firm dough. Keep extra ghee for frying and coating.
A simpler home version
Making ghari the shop way, with a shaped dome and a thick coat of ghee, takes practice. This version is easier and still tastes right.
- Make the filling. Roast the crumbled mawa in the ghee on low heat for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring, until it loosens and turns pale gold. Cool it until just warm, then mix in the sugar, badam, pista, elaichi, jaifal and kesar milk. Divide into 12 balls and flatten each slightly.
- Roll the dough. Divide it into 12 portions and roll each into a thin circle, about 10 cm across.
- Fill and seal. Set a filling disc in the middle, gather the edges over the top, pinch to seal, and press gently into a flat round with the sealed side down.
- Cook. Shallow-fry in ghee on low to medium heat until pale golden on both sides. Or bake at 180°C for about 20 minutes, turning once, if you would rather not fry.
- Coat. While still warm, brush generously with melted ghee. Let them cool and set, then scatter a pinch of pista on top.
If even that is too much work, the filling on its own, rolled into small balls and pressed with a pista sliver, makes a quick mawa sweet for the same evening.
Buying the dry fruits
- Pista: Pista Kernels are shelled and ready to chop. For the topping, Pista Katran is already slivered. Our guide to pista kernels, katran and pishori explains which is which.
- Badam: Regular Badam is right for powdering. Pulse it in short bursts, or it turns oily.
- Elaichi: green elaichi, powdered fresh with a little sugar, smells much stronger than ready powder.
Everything else is on our pistachio shelf and spice shelf. Pista runs around at today's shop rate a kilo at the time of writing, but a dozen ghari needs only about 30 g. Check today’s dry fruit prices in Surat, and order a week ahead of Chandani Padvo: parcels reach Surat in about 2 to 4 days, and delivery is free on orders over ₹1,000.
Questions people ask
What is ghari made of?
A thin pastry case filled with sweetened mawa, badam, pista and elaichi, fried and coated in ghee. Kesar and other flavours are common variations.
When is Chandani Padvo?
It is the day after Sharad Purnima, which falls in autumn. Check the calendar for the exact date each year.
How long does homemade ghari keep?
Because the filling is mawa, keep it in the fridge and eat it within two or three days. Bring it to room temperature before serving so the ghee softens.
Can I make ghari filling without mawa?
Some home cooks use milk powder cooked with ghee and milk as a substitute. It works, but the taste is lighter than a mawa filling.
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Written at our counter, where these questions get asked every week.
