Malpua Recipe (With Milk Powder)

Warm malpua served alongside a bowl of milky rabdi is an ultimate dessert dream! To make these mouthwatering Indian style pancakes, small portions of an eggless batter are fried in ghee until the edges are crispy and then they are soaked in sugar syrup so that the center becomes soft and spongy.

For this easy malpua recipe, you need basic ingredients like flour, yogurt, sugar, milk powder, few spices and ghee. Perfect indian sweet (mithai) to serve on indian festivals such as Holi, Diwali, or Dusshera.

If you are a fan of indian sweets such as gulab jamuns and jalebi, wait untill you try the malpua! Sharing the same indulgent trait of deep-fried batter soaked in sugar syrup, malpua has a unique milky taste and the texture is a delightful blend of crispiness and fluffiness. Each bite screams decadence, growing up, my grandmother made them for holi festivities with gujiyas, dahi vada and thandai.

More Holi Recipes - Thandai tiramisu, Thandai cookies, Indian chaat, Falooda

What is Malpua?

Malpua is a traditional indian dessert (mithai) of shallow fried pancakes that are soaked in a green cardamom scented sugar syrup. They have a mild tangy taste and lacey, crisp edges while the inside is soft and fluffy.

The main ingredient in malpua is the milk solids (khoya or milk powder). I don't mean to confuse you, while I refer to it as pancake appearance, but malpua tastes milkier and mildly tangy(due to fermentation). To achieve this rich milkiness, the quantity of flour in the batter is less than that of the khoya (mawa) or milk powder.

In various regions of India, numerous variations of malpua exist. The most traditional and time-honored malpua recipe involves preparing rabdi (thickened milk) from scratch to which a small amount of flour or whole wheat flour is added to serve for binding (gluten in flour helps).

Honestly, making rabri or thickened milk from scratch is quite a labor-intensive process and I tried it just once a few years ago. Since then, I tried a few other methods using khoya, condensed milk and eventually figured out that milk powder method is quickest and yields great results.

My Recipe

I used to see my grandmother using khoya to enhance the richess of the malpua batter and she added mashed bananas to the batter. For years, she bought khoya from the same halwai(sweet shop) and was conversant with its quality. It is slightly tricky to use khoya because the quality (mainly the fat content) varies from brand to brand and I wanted to provide you with a fool proof recipe.

In my recipe, I use high-fat milk powder instead of khoya and leave out the fruit (bananas taste great but I am not a fan of that they make malpuas look dark). Ideally, the malpua batter is fermented to create airy, fluffy puas, however I use a combination of leavening agent(baking soda) and yogurt to make this recipe quick(not instant). You still need to rest the batter for 20-30 minutes.

Then, I shallow fry the malpua in ghee. Use ghee for a rich, nutty taste. I dont recommend using oil for frying malpua (in my opinion, the taste is not great). Since we are not adding sugar or salt to the batter, you could re use the leftover ghee to slather on rotis or for cooking paratha . Soak malpuas in a sticky, ½ string to 1 string conisistency sugar syrup and then sprinkle nuts before serving.

Sugar Syrup Consistency

You would often hear sugar syrup consistency when it comes to indian sweets. 1 string consistency of sugar (ek taar ki chashni) occurs before the soft ball stage (2 string consistency). Sugar syrup guide by Indian chef Sanjeev Kapoor will teach you more about this concept. Here are a few pointers-

• Once boiling, the syrup should feel sticky similar to warm honey but should be flowing (not thick).
• If the syrup gets too thick, the malpua won't absorb it.
• While making sugar syrup, it is best to use wooden spoon for stirring.
• Check the consistency by pulling a tiny drop of syrup between your thumb and index finger. You will be able to make a string. I found this video tutorial helpful in visualizing the 1 string consistency.
• If you struggle with checking consistency, just make a sticky syrup.

Ingredients

• All Purpose Flour (Maida)- Helps as binding agent and gives structure to the malpuas.
• Fine Semolina(Sooji) - A tablespoon of sooji gives these malpua a bit of texture.
• Yogurt(Dahi) - Mildly sour plain yogurt combined with baking soda gives a result similar to fermentated batter.
• Milk Powder - The hero ingredient! Makes the batter taste rich and flavorful. The malpua turn out creamy and softly delicious. Use high fat milk powder. Milk powder used in indian sweets is different from the non fat dry milk that is used for coffee or tea. I like to use Nido brand (28% fat) from or indian grocery stores.
• Dessicated Coconut (unsweetened)- You may skip but my husband has a huge fondness for coconut in indian sweets so I add a little here.
• Ghee - For shallow frying. Ghee gives these malpua the richness that one always associates with desserts. Don't use butter becasue it will brown after frying 1-2 malpua and your malpuas will have brown or black spots stuck to them. Avoid using cooking oil- they make the malpua greasy and spoil the taste) in my opinion).
• Spices - Fennel seeds, black pepper, green cardamom powder. The spice selection is a bit interesting if you ask me. Fennel seeds are a cooling spice, however black pepper has a warmth. Now, my grandmother used to tell us that this is because malpua are made during Holi, which falls during spring months, and hence the seasons are transitioning. Thus, the use of contrasting spices is to benefit our bodies (it is marvelous to think how our traditional indian recipes are built around nourishment)
• Sugar& Water for the Syrup
• Nuts - Of your choice, for garnishing. I use silvered pistachios.

Instructions

Make Malpua Batter & Sugar Syrup

1. Taste and aroma of fresh cardamom powder is unmatched! Add seeds from green cardamom pods to a mortar along with 1 black peppercorn and using a pestle, pound to a coarse powder.
2. In a large bowl, add all the dry ingredients-  flour, semolina, milk powder, baking soda, fennel seeds, cardamom & black pepper powder, pinch of salt, and desiccated coconut. Add yogurt and then gradually pour water while whisking to make a smooth batter. The batter should have a pouring consistency similar to a pancake batter. Set aside the batter to rest for about 20-30 minutes.

3. When you are about to fry the malpua, 8-10 minutes prior to it, start making the sugar syrup. This is becasue we want to soak malpua in warm syrup.
4. In a wide shallow pan(I use a 12 inch or 14 inch pan so that I can soak the malpua right in the pan), combine sugar, water and 1-2 pounded green cardamom pods. Heat up over medium heat until the sugar completely dissolves.
5. Let simmer for a few more minutes until it forms a slightly sticky syrup or reaches a 1 string consistency. You can add a few drops of lemon juice to prevent crystallization. Keep the syrup warm.

Fry Malpua

6. Once the batter has rested, it might thicken up. Adjust the consistency of the batter by adding more water if it's too thick. In case batter is thin, add milk powder.
7. Set the ghee to warm up in a shallow pan. Since I did not want to use too much ghee, I used an 8 inch pan for frying. It took longer to fry the malpuas one by one (I made 6 -7 malpua). Not going to recommend it if you are making a large batch of malpua.
8. Pour a small ladleful of batter into the hot ghee pan to form a pancake-like shape. I recommend approximately 4 to 5 tablespoons of batter per malpua. You can make them as big or small as you like. I make them about 3 inch. Here, keep in mind about thickness also, you don't want to make them too thin (else they wont become fluffy, just cripsy). If you make them thick, chances are that the malpua won't cook properly in the center.

9. Let the malpua fry on medium flame. You will see lots of bubbling around the edges and as well lacey edges forming. Keep in mind to not wait for the center to fully set to turn over else the malpua might burn.
10. Fry the malpuas until they are golden brown on both sides, carefully, flipping them once (small tongs or a brownie spatula works great). It usually takes about 2-3 minutes on each side.
11. Pick up the fried malpua and drain the excess ghee on a paper towels. Immediately, while they are still hot, soak them in warm sugar syrup. Repeat the process with the remaining batter. 

12. Serve hot malpuas garnished with silvered pistachios, few saffron strands and edible rose petals. Don't forget a bowl of creamy rabdi on the side!

Storing Malpua

• Store malpua soaked in sugar syrup. If you store them without sugar syrup, they will become hard.
• You can keep them refrigerated in an air tight container for 2-3 days. Reheat in a microwave (for 10-12 seconds) before serving.

Recipe Tips

• Your malpua might not turn out perfect texture or shape the first few times. Dont give up or get frustated. Keep trying, indian mithai is an art and takes practice and patience to master.
• When you are pouring the batter, gently swirl your wrist or hand to make a neat round shape. This takes a little practice but easily mastered.
• If you see that your malpua are puffing up like poori, that means that the batter is thick, thin out the thick batter slightly.
• Make sure that ghee temperature is neither too low nor too high. At high temperature, the batter will splatter as soon as you pour it in the ghee.
• Lastly, after flipping, some of the batter might run out and spoil the circular shape of the puas. Happened with me as well (see image below) Not to worry, once you have fried the malpuas, simply snip out those pointy wanted edges using kitchen scissors.

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