THE INDIAN CANDYFLOSS

 

                                                             THE INDIAN CANDYFLOSS

 

Soan Papdi (also known as patisa, san papri, sohan papri, or shon papdi) is a popular Indian dessert. It is usually cube-shaped or served as flakes, and has a crisp and flaky texture. It was traditionally sold loose in a rolled paper cone, but modern industrial production has led it to be sold in tightly formed cubes. With the popularity of the sweet, newer flavors such as mango, strawberry, pineapple, and chocolate have been added.

 

Soan papdi is said to have originated specifically in Western state Maharashtra; and spread across Gujarat, Punjab, and Rajasthan states. The Indian state Uttar Pradesh also has been proposed as the potential origin of the sweet.

 

Its main ingredients are sugar, gram flour, flour, ghee, milk, and cardamom.

The roasting of the flour and the pistachios both contribute a sense of nuttiness to the confection. This is even more apparent in the soan papdi, where the flavor of the gram flour as well as charmagaz (melon) seeds that are used as a garnish instead of pistachios, contribute to the nutty flavor profile.

 

The flaky soan papdi however, is just a cousin of the Patisa, a seemingly far more ancient mithai. Besan as an ingredient is fairly unique to Indian cooking. Even though chickpeas are predominant in Arabic cooking, the flour and its innovative uses are pretty intrinsic to Indian cooking-and spread across the Subcontinent.

 

The patisa, which is much denser, is really just a barfi or fudge made with bhuna besan, ghee, and sugar. When and how did the innovation of the soan papdi occur? When did someone decide that beating the mix with a fork and running strands through it, would make this a much more delightful confection? These are interesting food stories that need to be unearthed.

 

The pale color of the Soan Papdi, as well as its lightness of touch comes not just from the aeration of the mix but also because unlike the purely besan-based sweets, this one is made with a mix of besan and maida. This makes it much closer to European and Turkish flour-based sweets. The Pismaniye, for instance, is made from maida.

 

The soan papdi may or may not have such ritualistic significance. But what it shows up for sure, is the idea of food without boundaries. The lightness of touch that makes it so prized is a result of our shared cultural heritage, the result of interactions, political, trade, and cultural with other empires of the world, mixing with the indigenous ways of treating ingredients.

 

                                                        KEEP CALM AND EAT SWEETS

BANARASI MISTHAN BHANDAR