Shakarpara Recipe - A Sweet, Baked Snack

This Shakarpara recipe is a sweet Shakarpara that's crispy on the outside with flaky layers that melt in your mouth. If you are looking for a healthier version of the traditional Shakarpara recipe, try this baked Shakarpara recipe which is made with healthy flours, a much healthier alternative to the traditionally deep fried recipe.

What is ShakarPara?

Shakarpara is a sweet snack that's popular in the Northern parts of India. It's a piece of fried dough coated with sugar or jaggery syrup. Shakarpara is traditionally deep fried and made with all purpose flour (maida) and then coated with sugar or jaggery syrup which can be flavored with fennel seeds, freshly pound cardamom powder, star anise or rose water. Let me warn you, this Sweet Shakarpara recipe is a highly addictive Indian snack!

Shakarpara is very similar to baked Namak Para but a sweeter version. It's rich in carbohydrates, making it an instant source of energy.

Since this is a sweet Shakarpara recipe, you can’t categorize it as super healthy, but using a nutritious mix of flours and baking rather than deep frying makes it healthier than the traditional one. In fact, our family prefers my baked Shakarpara over the deep fried one.

Due to its long shelf life when stored at room temperature, this is a popular sweet snack in Indian homes for events and festivals. Jars full of these Shakarpara sweets are always available for anytime munching. Everyone has a childhood favorite snack, that they could munch on endlessly. For me, that snack was Shakarpara. I always bring some home, including namak para and laddu whenever I leave my parent's home in India.

Why You'll Love this Shakarpara Recipe

• Since this recipe contains a nutritious mix of flours and is baked rather than deep fried, it's healthier than the traditional Shakarpara recipe. 
• It makes a great tea time snack and is not overly sweet like traditional Indian sweets.
• The outer coating of sugar adds a unique texture and taste. You can also flavor the sugar syrup with cardamom or rose water.
• It has a perfectly flaky texture that melts in your mouth.
• It makes a perfect snack for kids in their lunch box, as an after school snack, and for on the go.
• It’s easy to make ShakarPara at home, and the shelf life is pretty good.
• This sweet shakarpara recipe make a perfect edible homemade gift for gift jars or treat bags, for gifts on festivals and during the holiday season.

Buy From EYP Store

You can also buy Shakarpara from the Enhance Your Palate Store in either 1 or 2 pound sizes and it will be delivered to you. If you don't have time to make this Shakarpara recipe yourself, this is a great alternative!

Tips for Making Shakarpara

The process of making a sweet Shakarpara that is baked rather than deep fried can be broadly divided into three steps:

Making the Dough

Making a perfect dough is critical to achieve the correct flaky texture of this Shakarpara recipe. Mowen (oil) is the secret ingredient, which when added to the flours in the right quantity leads to a perfectly flaky texture, so using the right quantity of Mowen is critical. If too much is added, the dough will fall apart, and if not enough is added, it yields a very hard texture.

I played around with different ratio of flours while perfecting the recipe. I tried just using whole wheat flour, but the texture turned out more dense than flaky. I also tried using half whole wheat flour and half all purpose flour which did the trick, but there was still room for improvement. Once I added a little bit of baking powder to this Shakarpara recipe, I was very impressed with the outcome.

Rolling and Baking

To achieve the correct thickness, I prefer using this Joseph Joseph Adjustable Rolling Pin for a consistently perfect thickness. I am no longer worried about rolling it too thick or too thin. Even with little to no experience rolling, you can get consistent results using a ¼th”or 6 mm size disc.

A consistent thickness allows you to use the same temperature and time for every batch for an even baking without peeping inside every minute. However, you may need to experiment with the temperature and cooking time for the first batch to achieve the best results in your oven.

Making the sugar syrup

Making the sugar syrup for this sweet shakarpara recipe is equally crucial as getting the right dough, thickness and baking temperature. If the sugar syrup is thinner than the required consistency, the coating of sugar syrup on the Shakarpara will be very sheer and will look more like a transparent shiny glaze rather than a coating of sugar. If it is too thick, then it will resemble a hard candy ball.

You have probably heard from your moms and grandmoms while making sweets at home about the ek taar (single string), do taar (two string), teen taar (three strings) etc. terminology regarding sugar syrup. Using a candy making thermometer is not yet common in Indian homes, so this terminology is an effective way to determine the right consistency for the sugar syrup.

If you are like me who believes in achieving the best results using the right tool and leaving the guess work behind, then I highly recommend investing in a candy thermometer. It is not only useful for this shakarpara recipe, but can also be used in other recipes.

For this recipe, we want a single string consistency for the sugar syrup, which is 215° F – 234° F/101° C – 112° C. We want a lower temperature for thread consistency rather than a higher range. Don’t let the syrup temperature go beyond 215 - 220° F. 

After adding the baked Shakarpara pieces, keep stirring it and in a few minutes the sugar syrup will start drying up and crystallize to coat all the pieces evenly. Continue stirring until well coated to ensure all pieces are coated with sugar.

Ingredients

Every Indian home has it’s own version of a shakarpara recipe. Traditional recipes use maida, rawa, ghee, milk, sugar and water. Here, I am using ghee for the mowen. When it comes to sweet recipes, I personally prefer to use ghee but you can definitely use any strong aroma free oil.

From the Pantry:

• 140 gms Whole wheat flour 1 cup
• 130 gms All Purpose flour 1 cup
• 50 gms Almond Flour ½ cup
• ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
• 75 ml ghee / clarified butter
• ½ cup + 2 Tbs water/milk

For the Syrup:

• 300 gms Sugar or 1 ½ cup
• 175 ml Water or ¾ cup

Spices:

• ¼ tsp Salt or as per taste
• 2 tsp fennel seeds
• 2 pieces of Star Anise

How to Make Shakarpara

1. Place all flours in a large bowl. 
2. Add salt and baking powder and give a good mix to all the dry ingredients.
3. Add warm ghee and rub the flour with ghee.
4. Press some flour between your palm it should form a shape (and not crumble) which means the oil is enough and well incorporated.
5. Start adding water little by little, until the dough just comes together. The dough needs to be on the stiffer side.
6. Divide the dough into three parts, wrap it in cling wrap, and let it rest for at least 15 minutes.
7. After 15 minutes, take one part and knead it a little more to smooth it out. Once smoothed, roll it like a thick roti, around ¼ inch thickness.
8. Cut it into square or rectangles. The basic idea is to cut into shapes with less points so that when we coat them with sugar syrup there would be less breakage.
9. Repeat with the remaining dough balls until all dough is finished.
10. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
11. Transfer all the pieces on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.
12. Place the baking sheet in a preheated oven and bake for 14 minutes. Time may vary depending on the size and thickness of the para pieces
13. Meanwhile, in another wok, add sugar, water, fennel seeds and star anise and put the pan on high heat. Stir until the sugar melts, in around 2 minutes.
14. After the sugar melts, lower the heat to medium and let the sugar simmer for 2-3 more minutes and check the temperature using a candy thermometer. It should be at the thread stage which is 215° F – 234° F/101° C– 112° C. We are looking for a lower temperature of thread consistency. Don’t let the syrup temperature go beyond 215-220 degrees F.
15. Add the baked dough pieces to the sugar syrup and start stirring.
16. The syrup will continue to thicken but keep stirring. Remember the heat is off at this point.
17. The sugar will crystallize in around 7-8 minutes and start coating the baked shakarpara, so make sure all pieces are well coated with the sugar syrup.
18. When all the baked Shakarpara pieces are well coated and the sugar syrup has crystalized,remove from the pan and spread it on the cooled baking sheet to bring all the pieces to room temperature before storing in a container. 
19. This shakarpara recipe will easily last for 3 to 4 weeks at room temperature.

Recipe

5 from 6 votes

Shakarpara Recipe – A Sweet Baked Snack

This Shakarpara recipe is a sweet Shakarpara that's crispy on the outside with flaky layers that melt in your mouth. It is a much healthier alternative to the traditionally deep fried version of this Indian snack, since this is a baked Shakarpara recipe that is made with healthy flours. Baking rather than deep frying make this recipe healthier than the traditional recipe.

Review Print Pin Share

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time30 minutes mins

Resting time15 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Course: Dessert, Snack

Cuisine: Indian

Keyword: Baked ShakarPara, Baked ShakarPara Recipe, ShakarPara, ShakarPara Recipe

Servings: 24 1 oz (4-5 pieces)

Calories: 128kcal

Author: Rupali Agarwal

Equipment

• Oven
• Stand mixer

Ingredients

From Pantry

• 140 gms Whole wheat flour 1 cup
• 130 gms All Purpose flour 1 cup
• 50 gms Almond Flour ½ cup
• ¼ teaspoon Baking Powder
• 75 ml Ghee clarified butter
• ½ cup Water or milk

For Sugar Syrup

• 300 gms Sugar 1 ½ cup
• 175 ml Water ¾ cup

Spices

• ¼ teaspoon Salt or as per taste
• 2 teaspoon Fennel seeds
• 2 pieces Star Anise

Instructions

• Take all flours in a large bowl.
• And then add salt and baking powder, give a good mix to all the dry ingredients.
• Add warm ghee and rub the flour with ghee.Flour and Mowen being mixed for ShakarPara Dough
• Press some flour between your palm- it should form a shape (& not crumble) – means oil is enough and well incorporated.
• Start adding water little by little, until the dough just comes together, dough needs to be on stiffer side.
• After 15 minutes, take one part knead it little more to smooth it out, once smoothed roll it like a thick roti, around ¼ inch thickness.
• And then cut it into square or rectangles. Basically idea is to cut into shape with less points so that when we coat them with sugar syrup there would be less breakage.
• Repeat with the remaining dough balls until all dough is finished.
• Preheat the oven at 375 °F.
• Transfer all the pieces on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.ready to bak shakarpara on a baking tray
• Place the baking sheet in a preheated oven and bake for 14 minutes. Time may vary depending on the size and thickness of the para pieces baked shakarpara before lacing in sugar syrup.
• Meanwhile, in another wok, add sugar, water, fennel seeds and star anise and put the pan on high heat. Stir until the sugar melts, in around 2 minutes.
• After the sugar melts, lower the heat to medium and let the sugar simmer for 2-3 more minutes and check the temperature using candy thermometer. It should be at thread stage which is 215 °F–234 °F/101 °C–112 °C. We are looking for lower temperature of thread consistency. Don’t let the syrup temperature go beyond 215-220 °F.
• Then add the baked dough pieces/Para in the sugar syrup and start stirring.
• The syrup will continue to thicken but keep stirring. Remember the heat is off at this point.
• The sugar crystallizes in around 7-8 minutes and starts coating the baked shakarpara, make sure all pieces are well coated with sugar syrup.
• When all the baked Shakarpara pieces are well coated and sugar syrup has crystalized remove from the pan and spread it on the cooled baking sheet to bring all the pieces at room temperature before storing in a container.
• Baked shakarpara will easily last for 3-4 weeks at room temperature.

Video

Nutrition Facts

Shakarpara Recipe – A Sweet Baked Snack

Amount Per Serving

Calories 128 Calories from Fat 36

% Daily Value*

Fat 4g6%

Saturated Fat 2g13%

Cholesterol 8mg3%

Sodium 25mg1%

Potassium 30mg1%

Carbohydrates 21g7%

Fiber 1g4%

Sugar 13g14%

Protein 2g4%

Vitamin C 1mg1%

Calcium 10mg1%

Iron 1mg6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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