Khoa, khoya, khowa or mawa is a dairy food widely used in the
cuisines of the Indian subcontinent
Cuisine of the Indian subcontinent includes the cuisines from the Indian subcontinent comprising the traditional cuisines from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Staples and common ingredients
Chapati, a ...
, encompassing
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
,
Nepal
Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne,
सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...
,
Bangladesh
Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
and
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
. It is made of either dried whole
milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digestion, digest solid food. Immune factors and immune ...
or milk thickened by heating in an open iron pan. It is lower in moisture than typical fresh cheeses such as
ricotta
Ricotta ( in Italian) is an Italian whey cheese made from sheep, cow, goat, or Italian water buffalo milk whey left over from the production of other cheeses. Like other whey cheeses, it is made by coagulating the proteins that remain after the ...
. It is made up of whole milk instead of whey.
Preparation
![Khuwa vendor nepal](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4d/Khuwa_vendor_nepal.JPG)
A concentration of milk to one-fifth volume is normal in the production of khoa. Khoa is used as the base for a wide variety of
Indian sweets
This is a list of Indian sweets and desserts, also called ''mithai'', a significant element in Indian cuisine. Indians are known for their unique taste and experimental behavior when it comes to food. Many Indian desserts are fried foods made wi ...
. About 600,000 metric tons are produced annually in India. Khoa is made from both
cow
Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...
and
water buffalo
The water buffalo (''Bubalus bubalis''), also called the domestic water buffalo or Asian water buffalo, is a large bovid originating in the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia. Today, it is also found in Europe, Australia, North America, So ...
milk. Khoa is made by simmering full-fat milk in a large, shallow iron pan for several hours over a medium fire. The gradual evaporation of its water content leaves only the milk solids. The ideal temperature to avoid scorching is about .
Another quick way of making khoa is to add full fat milk powder to skimmed milk and mixing and heating until it becomes thick. This may, however, not have the same characteristics as traditionally made khoa.
Khoa is normally white or pale yellow. If prepared in the winter, it may be saved for use in the summer, and may acquire a green tinge and grainier texture from a harmless surface mould. This is called ''hariyali'' (green khoa) and is used in recipes where the khoa is thoroughly cooked, e.g., ''
gulab jamun''. With the advent of refrigeration, the production of hariyali is rare.
Types
![Pal Khovva in Krishnarajanagara, Mysore](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/de/Pal_Khovva_in_Krishnarajanagara%2C_Mysore.jpg)
Khoa is classified into different types, based on moisture content. Different types of khoa are used for different preparations.
* ''Batti'', meaning "rock", has 20% moisture by weight and is the hardest of the three types; it can be grated like
cheese
Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
. It can be aged for up to a year, during which it develops a unique aroma and a mouldy outer surface.
[indiacurry.co]
Making khoya mawa Recipe
Retrieved 2008-02-24.
* ''Chikna'' ("slippery" or "squishy") khoa has 50% moisture.
* ''Daanedaar'' is a grainy variety. The milk is coagulated with an acid during the simmering; it has a moderate moisture content.
It is used for preparing
kalakand
Kalakand is a sweet milk and cheese dessert popular in northern and eastern India. It is made with paneer, full-fat milk, sugar, and cardamom powder that is topped with nuts. This dish is usually served cut into individual servings that are usual ...
, gourd barfi and other sweets.
* ''Pindi'', dry khoa, is used for preparing
barfi
Barfi, barfee, borfi or burfi is a dense milk-based sweet from the Indian subcontinent. The name comes from the Hindustani (originally Persian) word ''barf'', which means snow. Common types of barfi include ''besan barfi'' (made with gram flou ...
and
peda
Peda () or Pera is a sweet dish hailing from the Indian subcontinent. It originated from Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India. Usually prepared in thick, semi-soft, its main ingredients are khoa, sugar and traditional flavorings including cardamom see ...
.
* ''Dhap'', a less dried version, is used for preparing
gulab jamun and
pantua
Pantua ( bn, পান্তুয়া) is a local confection from the Indian subcontinent, notable in West Bengal, Eastern India and Bangladesh. It is a traditional Bengali sweet made of deep-fried balls of semolina, chhena, milk, ghee and sug ...
.
Uses
![Almond Khoa based burfi Mumbai India](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Almond_Khoa_based_burfi_Mumbai_India.jpg)
Khoa is used in various types of sweets:
*
Pedha
Peda () or Pera is a sweet dish hailing from the Indian subcontinent. It originated from Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, India. Usually prepared in thick, semi-soft, its main ingredients are khoa, sugar and traditional flavorings including cardamom see ...
is sweetened khoa formed into balls or thick disks (like patties) with flavourings such as saffron and/or cardamom added.
*
Gulab jamun, also a round ball sweet made from khoa and then deep fried and soaked in rose water flavoured sugar or honey syrup. A very popular Indian sweet.
*
Barfi
Barfi, barfee, borfi or burfi is a dense milk-based sweet from the Indian subcontinent. The name comes from the Hindustani (originally Persian) word ''barf'', which means snow. Common types of barfi include ''besan barfi'' (made with gram flou ...
(or burfi) is also flavoured, but khoa is not the only ingredient. Typically, another ingredient, such as thickened fruit pulp or coconut shavings, is added to khoa and slow cooked until the moisture evaporates sufficiently to give the consistency of fudge, so it can be flattened and cut into rectangles, parallelograms or diamond shapes.
*
Gujia
Gunjiya, Gughara, Pedakiya, karanji, Kajjikayalu,Somas,Karjikayi is a sweet deep-fried dumpling, native to the Indian subcontinent, made with suji (semolina) or maida (all purpose flour) stuffed with a mixture of sweetened khoa (milk solids; ...
, a sweet fried dumpling stuffed with khoa and nuts. A very popular sweet usually prepared in
Holi
Holi (), also known as the Festival of Colours, the Festival of Spring, and the Festival of Love,The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) p. 874 "Holi /'həʊli:/ noun a Hindu spring festival ...". is an ancient Hindu religious festival ...
.
*
Halwa
Halva (also halvah, halwa, and other spellings, Persian : حلوا) is a type of confectionery originating from Persia and widely spread throughout the Middle East. The name is used for a broad variety of recipes, generally a thick paste made f ...
is essentially a fudge made by adding khoa to wheat starch or cornstarch and sugar syrup to give a dairy-like taste and texture and as a thickening agent. Most halva recipes, however may omit the khoa, relying only on starch and sugar plus slivered nuts, spices such as
cardamom
Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They are rec ...
and/ or
saffron
Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent i ...
, and flavorings such as
rose water
Rose water ( fa, گلاب) is a flavoured water made by steeping rose petals in water. It is the hydrosol portion of the distillate of rose petals, a by-product of the production of rose oil
Rose oil (rose otto, attar of rose, attar of rose ...
and
screwpine
''Pandanus'' is a genus of monocots with some 750 accepted species. They are palm-like, dioecious trees and shrubs native to the Old World tropics and subtropics. The greatest number of species are found in Madagascar and Malaysia. Common names ...
.
* Main course north India dishes like
khoya paneer
Khoya paneer is a popular North Indian dish made with paneer (Indian cottage cheese), khoya (thickened milk), onion, garlic, ginger, tomato and Indian spices.
It is a gravy dish and is usually spicy in taste. It is commonly available in r ...
, Makhmali Kofte, Khoya Matar.
*Naan roti stuffed with khoa is a speciality of the Muslim bakers of Bangalore.
*Cream Bell Ice Creams of India sells an ice cream brand called Royal Rajwadi that contains thick layers of cold pressed Mawa covered in a thin layer of Indian Kulfi ice cream.
See also
*
*
References
{{Reflist
External links
FAO document discussing many dairy products including khoa
Punjabi cuisine
Nepalese cuisine
Indian dairy products