Khoa, khoya, khowa or mawa is a dairy food widely used in the
cuisines of the Indian subcontinent, encompassing
India,
Nepal,
Bangladesh and
Pakistan. It is made of either dried whole
milk or milk thickened by heating in an open iron pan. It is lower in moisture than typical fresh cheeses such as
ricotta. It is made up of whole milk instead of whey.
Preparation

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. About 600,000 metric tons are produced annually in India. Khoa is made from both
cow and
water buffalo 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

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, gourd barfi and other sweets.
* ''Pindi'', dry khoa, is used for preparing
barfi and
peda.
* ''Dhap'', a less dried version, is used for preparing
gulab jamun and
pantua.
Uses

Khoa is used in various types of sweets:
*
Pedha 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 (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, a sweet fried dumpling stuffed with khoa and nuts. A very popular sweet usually prepared in
Holi.
*
Halwa 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 and/ or
saffron, 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.
* Main course north India dishes like
khoya paneer, 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