Gur Papri is jaggery and sesame seed brittle, made in Sindhi households when the new season’s gur arrives in winter — the harvest of the sugarcane, fresh-pressed and unrefined, carrying the warmth and mineral sweetness of the cane rather than the flat sweetness of sugar. The brittle is made by cooking jaggery to the hard-crack stage, folding in toasted sesame seeds and a crush of cardamom, and spreading thin on a greased surface to cool and shatter. It is sold at Sindhi and Rajasthani festivals under the same name, and eaten during Makar Sankranti (the kite festival) when sesame in particular is auspicious. The new-season gur is the ingredient worth seeking.
Zone: Indus Plains
SOURCE: Sindhi home cook, Sukkur, winter festival recipe, 2020
LOCAL NAME: گڑ پاپڑی
INGREDIENTS
- 200 g dark jaggery (gur, grated)
- 1 cup sesame seeds (til, lightly toasted)
- ½ tsp cardamom powder
- 1 tbsp ghee (for greasing)
- 2 tbsp water
METHOD
- Toast the sesame seeds in a dry pan over medium heat until pale golden and fragrant. Set aside.
- Grease a flat tray or marble slab generously with ghee.
- Melt the jaggery with 2 tbsp water in a heavy pan over medium heat. Stir to dissolve.
- Once dissolved, stop stirring. Bring to a boil and cook until the mixture reaches hard-crack stage (150°C, or a dropped spoonful in cold water sets immediately and shatters cleanly). This takes 8–10 minutes.
- Working quickly, remove from heat, stir in the cardamom powder and the toasted sesame seeds.
- Pour immediately onto the greased surface and spread as thinly as possible with the back of a spoon.
- Leave to cool and set completely, about 15 minutes.
- Shatter into irregular pieces. Store in an airtight tin — it keeps for 2 weeks.
NOTES
UK adaptation: Fresh jaggery from any South Asian grocer — the darker, more aromatic varieties produce a better brittle than pale processed jaggery. White and black sesame seeds both work; a mix of the two gives the best visual result. Everything else widely available.
US adaptation: Jaggery from Patel Brothers or Indian grocery stores. Sesame seeds from any grocery store. Everything else widely available.
Cook’s note: Work quickly once the jaggery is ready — it sets very fast. Have the greased surface, sesame seeds and spatula ready before you even light the flame under the jaggery.
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