Gajak

Gajak is a sweet from northern and central India in which sesame seeds, peanuts, or similar ingredients are combined with sugar and finished as thin slabs or rolled shapes. It is known as a specialty of Morena in Madhya Pradesh, and in winter it also appears in shopfronts in places such as Gwalior. Its thin cross-section, where the sesame seeds are visible, shows fine overlapping layers and cracks.

Homemade sesame-and-sugar gajak (2021, Patelaahil / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0). Reduced-size version from the source used; content not changed after retrieval.

Folding warm sugar and combining it with sesame

The sesame seeds are roasted first, and jaggery or sugar is heated into a syrup. The warm sugar and sesame are combined and allowed to settle to a workable firmness, then pounded, folded, and stretched. By working the mass repeatedly before it cools and hardens, makers bring it to a state with thin layers. At one shop in Gwalior, the boiled-down sugar is folded on a work surface, then hung on a hook on the wall and pulled to work air into it. Once its color has lightened, sesame is mixed in, and the mixture is beaten into slabs and cut before it hardens.

Its ingredients overlap with those of chikki, in which sesame or nuts are simply set in sugar as they are, but some gajak places particular emphasis on the steps of pounding, folding, and stretching. However, product names are used in overlapping ways depending on the region and shop, and not every item can be divided along the same line.

Thin slabs, rolls, and thick pieces

Some gajak is made by stretching the warm mass thin and cutting it, some is rolled into tubes, and some is made into thicker small pieces. Some versions include almonds or cashews, so it is not limited to sesame-only sweets. Besides sesame and sugar, some use peanuts, and some add mawa, a milk solid. White sugar and jaggery also give different colors and flavors.

Not only whether the mass is thick or thin, but also how far the sesame is pounded and the sugar layers are stretched, determines whether the gajak crumbles lightly or snaps hard. Because the texture changes when it absorbs moisture from the air, even in winter, letting it cool before wrapping is also part of the finishing.

From Morena to the North Indian winter

Morena and neighboring Gwalior are both associated with buying gajak. A sweet shop in Gwalior tells of having been started by inviting craftsmen from Morena, based on a recipe handed down by a mother who came from Morena. There are also makers in Rajasthan, and gajak is used as a gift at winter festivals such as Makar Sankranti and Lohri.

The closely related tilkut is also a sweet made by pounding sesame and sugar. While the names overlap, the actual forms and work differ, as with Gaya’s round pieces, Morena’s thin slabs, and the rolls made by individual shops. Gajak made of stacked thin layers and gajak pounded to have some thickness also break apart differently in the mouth.

Glossary