Khajoor

Ingredients

Dough

• 500 gplain flour
• 150 gcaster sugar
• 120 mlvegetable oil
• 60 gghee or butter, melted
• 2eggs
• 150 gthick plain yoghurt
• 1 tspground cardamom
• 1 tspbaking powder
• 1 pinchsalt

To fry

• 1 litrevegetable oil

To finish

• 2 tbspicing sugar (optional)
• 1 tbspground pistachio (optional)

Directions

1. Whisk the eggs with the sugar until pale and slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.
2. Beat in the oil, melted ghee and yoghurt until you have a loose, smooth emulsion.
3. Sift the flour with the baking powder, cardamom and salt, and fold it in to make a soft, oily dough; knead very briefly, no more than a minute, because working it hard makes the pastries tough instead of short.
4. Cover and rest 20 minutes at room temperature.
5. Break off pieces the size of a walnut and roll each between your palms into a fat oval about 6 cm long.
6. Press the top of each oval against the tines of a fork, or against a fine grater, to leave the ridged pattern that identifies khajoor; the name means date, for the shape.
7. Heat the oil to 150 to 155°C (300°F), which is cooler than for most frying. A test piece should sink, then rise slowly and bubble gently.
8. Fry six at a time for 6 to 8 minutes, turning, until the pastries swell slightly, crack a little along the ridges and turn a pale, even biscuit brown.
9. Lift them out with a slotted spoon and drain on a rack; they will firm up and turn crumbly as they cool.
10. Cool completely, then dust with icing sugar and pistachio if you like, and store in a tin. They keep two weeks and are eaten with green tea at any hour.

Technique

• Low, slow frying is the technique. At normal frying heat the outside browns while the inside is still raw dough; khajoor need long enough in cool oil to cook through to a dry, crumbly, cake-like centre.
• Do not knead. This is a short dough, closer to a biscuit than a bread, and gluten development is the enemy.
• Every Afghan region shapes them slightly differently, from smooth ovals to deeply ridged fingers, and some households bake rather than fry them; the fried version is the one sold in bakeries and made for Eid.

Substitutions

• No yoghurt: use the same weight of soured milk or thin the yoghurt from 100 g of Greek yoghurt with 50 ml of milk. Ghee can be replaced entirely with oil, giving a lighter but less fragrant pastry.

Variations

• Baked khajoor, cooked at 170°C (350°F) for 20 minutes, is common in home kitchens with no deep fryer.
• Some cooks add a spoonful of ground almond to the dough, and Kandahari versions perfume it with rosewater.

History

The name means date, for the pastry’s shape; piled on Eid trays and sold in every Afghan bakery.

Frequently asked questions

What is Khajoor?

Khajoor is a bread & pastry from Afghanistan: deep-fried oval dough pastries, faintly sweet and crumbly, eaten with green tea. The name means date, for the pastry’s shape; piled on Eid trays and sold in every Afghan bakery.

How long does Khajoor take to make?

Khajoor takes 30 min plus 20 min resting of preparation and 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes about 24 pastries. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Khajoor?

Yes, within limits. No yoghurt: use the same weight of soured milk or thin the yoghurt from 100 g of Greek yoghurt with 50 ml of milk. Ghee can be replaced entirely with oil, giving a lighter but less fragrant pastry.

What is the most important thing to get right in Khajoor?

Sift the flour with the baking powder, cardamom and salt, and fold it in to make a soft, oily dough; knead very briefly, no more than a minute, because working it hard makes the pastries tough instead of short.