Rich and creamy – that’s khoya

Whenever you want to make any exotic and rich sweet or even savoury dish, one ingredient that will help you do just that is khoya which is also referred to as khawa or mawa.

What is khoya
To say it in few words it is reduced milk. Milk is simmered on medium heat till it is reduced to such an extent that it is almost doughy or granular in texture. This milk solid is used as the base in quite a few Indian mithai.

In India khoya is quite easily available at most shops selling milk and its products as also at halwais. And when it is not available you can easily make it at home. All it requires is plenty of milk with patience thrown in good measure. Khoya can be made with both cow’s and buffalo’s milk. It is normally white or pale yellow.

Types of khoya
There are three types of khoya - batti, chickna and daanedaar. Batti is rock like and has 50% moisture by weight and is the hardest of the three types; it can be grated like cheese. Chickna, which means slippery, has 80% moisture. For daanedaar, the milk is coagulated with an acid when it is simmering; it has moderate moisture content. These three types of khoya are used for different preparations.

Is it healthy?
The food value of khoya is quite high as it contains fairy large quantities of proteins, fat, lactose, minerals especially like calcium. It is also a good source of vitamins D and K which together with calcium is good for bone health.

It also contains riboflavin, vitamin B12 both of which are necessary for cardiovascular health and energy. It is also a good source of vitamin A. Research has shown that increased consumption of dairy products both by children and adults results in increased bone density later in life and a reduced risk of osteoporosis.

Culinary uses
Khoya is the base ingredient of mithai like pedas, burfis, gulab jamuns, kala jamuns, chum chums, gujiya and also some halwas like gajar ka halwa and doodhi halwa.

It is also used to make exotic savoury dishes like khoya matar makhane, besan ke shahi gatte, rajma galouti kabab, murgh mussallam, lazeez murgh tikka masala, etc. It adds a rich taste and flavour to the dishes and makes them fit for royalty. 

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