In a mixing bowl add ½ teaspoon active instant dry yeast, 1 teaspoon sugar and ½ cup warm water. Mix well and let it raise for about 3-5 mins.

Now add maida, corn flour, food color, lemon juice and mix well.

Add water little by little to make a batter that is thick but runny. It should be without lumps and drop from the whisk easily. I had to use about ¼ cup of water. Let it rest for 10mins.

Meanwhile prepare the sugar syrup. In a wide pan, heat sugar and water together.

As the sugar dissolves, continue cooking the sugar syrup until it reaches one string consistency. When you touch the sugar syrup between your thumb and index finger, you should see a distinct string. Another test is to drop few drops of the syrup into a bowl with water. If it doesn’t immediately dissolve, it is ready.

Switch off the heat and add cardamom powder, food color and lemon wedge. You can also use lemon juice – it helps the sugar from crystalizing.

Now heat a flat pan with oil. Add 1 tablespoon of ghee as it will help mask the flavor of oil. It is important to use a flat pan (or a large plate) so that the piped Jalebis retain the shape. The wider the better as you can pipe new Jalebis at the center and push them to the edge to crisp up. Once the oil is hot, reduce the flame to medium-low. It is important to keep the oil temperature right. Too hot – Jalebis will burn. Not so hot – the jalebis will not absorb sugar syrup.

Now pour the batter onto a sauce dispenser. If you can get Jalebi maker (the nozzle is not too big) that’s great. I found the Sauce dispenser’s nozzle slightly big, so I used a bottle with thinner opening and cut it to desired size.

Starting at the center, swirl the dispenser in circular motion to form Jalebis. It should immediately come to the top and at that point, stop swirling it anymore as the shape will not be retained.

Here is how I made smaller Jalebis. Pipe at the center and finish each piece as the begin to float up in the oil.

You can add upto 10 depending on the size of the pan.

Turn them around and cook until they are crisp and the oil is not bubbling anymore. Make sure they don’t turn brown.

I used a thin rod to turn them around so as to not break them and it is also easier to remove them. Drain off the Jalebis.

If the sugar syrup is not warm, heat it for a couple of minutes. Drop the fried Jalebis gently into the sugar syrup that is still warm. Let them soak up for 10-15 secs on both sides. Remove them from the syrup and place them on a plate.

Repeat this with rest of the batter, ensuring that the temperature of the oil is not too hot. Assemble the Jalebis and sprinkle chopped almonds and pistachios on top.

Serve hot, warm or cold with a side of Rabdi. Store the left over Jalebis in an airtight container in fridge for upto 3 days – they might not be entirely crisp though.