A Goan customary sweet prepared for weddings, special occasions and Christmas. In Portuguese, doce meaning "sweet" and grao "grain" is prepared with chana dal (Bengal gram), coconut, sugar, ghee and cardamom powder.
The chana dal is soaked, boiled and ground to a paste. Grated white flesh of the coconut avoiding the brown skin is also ground to a paste. The chana dal and coconut pastes are cooked with sugar in a heavy-bottomed pan on low flame. Stirred continuously with a wooden spoon for more than an hour. The first hour is relatively smooth with some bubbles and splutter but as the mixture thickens, it gets tough on the hands needing more muscle power. At this stage, I hand over the reins to my husband so that he can stir while I hold the pan firmly in one position over the cooktop. A good vigorous stir is required to give the doce a whitish look. The doce is ready when the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and comes to the centre. Ghee and cardamom powder are mixed in at this stage. The mixture is spread on a greased marble slab or wooden board, smoothen with a rolling pin or jackfruit leaves for a clean look, cut into square or diamond shapes. When cooled, it is hard on the outside with a soft interior and a hint of cardamom taste, deliciously sweet.
Depending on personal preference, whether you like it soft or hard, the doce can be taken off the fire as soon as it leaves the sides of the pan or cooked a bit more for a firmer texture. Either way, doce is enjoyed by all and an important sweet in the Goan culture. When there is a marriage in Goa, a special day is schedule for preparation of doce. Family members and neighbours come together to help in the making of this sweet. The bride's family sends doce to the groom's family so that it can be distributed to relatives, neighbours and friends to convey the good news of the upcoming wedding and celebrate in the joy.
The chana dal is soaked, boiled and ground to a paste. Grated white flesh of the coconut avoiding the brown skin is also ground to a paste. The chana dal and coconut pastes are cooked with sugar in a heavy-bottomed pan on low flame. Stirred continuously with a wooden spoon for more than an hour. The first hour is relatively smooth with some bubbles and splutter but as the mixture thickens, it gets tough on the hands needing more muscle power. At this stage, I hand over the reins to my husband so that he can stir while I hold the pan firmly in one position over the cooktop. A good vigorous stir is required to give the doce a whitish look. The doce is ready when the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and comes to the centre. Ghee and cardamom powder are mixed in at this stage. The mixture is spread on a greased marble slab or wooden board, smoothen with a rolling pin or jackfruit leaves for a clean look, cut into square or diamond shapes. When cooled, it is hard on the outside with a soft interior and a hint of cardamom taste, deliciously sweet.
Depending on personal preference, whether you like it soft or hard, the doce can be taken off the fire as soon as it leaves the sides of the pan or cooked a bit more for a firmer texture. Either way, doce is enjoyed by all and an important sweet in the Goan culture. When there is a marriage in Goa, a special day is schedule for preparation of doce. Family members and neighbours come together to help in the making of this sweet. The bride's family sends doce to the groom's family so that it can be distributed to relatives, neighbours and friends to convey the good news of the upcoming wedding and celebrate in the joy.
Soft Doce
Hard Doce
Doce de Grão (Coconut and Bengal Gram Sweet)
(Yields 100+ pieces)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups chana dal
4 1/2 cups sugar
6 cups grated coconut or 3 large coconuts (white flesh only)
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 tablespoon ghee
a pinch of salt (to cook chana dal)
Method:
Soak chana dal in water for a couple of hours. Then boil with around 4 cups water and a pinch of salt (tiny pinch not too much) till dal is soft. Remove froth with a ladle and keep aside little water to grind the dal.
Grind cooked dal to a paste.
Separately grind the coconut to a paste. You can use some water to grind the coconut. (Instead of fresh coconut, you can use frozen but not desiccated.)
In a wide heavy-bottomed pan, add both the chana dal and coconut pastes along with sugar. On medium heat, stir continuously using a long thick wooden spoon to prevent the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
As the moisture in the mixture evaporates, it will start to bubble and splutter out of the pan. (Be careful at this moment.)
At regular intervals, with a table knife try to remove the mixture that sticks to the sides of the pan and on the wooden spoon.
The mixture thickens in one hour and tries to leave the sides of the pan. At this stage, add cardamom powder and ghee. Stir vigorously ensuring that the mixture does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
Once the mixture comes to the centre, the doce is ready to remove onto the greased board, around 1 hour 15 minutes, for a soft doce. (I took the doce out of the pan when I noticed that it was turning white and dry on the sides of the pan.)
Use a rolling pin or greased jackfruit leaves to flatten and smoothen the mixture to about 1/4" or 1/2" thickness.
Let mixture cool for an hour or two and then cut into desired shapes. Leave pieces overnight to dry. Refrigerate after the first day.
For hard doce, continue stirring for another 10 minutes. You will find it a bit difficult to move it around. Remove after 1 hour 25 minutes. It will harden immediately on removal and can be cut right away. The hard doce can be refrigerated after a week.
This is the first time, I used the Stirio, an automatic pot stirrer to make doce. I must say I was impressed and it did an amazing job. Used it for 45 minutes at high speed and then switched over to the wooden spoon. Try to invest in one, it will make life easier especially with our Goan sweets that require a lot of stirring. I bought the Stirio online from The Shopping Channel in Canada when it was on sale. Check amazon for availability, Google for information and You Tube to watch video on Stirio.
(Yields 100+ pieces)
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups chana dal
4 1/2 cups sugar
6 cups grated coconut or 3 large coconuts (white flesh only)
1/2 teaspoon cardamom powder
1 tablespoon ghee
a pinch of salt (to cook chana dal)
Method:
Soak chana dal in water for a couple of hours. Then boil with around 4 cups water and a pinch of salt (tiny pinch not too much) till dal is soft. Remove froth with a ladle and keep aside little water to grind the dal.
Grind cooked dal to a paste.
Separately grind the coconut to a paste. You can use some water to grind the coconut. (Instead of fresh coconut, you can use frozen but not desiccated.)
In a wide heavy-bottomed pan, add both the chana dal and coconut pastes along with sugar. On medium heat, stir continuously using a long thick wooden spoon to prevent the mixture from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
As the moisture in the mixture evaporates, it will start to bubble and splutter out of the pan. (Be careful at this moment.)
At regular intervals, with a table knife try to remove the mixture that sticks to the sides of the pan and on the wooden spoon.
The mixture thickens in one hour and tries to leave the sides of the pan. At this stage, add cardamom powder and ghee. Stir vigorously ensuring that the mixture does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
Once the mixture comes to the centre, the doce is ready to remove onto the greased board, around 1 hour 15 minutes, for a soft doce. (I took the doce out of the pan when I noticed that it was turning white and dry on the sides of the pan.)
Use a rolling pin or greased jackfruit leaves to flatten and smoothen the mixture to about 1/4" or 1/2" thickness.
Let mixture cool for an hour or two and then cut into desired shapes. Leave pieces overnight to dry. Refrigerate after the first day.
For hard doce, continue stirring for another 10 minutes. You will find it a bit difficult to move it around. Remove after 1 hour 25 minutes. It will harden immediately on removal and can be cut right away. The hard doce can be refrigerated after a week.
This is the first time, I used the Stirio, an automatic pot stirrer to make doce. I must say I was impressed and it did an amazing job. Used it for 45 minutes at high speed and then switched over to the wooden spoon. Try to invest in one, it will make life easier especially with our Goan sweets that require a lot of stirring. I bought the Stirio online from The Shopping Channel in Canada when it was on sale. Check amazon for availability, Google for information and You Tube to watch video on Stirio.