Nankhatai is a classic eggless Indian cookie recipe. These Indian buttery shortbread cookies are laced with cardamom and saffron. They have an irresistible rich, crumbly, melt in mouth texture.Â
If you love this nankhatai, you'll love these Gulab Jamun Cookies and Barfi Biscuits!
About
Nankhatai is an eggless shortbread from the Indian subcontinent that has a melt in mouth texture. These cookies are hugely popular in India and Pakistan. The word Nankhatai breaks into two words here Nan Khatai, Nan translates to BREAD and Khatai is BISCUITS.
These rich buttery cookies are the perfect snack with a cuppa, lunch box, after-school snacks, coffee morning, afternoon tea, high tea or a lovely and thoughtful gift for your foodie friends or family.
Ingredients notes
Nankhatai can be made of a handful of ingredients and these should be easy to find.
Flours - Regular plain flour (aka all purpose flour or maida) chickpea flour (besan) and semolina (sooji or rawa). Do not use self-raising flour.
Sugar - Caster sugar or grind regular granulated sugar in a grinder at home.
Fat - Ghee is a must as Nankhatai is all about Indian flavours otherwise it will be a normal shortbread.
Spices - A good quality cardamom and saffron will make all the difference. Cardamom powder or lightly crushed, any will do.
Nuts - Pistachio and almonds slivers.
Variations
The original recipe tastes perfect as it is, but I love playing around with flavours!
Orange Almond Nankhatai - swapping semolina for almond flour and adding orange zest.
Chocolate Nankhatai - adding cocoa powder.
Air fryer Funfetti Nankhatai - add funfetti/sprinkles to the dough and bake in the air fryer.
For a change make Chai Spice Cookies (Nankhatai) by adding a pinch of Chai Masala Powder
Pro Tips
1. Use ghee and do not compromise on the quantity given in the recipe, after all, you want your nankhatai to be melting in your mouth. It should be buttery, rich and Indian flavoured. Prominent taste and flavours of ghee make nankhatai special.
2. Do not use butter, making ghee at home is so easy and quick and won't require any skill what so ever. Butter won't give those special flavours.
3. Always use semi-solid consistency ghee, which is slightly grainy. In warmer climates, the ghee stays melted in the container, to bring it to the semi-solid consistency leave the ghee in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or so.
4. Allow the oven to heat up to the right temperature before baking. It takes at least 10-12 minutes to preheat the oven.
5. Do not overbake, after 12-15 minutes of baking keep a very close eye on it.
6. Don't over knead the dough.
The perfect texture, shape and flavour
Perfect Nankhatai should be light but with rich flavours, slightly crispy inside but delicate enough that it just crumbles and melts in your mouth.
For the sign of a perfectly baked Nankhatai, find three to four cracks over the surface, the texture should give you the impression that any moment the Nankhatai will crumble. The shape of the Nankhatai should be round and chubby and not be flattened.
Serving Suggestion
Serve with an authentic Indian Masala Chai or filter coffee. It is also delicious with Badam Milk.
Use as the biscuit base for this Nankhatai Shrikhand Cheesecake.
How to make Nankhatai
The best thing about this recipe is that there is no waiting game here, just measure all the ingredients, mix it, shape it, bake it and eat it. The dough of Nankhatai does not need any resting or chilling as this recipe uses baking powder.
In a big mixing bowl, cream the ghee and caster sugar until creamy and fluffy.
Add sieved flours, cardamom powder and saffron threads.
Combine everything, do not over mix.
Preheat the oven and line the baking tray.
Equally, divide the dough into small balls (roughly between 25 to 30 grams each) avoid using a fork or too much pressure as we want Nankhatai to be round and chubby.
Arrange them on the cold lined baking tray.
Bake in the preheated oven for 7-8 minutes, then sprinkle nuts slivers and again bake for maximum 8-10 minutes.
As soon as you see edges becoming darker, remove the tray and let it sit for a while.
Do not attempt to lift the cookies at this stage they will just crumble.
Once totally cool, lift gently and store in an airtight container.
FAQs
Can I make vegan Nankhatai?
Yes, you can but the taste will differ. Swap ghee with vegetable ghee, coconut oil or any other vegan butter.
How do I make Gluten free Nankhatai?
Use gluten-free plain flour instead of regular plain flour and replace semolina with gluten-free oats powder or cornmeal.
How long can Nankhatai last?
You can store these Nankhati in an airtight container at room temperature for about 2 weeks.
As always if you make this recipe, be sure to leave me a comment, rate this recipe and tag me on Instagram @jcookingodyssey or #jcookingodyssey. I love seeing all your photos of my recipe recreations!
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Nankhatai
Equipment
- 1 Mixing bowl
- 1 Whisk
- 1 Spatula
- 1 Baking tray
- 1 Parchment paper
- 1 oven
- 1 Air fryer
Ingredients
- 500 gram Plain flour All purpose flour/Maida
- 50 gram Chickpea flour Besan
- 70 gram Semolina Sooji
- 220 gram Sugar castor
- ½ teaspoon Baking powder
- 350 gram Ghee room temperature
- 12-15 strands Saffron
- ½ teaspoon Cardamom powder
- 2 tablespoon Pistachio Slivers
- 1 tablespoon rose petals (optional)
Instructions
- Pre-heat the oven to gas mark 4-5 or 350-375F.
- In a big bowl beat the ghee and sugar until fluffy.
- Now add flours, semolina, baking powder and spices. (except Nuts).
- Bind into a dough and make small balls and flatten very slightly.
- Place on a greased lined baking tray.
- Leave enough space between them.
- Bake in a pre-heated oven about 7-8 minutes.
- Take the cookies out and place almonds and pistachio in the centre, return to the oven and bake further 7-8 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack.
Air Fryer Nankhatai
- Preheat the air fryer at 180C for 4 minutes.
- Place nankhatai balls on a baking tray.
- Bake at 180C for 8 minutes.
- Remove the basket from the air fryer and allow the cookies to rest in the basket for 4-5 minutes before removing. Let it completely cool at room temperature.
Video
Nutrition
PLEASE NOTE: Nutritional values are estimated by a computer and may vary based on ingredients and portion sizes. For personalised dietary advice, please consult a qualified healthcare professional.
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Himanshu Kohli says
Trued this recipe as a Diwali gift this year and it was a huge hit. Even used it as part of the Nankhati and Shrikhand cheese cake recipe. Made around 150 of them and it was very well received and enjoyed by everyone.
Highly recommend anyone and everyone
Hayley says
Thank you so much for your comment. I'm thrilled to read the nankhatai turned out well for you! Hope you had a wonderful Diwali,
Hayley 🙂
Anjali says
I made these, but the dough did not combine properly and was really crumbly. Is there a reason why this could have happened?
Hayley says
I suggest using the full quantity of ghee mentioned in the recipe card. The dough should be crumbly but should also come together to form a smooth ball. Please refer to the video in the recipe card which shows the texture better.
Hope this helps
Hayley
Himanshu Kohli says
Hi, planning to make them as part of your Nankhatai Shrikhand Cheesecake recipe.
Did a test run today and they came out perfect. Everyone loved it. One point to check - The dough under the almond that was pressed on to the Nankhatai, halfway into the baking process, tends to be a bit half-cooked. Any suggestions? Als,o advice on storage? How far can this be made before serving the guests
Hayley says
Hello Himanshu
Thank you for your comment and feedback - glad to hear they came out perfect!
As for the almonds - I recommend pressing on the almonds half way through baking (see steps 7 and 8 in the recipe card). Also, you could cut the almonds into slivers rather than placing the whole nut on top, this gives more surface area to bake.
As for storage - the nankhatai themselves will keep well 1 week in advance. Allow to fully cool and then place in an airtight container. The cheesecake I recommend assembling ideally on the day of serving or just the day before. But please only place the cut piece of nankhatai on top just prior to serving to prevent it going soggy.
Hope this helps, let me know how you get on and send across any pictures you take of the dish!
Hayley 🙂
Azra says
Can I get recipe in measurements of cup
Hayley says
Hi, toggle between metric and US customary near Ingredients in the recipe card for cup measurements. Hope this helps.
Fairuza says
Hi, can u convert grams to cups please or tbsp.
Hayley says
Hi, please click on the US customary button in the recipe card for cups and tablespoon measurements.
Sara says
You had my attention as soon as I saw the pistachios! What a great cookie!
Saima says
Ooh! Absolutely love nankhatai! You have brought back childhood memories of eating these melt-in-the-mouth treats full on. Your pictures do full justice.
Karyl Henry says
I love the combination of flavors in these cookies. Pistachio and almonds are 2 of my favorite nuts, and I've recently gotten into using cardamom. I'm going to have to try this recipe out