It is said that you can an Indian out of India but not India out of an Indian. And if you truly want to identify an Indian anywhere in the world, measure his sweet tooth or rather love for mithais. The kind of mithai he likes also determines the region from which he comes and his upbringing. It is pretty hard to find an Indian not in love with his mithais even in these days of cholesterol-control-fitness-freak age. There is no festival in India that gets celebrated without the use of mithais. So much so that people districute sweets not only during special festivals but also for any good news that brings cheers to them. Whether a new baby is born or someone buys a new house or a car or if someone passes examinations with flying colours or if one gets a job or a promotion or even if one’s wishes are fulfilled; sweets or mithais are distrcibuted among all friends and relatives. Since all Indians love to celebrate their festivals and no occassions is really through without mithais, sweets are a must.

Indian sweets or Mithai, are a type of confectionery made majorly by the usage of sugar, milk and condensed milk, and cooked by frying. The bases of the sweets, however, vary by region.

Types of Indian sweets

There are so many varieties of mithais as one moves from north to south or east to west in India that you could get overwhelmed.

Rasgulla: This is one of the most popular relished mithais in India, originated in Orissa. This dish is produced by the boiling of small pops of casein in sugar syrup.

Laddoos :

Laddu is arguably the most popular sweet in India. It is made of flour and other ingredients formed into balls that are dipped in sugar syrup. In western India, they are also made from coconut flesh. The popularity of Laddu is due to its ease of preparation. Variations in the preparation of Laddu result in diverse tastes across the length and breadth of the country. They are also offered to Hindu deities as prasad.

Motichoor : Motichoor Ka Ladoo is a sweet delicacy of Bihar made from grilled gram flour flakes which are sweetened, mixed with almonds and pressed into balls and fried in ghee. It is now made and enjoyed throughout India for all important festivals

Kaju Katlis : Made from cahsew paste, ghee and sugar. This is a popular mithai from western India and also a very popular mithai for gifting due to its rich taste and extravagance.

Besides these there are also other varieties like pedas, halwa, rabri, jalebi, sandesh, malpua, mishti doi, ras malai, kalakhand, pheerni, kulfi, burfi, shrikhand, shira, basundi, shankarpali, kheer, etc.