Garlic Groundnuts

Gujrat is the land of “Sing Dana”..peanuts the size of almonds. They were like nothing I had ever tasted. Simply roasted you can have them bowlfuls.

These Garlic Groundnuts are a bit time consuming but they are way better than the packaged ones with preservatives and overdose of salt. If you soak them then you can use any normal variety of peanuts that are available at the local grocery shop. The groundnuts will swell in size to look like Sing Dana.

The groundnuts are soaked first as this makes them puff up and when fried they have a nuttier texture. Believe me because I have tried making it both ways, soaked and directly.

Often people make garlic groundnuts by heating oil, frying groundnuts and then frying peanuts in the same oil. I avoid this method because of two reasons. Firstly simply frying in garlic flavoured oil does not bring that taste. Secondly if you fry the garlic first, keep it in the oil and add the groundnuts then by the time the groundnuts are fried the garlic turns absolutely black.

After many trials and errors I have perfected the art of making Garlic Groundnuts

Ingredients

2 cups groundnuts, soaked overnight

10-12 garlic pods, sliced thin

½ cup oil

Salt to taste

1 tsp pepper powder

Soak the groundnuts overnight. Peel them and keep aside.

Heat the oil mildly. Remember you don’t want it too hot or the garlic will burn. Add the garlic slices and stir on low heat. After a while the garlic will stop sticking to the pan. This will take only a minute. NO more!

 Remember the garlic at this stage should still be white. It should not even be light brown. You have to keep control of the flame. If the garlic is brown at this stage by the time the groundnuts are fried they will be black.

Add the groundnuts and stir well. Keep the flame absolutely low. Do not cover the pan. Let the groundnuts fry on low flame for about 20-30 minutes. Keep stirring after few minutes. Add salt and pepper powder.

This is a very slow process and you need to keep patience. There is a big difference between slow fried and quickly deep fried groundnuts. Believe me!