Jalebi
-Jalebi, or Jilawii (and sometimes Jalibi[1]) is a sweet popular in countries of the Indian Subcontinent such as India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh as well as many countries in the Middle East and North Africa, like Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria. It is made by deep-frying a wheat flour (maida flour) batter in pretzel or circular shapes, which are then soaked in sugar syrup. They are particularly popular in the subcontinent during Ramadan.
The sweets are served warm or cold. They have a somewhat chewy texture with a crystallized sugary exterior coating. Citric acid or lime juice is sometimes added to the syrup, as well as rose water or other flavours, such as kewra water.
Similar sweets are imarti (Bengali: অমৃতি omriti), which is red-orange tangerine in color and sweeter in taste, and angoor aana which is grape-green; unlike jalebi, these are made from the batter of urad lentil. They are made in North Indian states including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal. A variant chhena jalebi (Bengali: ছানার জিলিপি omrimiti), made with chhena, is popular in parts of West Bengal, Rajasthan, and Orissa; the form can differ significantly from place to place.
In India, jalebi is served as the "Celebration Sweet of India", popular during national holidays like Independence Day and Republic Day, on which it is supplied in government offices, defence facilities, and other organisations. Similarly, jalebi is one of the most popular sweets in Pakistan. It is used as a remedy for headaches in some parts of Pakistan, where it is placed in boiling milk and left to stand before eating.