Nankhatai recipe – Delicious, light & crisp eggless cookies made with flour, ghee, cardamom powder and sugar. Nankhatai are traditional Indian shortbread cookies made with all-purpose flour, semolina, sugar and ghee. There are so many variations of nankhatais and can be made with different combinations of flour.
In the earlier days most Indian homes did not have an oven so these were baked in stovetop aluminium ovens & cookers.
The recipe shared in this post will give you crisp nankhatai that are not only delicious but also have a unique flavor.
I make different kinds of cookies often for my kids. These nankhatai are the easiest and make a great snack to pack in the kids’ school box.
How is nankhatai made?
I have made the nankhatai in a simple way by just mixing up the dry ingredients and then combining it with ghee to make a dough. Then divided the dough to portions, rolled them to balls and then flattened. Baked until golden at 180 c.
Tips to make nankhatai
Flour : These were actually made with all-purpose flour or maida. However they also turn out good with wheat flour, or a combination of wheat flour and besan (gram flour). For healthier option make these with any whole grain flour.
Fats: This time I have made these nankhatais with ghee but I have made several times with melted butter or oil too. But ghee makes the best crisp nankhatais. If using oil, try using extra virgin coconut oil. I did not feel the flavor of oil in the cookies as I doubled the amount of cardamom powder.
Sugar: The recipe needs powdered sugar. I powdered the sugar in a small chutney jar. You can also use store bought icing sugar.
Cardamom powder: Nankahtais are flavoured with elaichi or cardamoms. To make cardamom powder, simply blend the cardamoms with sugar in the blender. You can also replace cardamom powder with vanilla or cinnamon if you like the flavours.
The first picture of nankhatai in this post was shared many years ago. These were made with more quantity of besan and little atta. The color of the cookies will depend on the combination of flour.
Related recipes:
Eggless chocolate cake
Biscuit cake
Ragi cake
Eggless Black Forest Cake
Eggless fruit cake
Preparation
1. Add wheat flour or maida to a mixing bowl.
2. Add besan or gram flour. You can substitute besan with maida or any nut meal or even with atta. But besan lends a good aroma to the nankhatai.
3. Next add sooji. It gives a light crunch. You can skip this completely and reduce a tbsp ghee in the recipe. You can also replace sooji with any nut meal. I used chiroti rava here but regular sooji works too.
4. Add cardamom powder and baking powder or baking soda. You can skip the baking powder or baking soda if using maida. But with atta they turn out too dense if you skip the leavening agent.
If you do not have cardamom powder, you can add some cardamom pods to the sugar and the powder them.
5. Add powdered sugar. Measure half cup powder and not the sugar.
6. Mix all of them well together. Ensure all the ingredients have combined well especially the baking powder.
7. Measure 1/3 cup ghee and pour it in 3 parts. Mix well to make a dough adding more ghee as needed.
8. The nankhatai dough should not be dry or crumbly but must bind together well. Do not knead it just bring the flour together with the help of ghee.
How to make nankhatai
9. Divide the mixture to 12 portions and roll to smooth balls. If the mixture is dry and crumbly it means you need more ghee. Just add a tsp of it and mix.
10. Flatten the balls and place them on the tray. You can make some design with the help of a fork or a skewer. I also garnished the nankhatai with some chopped pistachios. They usually get browned so you can also skip them.
11. Ensure your own is preheated for at least 15 mins at 180 C or 350 F. Bake them at 180 C or 350 F for 10 mins. When done the nankhatai will be golden and almost dry on the top.
12. Immediately remove to a wire rack and cool them completely. They will continue to brown at the bottom if you leave them in the hot tray.
Store nankhatai in a air tight steel or glass jar. They keep good for 2 to 3 weeks at room temperature.
These are besan nankhatai made with 3/4 cup besan and 1/4 cup atta.
More cookie recipes
Eggless ragi biscuits
Eggless choco chip cookies
Chocolate chip cookies
Coconut ragi cookies
Substitutes
Besan : I always prefer besan or gram flour in nankhatai as it really elevates the flavor of the cookies. The aroma of the baked besan is unique and cannot be got by substituting it with any other ingredient.
However if you do not want to use it just replace with any nut powder, all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour. The same amount of almond meal works well in this recipe.
Semolina or rava (suji) : The recipe uses 1 tbsp of fine semolina just to add a crunch to the nankhatai. I personally prefer the chiroti rava for this recipe.
Substitute it with the same amount of nut meal or flour. You can also just skip it and reduce 1 tbsp of ghee in the recipe.
Best combination of flour
¾ cup atta or maida, ¼ cup besan & 1 tbsp of semolina is what I have used in this recipe. You can also alter this proportions but the texture is not the same.
How to make nankhatai in cooker
If you do not own a oven, you can also make these in a heavy bottom pan or pressure cooker.
Fill 1 inch of the cooker base with crystal salt and then place a trivet or a ring or some stand. Preheat it well until hot for 10 to 15 mins.
Place the nankhatai on a plate and keep it on the stand/trivet. Ensure the cookies are in the center of the cooker (heightwise). Remove the gasket and close the lid. Bake on a low flame. Keep checking after 10 mins.
Related Recipes
Nankhatai recipe | How to make nankhatai
For best results follow the step-by-step photos above the recipe card
Ingredients (1 cup = 240ml )
- ¾ Cup wheat flour or all-purpose flour – 75 grams
- ¼ Cup besan or gram flour – 25 grams
- 1 tablespoon semolina suji (optional)
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder or 1 pinch baking soda
- 3 green cardamoms powdered or ½ tsp powder
- ½ Cup powdered sugar (65 grams)
- ⅓ Cup ghee or soft butter (75 grams) (use only as needed)
Instructions
Preparation for nankhatai
- Preheat the oven at 180 C at least for 15 mins.
- Prepare a tray with parchment paper.
- Powder sugar along with cardamom seeds.
- Sieve the flours, semolina, sugar and baking soda together. Set this aside.
- You can also just mix up all of them together and skip sieving. Ensure the baking powder is mixed well.
How to make nankhatai
- Pour ghee in parts and bring the flour together to make stiff dough.
- Use ghee only as needed mixing. You may need a tsp more or less depending on the temperature.
- Do not knead the dough.
- Make 12 balls out of the dough.
- Then slightly flatten and pierce with a fork lightly to make a design.
- Bake exactly for 10 mins. Or until light golden and crisp.
- The timing may vary depending on many factors.
- Remove to a wire rack immediately.
- Cool the nankhatai completely and store in an airtight jar. They keep good for 3 weeks.
- Enjoy nankhatai as a snack with milk or tea.
Alternative quantities provided in the recipe card are for 1x only, original recipe.
For best results follow my detailed step-by-step photo instructions and tips above the recipe card.
NUTRITION INFO (estimation only)
© Swasthi’s Recipes
Nankhatai recipe originally published in Dec 2012. Republished in June 2019 with video.
Jyoti Joshi says
Hi
I tried your recipe with maida,Suji and gram flor but my nankthai became too soft. Could you please tell me what I could have done wrong.
swasthi says
Hi Jyoti,
They will be little soft when they come out of the oven. But will firm up after cooling. If not then you may have gone wrong with the quantity of ghee. Using more ghee will make them softer.
Rina says
Today, I made it 4rh time. Iāve doubled the portion today. Each time they came out superb. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe.
Can I add cinnamon power? If so how much?
Thank you!
swasthi says
Hi Rina
Glad to know they turned out good. I haven’t tried with cinnamon. Half teaspoon should be okay. Thank you
Samidha says
Easiest nankatai on the block… turned out very yummy too.
swasthi says
Glad to know Samidha
Devika Kulkarni says
Hi I really enjoy all your recipes and have made quite a few. I really appreciate the detail and information you give which has taught me a lot.
My question is, what would happen if I roast the besan before? Would it get overcooked in the oven or would it be ok? I want to get that nutty roasted besan flavor in the cookie but donāt want it to burn.
swasthi says
Hi Devika
Thank you so much! I haven’t tried it but it should work. Fresh milled chana dal flour (besan) gives that extremely nutty aroma. Hope this helps
Sandhya says
I made these in the cooker, but kept too long (20-22 mins) as they looked soft at 10 min/15 min marks, so burnt the bottoms a bit, but still tasted great.
All 12 of them were gone by night!
swasthi says
Thanks Sandhya
Dhanashree says
Superb recipe, the best of all. I had to bake them for 20 mins. I used maida instead of wheat atta. Thanks for the posting.
swasthi says
Welcome Dhanashree
Thanks for leaving a comment.
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Sapna says
Hi Swati, it’s all good.
When I let it cool down it was perfect.
Cheers
swasthi says
Hi Sapna
Okay good
Sapna says
Hi Swati, your recipe tasted absolutely amazing.
The only problem I had was it was not hard at all after I baked them, it was crumble.
What went wrong?
Thanks
Sapna
Swastika Jain says
Trying this recipe for my mother in law .want to make it softer since she cannot eat hard things .
Any suggestions .
swasthi says
Yes just skip the leavening agent (baking powder or baking soda). They will turn out soft
vasu says
Hi Swasthi,
I am new to baking and would like to know couple of things.
1. Which rack should i keep the tray on or should it be moved while baking?
2. Should I use with top and bottom heating rods on?
Regards.
swasthi says
Hi Vasu
Bake in the middle rack. If you have a large oven and want to bake 2 batches at one time, then you can use 2 trays and swap them half way for even baking. You can find more details in your manual.
Use the option with both top and bottom heating.
Hope this helps
Killol shah says
Tried your recipe .. they came out so good.
Raji says
I tried this recipe twice and it becomes very hard but taste is good after baking using micro oven. I have programmed oven and select the option for cookies which goes for 6 mins. Any suggestion to reduce the hardness
swasthi says
I haven’t tried this recipe in a oven like yours so not sure how to adjust the timing & temperature. May be you can reduce the baking time and check
Neha says
Excellent recipe… I have been trying many biscuits or cookies recipes. This one is the best. Thanks a ton for sharing.
swasthi says
Welcome Neha
Glad to know! Thank you!
Neha says
Is there any healthier version of this recipe…using olive oil instead of ghee/butter?
swasthi says
Neha,
I haven’t tried but a reader commented below she made them with oil and turned out good.
Nilima says
Can I add chocolate chips in this same recipe
swasthi says
Yes you can
Samira says
Hi. I used 2/3 cup for twice the amount of cookies. But the dough doesn’t bind. I had to add much more ghee than you suggested. How much ghee is actually needed for the recipe for 24 nankhatais?
Thanks
Cp says
Why mine turn out to be dough inside and baked fine on top and bottom.. I kept 20 minutes. It is slightly brown on top and bottom but taste dough inside. 350 degrees for 20+ minutes moving to bottom rack and top rack.. baked 10 minutes in middle rack first? What do u think went wrong?
swasthi says
Don’t know where you went wrong. I think they had to bake a little longer
Sangeeta says
Your nanakhati recipe was superb everyone my house relished it thanks
swasthi says
Welcome Sangeeta
Glad to know!
Rina says
I made it today and it turned out delicious. There was no mention of suji in the printed version of recipe so I did not add but even then it was so yum, melted in mouth. Thank you so much
swasthi says
Welcome Rina,
Glad to know! Thanks for the mention. I updated it.
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Siddhi says
Can I reduce the amount of sugar or would it alter the texture??
swasthi says
Not sure! Reducing little should be okay
Shruthi says
Biscuits became power i don’t know the reason, first time i am using oven, please let me know what went wrong
swasthi says
Shruthi
I think they got over baked. Reduce the bake time and recheck the temperature.
Gayattri says
Omg, I could have never believed that Nankhatai could taste sooo good with whole wheat flour as well. Rather, I loved it more than the maida one. Thank u so much for this simple and yummy recipe.
swasthi says
Hi Gayatri,
You are welcome! So glad to know you loved them.
Thank you
Dhaarna says
Hi Swasthi,
I’ve followed Many of your recipes and even my husband these days (thanx to Lockdown), yours are simply the best we both found.
I haven’t tried this one though as we don’t have an oven or microwave yet.
I’ve 2 requests if possible – I’m a vegan,so it’d be great to see alternatives.. Thankfully I’ve perfect vegan ghee though.
Also, wherever possible, the without oven version.
Thanks,
Best Regards
swasthi says
Hi Dhaarna,
Thank you so much! So glad to know!
Yes I will update wherever possible. You can bake them in a cooker following the method I showed in this cooker cake recipe .
Thanks again!
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Gayattri says
Hi, Iām yet to make this recipe but before that I had a quick question about the sugar. I have granulated sugar at home, would that work instead of powdered sugar. If yes, then should I use the same quantity of granulated sugar. Thanks so much
swasthi says
Powder the sugar in a blender and measure half cup for the recipe.