Gur
is produced by extracting juice from sugarcanes boiling sugarcane juice
In
326 BC, Alexander's army noticed sugar canes in India during their
conquest. During the first millennium
BC, Gur was produced in India by boiling the cane juice. (Purseglove 1979).
When
I was living in Rupbas (Rajasthan) during 1950s, we had sugarcane fields in
Khan Surjapur owned by Sikh families who harvested sugarcanes and made Gur.
Over the years, the technology has changed. Here, I will give you a window in
the past step by step.
Step
1: The sugar canes were hacked down by sickles as close to the ground as
possible. The sugar density is the highest near the roots. The canes were
carried to Kohlu Station.
Step
2: The Kohlu is a contraption where the sugarcanes are fed through a chute
between two rollers to extract cane juice. The Kohlu was run by bullocks.
The
fibrous residue left after the juice has been extracted is called Bagasse. The
Bagasse is spread out in the open field to dry. Once dried, Bagasse is used as
a fuel to fire up Bhatti. In the olden day unused Bagasse was turned in with
manure. Nowadays, the excess Bagasse is sold
to factories that make paper and cardboard products.
The
juice is filtered through cheese cloth and put in large cans. These cans
with juice are carried to Bhatti.
The
sugarcane juice is also used to make Vinegar in India.
Step
3: Bhatti is made with mud and bricks. The mud and brick structure allows to
contain and maintain fire. Top of the
Bhatti is equipped with a Karahi, a wok. This is a round bottom pan made out of
iron. It was really huge, as I remember it, perhaps a 8 foot diameter on top.
The cans are allowed to sit for a few hours so that the impurities are settled
on the bottom. The juice is carefully poured in to Karahi leaving the sediments
behind in the cans.
There
are two hand-made tools used. Both of these tools are equipped with long
bamboos as handle, about 4 feet long. One of the tools is fitted with a metal
net to function as a skimmer. The other tool is fitted with flat paddle to function
like a turner/spatula.
Step
4: The fire is lit in the Bhatti. It is kept low, and well controlled. Now, the
process used is same as for reducing milk to make Khoya. You constantly stir to
avoid crystallization. As the juice cooks, foam rises. The skimmer is used to
to remove any impurities that float up.
My
guess is that the temperature was kept between 190 and 200º F. It is little
hotter than the temperature used to make Khoya.
Step
5: After the juice has heated up to about 200º F, vegetable clarifiers are
added. If you cut Okra (Bhindi) you feel slippery mucilaginous material. When
added to the near boiling juice, the mucilaginous materials lift up the
impurities which can then be skimmed off.
The common vegetable mucilaginous materials are: Deola (Hibiscus
ficulneus), Bhindi (Abelmoschus esculentus), Semal tree (Bombax ceiba), Phalsa
(Grewia asiatica), Sukhlai (Kydia calycina), penuts seed (Arachis hypogaea),
Guar seed (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba), Tamarind seed (Tamarindus indica), Ambadi
(Hibiscus cannabinus), Chikani (Sida caroinitolia), Soyabean seed (Glycine
max), and Tapioca (Manihot esculenta).
Selected vegetables are soaked in water for twenty four
hours. Rub with bare hands to get the thick mucilaginous fluid. You need to add
one cup of mucilaginous fluid per 100
cups of sugarcane juice.
Step 6: Let the syrup cook till it gets pasty like loose
bread dough. Now, you have Chikna Gur. Chickna means smooth.
In the olden days, part of this this paste was mixed with
dried nuts, fruits, and herbs. Then it was formed in to Laddoo. Choices could
be peanuts, coconuts, ginger, whole black peppercorn.
Chickna Gur is poured in to Buckets. The buckets serve as
a mould.
Step 7: You can add Fitkari (Alum) to Chikna Gur. Spin it
to crystallize and make granular Gur (Rawadar,or Daanedar) , or Shakkar.
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