Disclaimer: This is a list that owes its roots to my personal taste receptors. Everyone is welcome to debate.
We Indians love our sweets, looking for perennial reasons to have them. Festivals, birthdays, employment, wedding, anything and everything calls for a "Muh Meeta Karwaao" ceremony. Hence, it comes as no surprise that almost every state and union territory in our country has special concoctions of its own.
I sat down and ate all of them at their respective dens, and came out with a personal list of what tasted the best and what not the best. Enjoy!
31. Himachal Pradesh - Babru
Babru is made out of dough and sugar and then fried. It is more like a functional need in the terrible cold of the state in winters. It’s made mostly only on birthdays and other special occasions.
30. Telangana - Poornam Boorelu
These balls are made out of dal jaggery and then dipped in urad dal batter, and finally deep fried. Sometimes, I found the outer layer soft, sometimes hard. Didn’t prefer either.
29. Sikkim - Sael Roti
Borrowed from Nepal, this is a ring shaped doughnut. The varied flavours of cardamom, banana, cloves, etc, did not go down too well with me.
28. Maharashtra - Modak
Yes, Lord Ganesha himself may be fond of these coconut ladoos but that’s possibly the only reason why these are so famous. A dessert is not meant to be so insipid.
27. Bihar - Thekua
Very very fatty (even though, yes, that’s what desserts are supposed to be, but this is too much), Thekua is nothing more than essentially dry fruits fried and served.
26. Chandigarh - Moong Dal Halwa
Found everywhere, but preferred only when it’s served for free or at a wedding ceremony. In a land where there is Rabri, Lassi and a host of other sweets available freely, Moong Dal Halwa is a sad substitute.
25. Kerala - Vettu Cake
It's primarily a teatime sweet only, but then I personally couldn't find any other distinct dessert exclusively out of Kerala. It's pretty nice though.
24. Nagaland - Koat Pitha
Although many people argued that this sweet comes from Tripura and not from Nagaland at all, but then I found something else in the former state which I liked better than this. Will talk about it later in the list. Koat Pitha is made with a banana and hence it's too gooey for my taste.
23. Andhra Pradesh - Qubani Ka Meetha
One finds these at a lot at Hyderabadi weddings. The first time I saw it from afar, I thought I saw Gulab Jamun, hence I got really excited. But what I ultimately got was sweetened dry apricots. It's interesting, to say the most.
22. Odisha - Chhena Poda
It's a very innovative dessert indeed. And what's more interesting is the fact that Odisha's cuisine otherwise essentially deals with the food that involves satisfying the functional needs. Chhena Poda is literally roasted cheese and hence considered a luxury.
21. Mizoram - Chhangban Leh Kurtai
It's again considered to be a teatime snack only in Mizoram, but it's quite innovative considering so. Leh Kurtai is a dumpling or pudding made of kâwnglâwng or fazu rice flour boiled in a leaf.
20. Chhattisgarh - Dehrori
It looks like something of a melange between Jalebi and Malpua, but Dehrori doesn't live up to the glory of either. Maybe I'm not too fond of the liberal amounts of cardamom usually put in it.
19. Goa -Bebinca
It's quite a task to prepare Bebinca in the first place. With the traditional one having seven layers, it's usually made up of clarified butter, sugar, egg yolk and coconut milk. Tedious.
18. Arunachal Pradesh - Khapse
Very famous in parts of Arunachal, Khapse is nothing but a deep-fried pastry. I personally found it to be underwhelmingly less sweet than a dessert should be.
17. Madhya Pradesh - Bhutta Kheer
Yes, we get Kheer all over and especially up in the north where milk products are staple additions in sweets, but Kheer made out of corn is something we'll probably just find in MP.
16. Tripura - Awan Bangwi
Quite a cumbersome task to make this too. Awan Bangwi usually involves soaking the rice overnight in water before it can be further processed in the morning. Ginger and other dry fruits are also an integral part of it.
15. Rajasthan - Malai Ghewar
There's probably no dessert in India that you can't get in Rajasthan, somewhere or the other. But it's really Malai Ghewar that is quintessentially Rajasthani in every respect. Made out of flour, mawa and malai, this is sinful.
14. Manipur - Madhurjan Thongba
Dumpling only, but this time made out of besan and immersed in milk to serve. I found this extremely tasty but then it's probably not very thoughtful as a dessert.
13. Uttarakhand - Singodhi
Is it a Pan? Is it a Kulfi? No, it's Singodhi! Or however you spell it, because I don't have a clue. I won't be surprised if you are from Uttarakhand and still haven't heard of this because it is primarily made in the Kumaon region only.
12. Tamil Nadu - Pal Poli
A fried poori dunk in sweetened milk. Yes, that's it. But, by golly, do they make it delicious! Saffron, almonds, pistachios, and everything nice.
11. Assam - Narikolor Laddu
How could any laddus not make it to this list? And nothing more stereotypical to Assam than these coconut laddus. Very easy to make, but very tough to say no to.
10. Haryana - Choorma
Coming down to the serious business now – the top 10. First up is this gem of an easy innovation called Choorma fr0m Haryana. Although hugely popular in Rajasthan as an accompaniment to Dal-Baati, but it's Haryana's Desi Ghee that does magic to this mashed wheat flour.
9. Karnataka - Mysore Pak
Probably our most exported sweet abroad, Mysore Pak is massively popular. Lots of ghee, sugar, cardamom, gram flour, etc., and these heavenly bricks are ready.
8. Meghalaya - Pukhlein
You probably haven't even heard of these, but then even I hadn't before I lost myself in these divine jaggery-based desserts in the land otherwise famous only for its rains.
7. Jharkhand - Malpua
Not very different from Pukhlein in preparation, but far more widely accepted and consumed, Malpua is an Indian version of western breakfast pancakes, but far more sinful in nature and taste.
6. Gujarat - Basundi
You could call it Gujarati Kheer, but only Gujaratis can make Kheer as good as this honestly. Basundi is sweet thickened milk with nutmeg, cardamom and dry fruits fit to feed a whole nation.
5. Uttar Pradesh - Balushahi
Probably first made in Bihar (Harnaut, to be precise), but culturally made popular by Uttar Pradesh, Balushahi is a timeless dessert made out of maida flour, fried in ghee and then dipped in sugar syrup.
4. Jammu & Kashmir - Shufta
When it comes to cuisine, Kashmiris are always right up there. Their desserts are never far behind either. Shufta is possibly the least fatty sweet in this entire list, but one of the most delicious. It is essentially dry fruits in sugar syrup.
3. Delhi - Kulfi
Well well, who does NOT love a good Kulfi? It is a testimony itself to such a high ranking here. This is the Indian ice-cream that doesn't melt as fast due to its density made by milk and cream.
2. West Bengal - Mishti Doi
We could probably enlist every Bengali dessert there is in this list, but if I had to choose one I'd choose Mishti Doi and NOT the "Roshogulla" because it's still debated whether the latter was actually from Bengal or from Odisha. Hence, the winner is this creamy heaven in a pot.
1. Punjab - Amritsari Jalebi
If I'm writing an article about anything related to food, Punjab has to be at the very pinnacle at all times. And Amritsari Jalebi is God's own nectar in labyrinthine alleys. One doesn't just eat Jalebi, one surrenders his soul to it with the very first bite.
Did I miss out on your favourite? Help me find it in the comments section below then!