Halwa Bahraini

About This Recipe

Bahraini Halwa is a dense, glossy confection made from cornstarch, sugar, and ghee, coloured deep amber from saffron and scented with cardamom and rose water. It is spooned onto a plate and eaten with unsalted bread or coffee biscuits — a ritual centrepiece of Bahraini hospitality.

Ingredients

Serves 8

• 1 cupcornstarch
• 2 cupssugar
• 4 cupswater
• 1/4 tspsaffron, dissolved in 2 tbsp warm water
• 1 tspground cardamom
• 4 tbspghee

Instructions

1. 1

   Make slurry

   Dissolve cornstarch in 2 cups cold water to form a smooth slurry. In a separate pan, dissolve sugar in the remaining 2 cups water and bring to a boil.

2. 2

   Combine

   Slowly pour the cornstarch slurry into the boiling syrup while stirring constantly. Add saffron water and cardamom.

3. 3

   Cook low and slow

   Reduce heat to low and stir continuously for 40–50 minutes, adding ghee one tablespoon at a time, until the mixture is thick, glossy, and pulls away from the sides of the pot.

4. 4

   Set and serve

   Pour into a greased shallow dish. Leave to cool and set for 1 hour. Serve by the spoonful with ghawa (cardamom coffee).

Variations

• •

  Add crushed pistachios or almonds for crunch.

• •

  Use orange blossom water instead of rose water.

• •

  Vegetarian: swap the protein for roasted king oyster mushrooms, smoked tofu or cooked chickpeas — adjust seasoning slightly upward to compensate.

• •

  Spicier: add a finely chopped fresh chile or a teaspoon of crushed Aleppo/Urfa pepper to the aromatics for warm, layered heat instead of a single sharp hit.

Storage

Covered at room temperature up to 5 days, or refrigerated for 2 weeks.

Frequently Asked Questions