Tasty Kopra Pak – Naralchi Wadi – Indian Coconut Dessert

Naralchi Wadi or Kopra Pak is a popular coconut-based dessert in Maharashtra, India. It’s easy to make naralchi wadi at home using this recipe.

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One of my favorite easy to make at home sweets is the traditional Maharashtrian Naralchi Wadi or Kopra Pak. It hardly takes an hour to put together, and you could also prepare the kopra pak after your visitors have landed. Maybe show off some of your Indian cooking skills while entertaining them in the kitchen, eh?

What are the ingredients for Kopra Pak or Naralchi Wadi?

We don’t need too many things to make kopra pak. This is the short ingredient list for our version of the easy to make kopra pak or naralchi wadi.

Grated coconut, rich cream (we use this instead of mawa), sugar, milk or water, cardamom pods (crushed), grated pistachios, strands of saffron or kesar (we add a lot, but you decide how much you want to put in) and half teaspoon of turmeric powder.

If you want to make any of our other East Indian or Indian coconut desserts, here they are:

• Rose and Coconut Barfi
• Bol de Coc
• Coconut Cake
• Thali Sweet
• East Indian cordial
• Bolings
• Dark chocolate and coconut bites

How to make Kopra Pak without Mawa?

It’s really easy to make kopra pak. First start off by warming the milk or water, and adding saffron or kesar and leaving it to rest.

Now mix the grated coconut, sugar, cream, and turmeric to a kadai (deep dish pan) and stir on a medium flame for 15 minutes. Why do we use turmeric? Because we want to use a natural color instead of artificial coloring. If you don’t want to use turmeric, a few drops of yellow food coloring will work.

Next, add in the saffron (kesar) milk and crushed cardamom pods, and cook for another 10 minutes till it separates from the pan, this will happen as the mixture gets drier.

Once the kopra pak separates from the pan turn the stove off. Line a baking tray with tissue paper and pour the mixture into the tray, and flatten it out.

Last step, grate the pistachios and sprinkle them on top of the kopra pak. Refrigerate for 30 mins before chopping into pieces.

And that’s it! Your yummy Maharashtrian kopra pak is ready to serve!

Cooking Tips & Tricks

• Allow the kesar aka saffron to rest in warm milk for a while, to bring out its flavour and colour.
• Crush the cardamom pods to get the flavor out of them, save the skin, and put it in your teapot for flavour.
• If you do not have time to grate fresh coconut, you can use 2/3rd the amount of desiccated coconut.
• If you want some variety from the traditional recipe, we’ve created our own version using rose petals. Try this Rose and Coconut Barfi.

What Readers want to know about Naralchi Wadi

How Long Can You Store Naralchi Wadi?

You can store it for about 2 weeks if kept in an air-tight container in the refrigerator.

Can I Use Desiccated Coconut?

Yes, you can use desiccated coconut if you wish, but you will need to either increase the amount of milk or water as the desiccated coconut will absorb this. Or use only 2/3rd the weight of the dessicated coconut for the same recipe.

Can I Use Condensed Milk Instead Of Cream?

Yes, you can use condensed milk instead of cream, but I would then recommend not adding the sugar or lessening the quantity, as the condensed milk will be sweet enough.

Is It Okay To Use Food Colour?

If you do not have turmeric powder around, you can replace this with yellow food colour.

Is It Called Kopra Pak Or Naralchi Wadi?

It is known as both Kopra Pak and Naralci Wadi and Narayal Pak, it is a traditional Maharashtrian dessert and in Gujarati it is called Topra Pak.

Other Recipes You Might Like to Try

• Date and Orange cake
• Fruit recipes using cottage cheese
• Paella Mallorca
• Tomato and Carrot Soup Recipe
• Burnt Onion Rice