I saw a really hilarious comedy set the other day by Sapan Verma about Lonavla. My favourite bit was when he mentions that the only thing one can do to pass the time is try to differentiate between Maganlal Chikki and ‘The Real Maganlal Chikki’. Unless you go with family or plan to drink the night away with friends at their cottage, there is basically nothing to do there except meet other Mumbaikars who have also come to Lonavla.
Though he got one thing wrong. When Parsis go to Lonavla they don’t spend time deciphering the chikki’s. Instead they head straight to Coopers’. Situated about 20m away from Maganlal, Coopers’ is a tiny little shop in Lonavla market that has been around for decades. While they sell all sorts of sweets and sherbet, what they are known for is their iconic Chocolate Walnut Fudge. Like most other bawa shops they only make a set quantity each day and if they get sold out, it’s just too bad for you!
My grandpa used to be a cycling addict when he was younger and they used to bike it up to Lonavla on weekends just for fun (I really can’t decipher how this could be fun!). Though, if you’re going to be like me and finish half the box of fudge yourself then I can understand why cycling all the way there might be a worthy penance for the body.
Whenever I ask #BawaGroom where he’d like to go for a trip sadly his answer is always Lonavla or Goa. We’ve been to the former atleast 7 times since we got married and that’s why last year I put a ban on the place! The only sad bit about that however is that my supply of fudge has completely stopped.
Given I am addicted to the stuff, I decided to try making it at home and after a couple of failures I’ve managed to get a recipe that is almost-like the real thing. Do give it a try and let me know what you think!
Start by chopping up the chocolate and the walnuts finely. If you want the really good stuff I suggest you use pure chocolate like Callebaut but I’ve made it with compound and that works just as well! Get all your ingredients out and measured at this point before you go further.
Now, setup a double boiler and melt the chocolate until it is smooth and runny. Add in the condensed milk and mix it thoroughly. Also, add in the butter and vanilla at this point.
Finally, take the chocolate off the heat and add the walnuts. Mix well.
Empty into a tray lined with baking paper and now here is the most important part – you must let this cool overnight at room temperature (20 degrees approx). Ofcourse, since the room temperature is never 20 degrees in Mumbai I suggest you cool the fudge in your bedroom where the AC is on all night resisting the urge to stuff the whole thing in your mouth.
The next day, your fudge is ready! You can store it in the fridge now or outside but I find it starts to melt and go excessively gooey with the latter.
To make about 500gm fudge you will need:
200gm dark chocolate (or compound) roughly chopped
200ml condensed milk
1 tbsp butter
100gm walnuts
1 tsp vanilla extract
*Do note that your fudge taste will differ based on the quality of chocolate and vanilla extract you use so do try to use the good stuff.
Hey made this recipe works great . But do you know how the fudge becomes a lil grainy ? . Similar to lonavla or mahableshwar mayb khoya will make it grainy .
Hi Soham,
It is the finely chopped walnuts in the fudge mixture which makes it grainy. Also, the addition of condensed milk to the chocolate affects the texture – atleast for my version of the recipe 🙂
Hi
Which brand of compound and vanilla is good for similar taste as cooper’s. Pls share.
Thanks
Naina
Hi Naina,
The most commonly used is Morde though if you’d like a more superior quality fudge you can go for the Morde Chocolate rather than just the compound. Same goes for Vanilla – if you use extract from Vanilla Beans instead of an essence that’s always better but depends what you have available.
Ooooh, nostalgia again! What memories of Lonavla…never was a chikki fan, but Cooper’s fudge! Dying to try this. Thank you, you’re a rockstar.
Hi, Perzen.
My name is Karan Mehta am a chef and used to work with Oberoi’s Nariman point… For bakery and pastry… I must say this one better than the Coopers receipe… I just made a small twist to the receipe I used 500gm of chocolate and 400gms of milk maid..
And it is just awesome… Thanks for sharing this wonderful receipe…
Hi… It’s a yummy ? recipe. Just a doubt. Is it roasted walnuts?
Hi, I prefer not roasting them but its up to you.
Hi…
Wanted to know if I can melt the chocolate in microwave?
Secondly, can u suggest some brand for vanilla essence…
Thanks n keep up the great cooking!!!
Love your posts!!
Yes you can melt chocolate in the microwave. Please do it in 30 second intervals making sure to open the microwave and stir the chocolate each time.
Karan Mehta has said to make a slight difference in the choc fudge recipee by adding 500 gms choc and 400 gms condensed milk. If we do this then dont we increase the quantity of butter and walnuts too?What do u suggest?
Hi perzen..Can I keep the fudge in freezer for say 3 hours or so for it to set? As right now in this cold weather, we don’t on the AC…Will it’s texture be affected?
Hi Jasmin it would be better to put the fudge in the fridge to set and you can also store it there. I would remove it from the fridge 3 – 4 hours before serving and/or give it a quick microwave.
Hello, is it okay to put the batter directly in the fridge once poured in the pan?
it’s best to cool it to room temperature first usually though if its a one-off i don’t anticipate you having any issues.
The recipe is awesome..I kept the fudge in the fridge to set and it became too hard.Also the butter got seperated and went hard..What could be the reason?
I also used some khoya while making it.
Hetal, I have never made it with khoya so I don’t know if that impacts the recipe in any way. My recipe does mention that the fudge must be set at room temperature and should not be put in the fridge. it went hard because you put it in the fridge – this is easily solved by microwaving it slightly.
Hi – which Callebaut do you use? As in percentage of cocoa butter. Thanks!
You can use whatever % you are okay with. Anything above 60% is ideally ok. I prefer mine much darker so I use about 80.
Cooper fudge are not made from condense milk
If you read the entire blog post you will notice that this recipe is a “tribute” to Coopers and is not their actual recipe. I am not a part of the Cooper family and have no access to their recipes so cannot tell you whether they use condensed milk or not. I’ve simply recreated something that tastes almost like their fudge and that’s what is clearly mentioned in the post. Thanks for stopping by.
GM perzen.
very happy to read yr column for coopers at Lonavala.
since you have your own of course not cooper receipt I want to request you if you can pl. give me recepi for kesar kaju as I love anything made out of saffron. never miss cooper for their kesar kaju fudge. make Lonavala trip for same.
any gd alternative source in mumbai?
i know a source choco walnut fudge in mumbai
nothing close to cooper. he is ready to try kesar kaju. can you help pl.
i am architect builder in Dadar area. I have a project in Dadar parsi colony. property belonged to mr and mrs king of king and co. book store in fort. now closed.
regards and hoping to hear fr you
I tried the recipe n it turned out v gud v close to coopers except it was v sweet. I had used compound chocolate but wanted to know that is it ok if I use condense milk 100ml instead of 200ml? Will the texture still remain the same?
Hi Perzen. This fudge is absolutely amazing. Super delicious. Thank you so much for trying out the recipe over and over again until you got it right. I am a huge fan of yours and also love to follow your other recipes. You really take great care in details. Thank you so much.