Sieve the besan | Kadalai maavu without any lumps. Add the cooking soda to this. Add the yellow food colour (if using).
Mix the besan with water to make a batter of dosa batter consistency.
While adding water to the besan, first add a small amount of water and make it into a thick paste.
Then add the rest of the water. the amount of water for 1 and 1/4 cup of flour is approximately 3/4 cup of water. This purely depends upon the texture of the besan.
Fry the cashew nuts and cloves in a tsp of ghee and keep it aside.
For making the sugar syrup, mix the sugar with the given amount of water in a heavy bottomed vessel.
Heat till the sugar gets dissolved stirring in between.
Once sugar gets dissolved stop stirring and boil till this reach one string consistency.
You can check the one thread consistency of the syrup between the thumb and the index finger.
Switch off the flame at this stage and heat the oil in a heavy bottomed pan to fry boondis.
To check whether the consistency is right for the batter, take a spoon and with the back of the spoon mix the batter well and just hold it on the top of the hot oil.
If this forms a nice round ball then the consistency if perfect, else it gives a tail you need to add little extra water. Add 1 tblsp and check again.
If this forms a very thin roundels then the water is more, just add one tblsp of besan to this and check again.
Now the batter is ready for boondis.
You need 2 perforated ladle for making this. The ladle with small holes to make boondi and another one to take out the boondis from oil.
Pour a ladle of batter to the perforated ladle ,keeping the ladle on the top of the oil and let the boondis falls into the oil.
When it is half fried take it out from the oil and trasfer it to the sugar syrup.
Repeat the process for the the remaining batter.
While repeating , wipe out the excess batter from the top and back of the ladle used for making boondi. This will help in getting round shape.
I remember my grand mom washes the ladle for each batch and wipe with a dry cloth.
Add the fried cahew nuts, cloves and elachi powder to the boondi sugar mixture.
Mix this well with the back side of the ladle.
When it is luke warm make balls of desired shapes and store this in a airtight container.