Instructions

1. Boil the water and sugar together in a pan, until sugar dissolves and it becomes bubbly. Turn heat down to keep it bubbling gently.
2. Dip the spatula in the syrup, lift it out, touch it with the tip of your forefinger to pick a drop of syrup. Be very careful, it can burn your finger! Touch your forefinger with your thumb and pull apart slowly, to see how many threads are stretched between your finger and thumb. Turn heat off as soon as desired threads are reached.
3. Single Thread/Wire - syrup is approximately 220°F-222°F / 104°-105°C and is used for sweets where it needs to be absorbed, like Gulab Jamun 1 from Mava, Condensed Milk Solid , Shahi Toast or Shahi Tukrae and Chum Chum Bengali Sweet.
4. Two Threads/Wires or Soft Ball - syrup is approximately 235°F-240°F / 112°C-115°C, softball stage in candy making terms and used for making sweets that need sugar to set, like Melon Seed (Magaz) Burfi , Gunjia, Sweet Indian Patties and Shakar Parae, Sweet Pastry Squares, Traditional Method.
5. It is mainly needed for Indian sweets using Khoa or Khoya or Mawa 1, Condensed Milk Solid Made from Fresh Milk . You just need to continue simmering the one thread syrup further, to get to two wires.
6. Three Threads/Wires or Hard Ball - syrup is approximately 250°F-265°F / 121°C-130°C, the hard ball stage in used in candy making to make boora, the Indian ground sugar.
7. To test, either stretch between your forefinger and thumb or drop it on a cold plate and roll it between your finger and thumb. Iit will roll into a hard ball.