Ooty Varkey

Ooty Varkey is a layered, crisp baked snack from Udhagamandalam (Ooty) in the Nilgiris, a much-loved accompaniment to the hill town's famous tea. Made from a wheat-flour dough enriched with butter or ghee and sometimes touched with cardamom or sugar, the dough is folded, hand-shaped and baked so that it turns flaky, golden and lightly crisp with delicate layers. The snack is closely tied to Ooty's colonial-era bakery tradition, when hill-station bakeries developed their own biscuits and breads for residents and visitors. Sold fresh at local bakeries, varkey is bought by tourists as a characteristic taste of the Nilgiris and enjoyed dipped in tea or coffee. The craft supports the town's small bakeries and has become one of Ooty's signature edible souvenirs.