Anjeer Buying Guide: How to Pick Good Dried Figs

Quick answer: Good anjeer is soft and slightly springy when you press it, tan to light golden-brown in colour, and smells sweetly fruity. The fine white powder you often see on the surface is natural fruit sugar that has risen as the fig dried, not mould.

Anjeer is one of the costliest things in an Indian dry-fruit box, and the quality swings a lot from shop to shop. Two packets that look almost identical can be very different once you bite in: one chewy and honey-sweet, the other dry as cardboard. Here is exactly what to check before you pay, and how to keep anjeer soft once it reaches your kitchen.

Also known as: anjeer is simply dried figs in English (the dried fruit of the fig tree, Ficus carica). You will also hear it called anjir in Marathi and Gujarati, anjura in Kannada, athipazham in Tamil and dumur in Bengali.

What does good anjeer look like?

Almost everything you need to judge anjeer can be done with your eyes, your fingers and your nose.

• Press one. A good fig gives a little and springs back. Rock-hard figs are old or over-dried, and no amount of soaking fully brings them back.
• Look at the colour. Naturally dried figs range from light tan to golden-brown, with slight variation from fig to fig. A uniform, almost bleached cream colour across every single piece usually points to heavy sulphur treatment.
• Check the shape. Whole, neatly flattened figs with the little stalk intact are a sign of hand-sorting. Torn, squashed or broken pieces mean rough handling and often the bottom of the lot.
• Smell it. Fresh anjeer smells sweet and fruity, a little like jaggery. A sharp, sour or fermented smell means it has been stored badly.
• Skip sticky or damp figs. Surface stickiness means either added syrup or too much moisture, and moisture is exactly what invites mould.

Is the white coating on anjeer mould?

This is the most common worry with dried figs, and usually the answer is no. As a fig dries, its natural sugars travel to the skin and crystallise there as a fine, dry, whitish dust. It brushes off, it tastes sweet, and it is a normal sign of a fig carrying plenty of its own sugar.

Real mould looks and behaves differently. It is fuzzy or cottony rather than powdery, often greenish, grey or blue, usually sits in one patch instead of spreading evenly, and it smells musty. So: powdery and even, across many figs, is natural sugar. Fuzzy and patchy, on one or two figs, is spoilage, and those should go in the bin.

Naturally dried vs over-treated anjeer

Dried fruit is often treated so it keeps a bright, uniform look on the shelf. Fruit that has simply been dried and sorted will darken a little over time, and that gentle browning is normal rather than a defect.

Which size of anjeer should you buy?

Bigger figs cost more per kilo, but they are not automatically the better buy. Match the size to how you actually eat them.

• Large, plump figs are worth the money when you eat them as they are, soak a couple overnight, or pack them as a gift. Size is what people notice on a thali.
• Smaller figs are better value when they are going to be chopped anyway, into halwa, kheer, ladoo, barfi or a milkshake.

The same buying logic works across the dry-fruit shelf. If you are stocking up, our sulphur-free raisins, kala chuwara and peela chuwara are judged the same way: soft, clean, hand-sorted, and free from artificial colours and preservatives.

How to store anjeer so it stays soft

• Airtight, always. Anjeer pulls moisture out of humid Indian air, and that moisture is what starts trouble. A tight glass or steel jar beats the original pouch once it is opened.
• Cool and dark. Keep the jar away from the stove and out of direct sunlight, both of which dry figs out and dull the flavour.
• Use the fridge in summer and monsoon. In peak heat or damp weather, refrigerate the jar. Figs stay softer and last noticeably longer.
• Do not top up an old jar. Finish the older stock first instead of mixing fresh figs into it.
• Rescue hard figs. Soak them in warm water or warm milk for 15 to 20 minutes, or steam them briefly, and they soften enough to chop or blend.

FAQ

How many anjeer should I eat in a day?

Two or three figs a day is the usual everyday portion, either soaked overnight or eaten as part of a mixed dry-fruit handful. Anjeer is naturally high in sugar and fibre, so keep the portion modest and build up slowly.

Should anjeer be soaked before eating?

Soaking is optional. Many people soak a couple of figs overnight in water or milk because it makes them softer and easier to chew. Eating them dry is perfectly fine too, and better when you are adding them to a mithai, ladoo or halwa.

How long does anjeer last?

In an airtight jar in a cool cupboard, good anjeer stays chewy for a couple of months, and longer in the fridge. Trust your senses over the label: a sour smell or fuzzy patches means it is time to throw it out.

If you would rather not gamble on a loose-weight packet, our ODM Anjeer is hand-sorted for softness, with no added syrup and no preservatives, worth a try the next time your dry-fruit jar runs empty.