Kova is milk based sweet. It is a very popular sweet that is normally prepared during festivals like Sri Krishna Janmashtami, as an offering to the Lord.
This kova is shaped by hand or by using moulds to achieve unique shapes. Some of the moulds come as a single piece, some in two pieces. There are small handles on top of the moulds which allow holding, in case of a single mould and fixing and removing of the kova in a two piece mould. These are made out of white metal which resembles silver but doesn’t get tarnished. They are easy to handle and easy to clean. Various forms are available – a bunch of bananas, maize, a vintage car, Krishna as Vatapatrasai, etc.
Kova mould in the form of Krishna (as Vatapatrasai)
Process:
Once Kova is prepared, small balls are rolled by hand. The mould that is going to be used is greased with a little ghee to facilitate easy removal of the shaped kova. The kova balls are pressed into the mould like clay then removed and left to cool. On cooling they harden sufficiently to retain the shape of the mould and are visually attractive.