Yes I know this recipe is very common. And I know almost every Indian knows how to make this epic sweet delicacy. Still, without having ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’ in my blog, my blog will be somehow incomplete. I also must admit, the recipe I am going to share for ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’, is not out of the world recipe, but the very same traditional process, except it does not include ghee.
Gajar Ka Halwa or Gajrela, the legendary sweet dish from Punjab (actually it is hard to confine this dish to any state or region), is very much part of, or rather extension of every Indian homes. Being it Dussehra, Diwali, Holi, or Eid, the call for every religious ceremony in India, or wedding, or any function at home in most part of the country is somehow incomplete, if the spread is not concluded with ‘Gajar Ka Halwa‘. This all time favourite dessert of every Indian is so much assimilated into our culture that even small day to day proceedings are celebrated with a spoonful of this incredible sweet dish. This should be the possible reason that an ideal patni (wife) cooks ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’ to impress her husband or the ideal bollywood Indian mother makes ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’ to welcome her Phoren (Foreign) returned ideal Indian son (after all who can forget the age old bollywood dialogue ‘aaj maine tere pasand ka gajar ka halwa banaya hain’ 😀). Truly, this traditional legend is inseparable part of every Indian, like a cricket match or bollywood movie. In fact, if I have to be completely honest, being from a traditional Bengali family, we did not have ‘gajar ka halwa’ much at home. But, when I attempted for the first time, without any recipe guidance, surprisingly, it came out perfect. This actually reiterates the fact, that how this beloved dessert is not only imbibed in our culture but also in our veins.
Although carrot is seasonal and the best variety of carrot is available during winters, hence, traditionally this dish is prepared during winters. But we Indians are so much in love with our dearest ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’, that whenever we see carrot, we just cannot resist but start strategizing our ways towards realizing the eternal heaven, in the form of ‘Gajar ka Halwa’.
Also, traditionally this sweet delicacy is made with red carrots but you can use any carrot to make this Halwa. In this recipe I have prepared ‘Gajar Ka Halwa’ with the very traditional method (actually this is the only method I know of 😊) using orange carrots. The only difference is, I have not used ghee (Indian clarified butter) to fry the dry fruits and grated carrots. Also, if I have to admit, to make this dish, I usually don’t fry the ingredients in ghee, rather I add ghee towards the end, so that the aroma of ghee remains. However, after I tasted this particular recipe, I did not feel the requirement to add ghee as the aroma of the ingredients was perfectly balanced.
So, here we are, my ode to the inseparable extension of us.
Check out the other dessert recipes in this blog.
Recipe: Gajar Ka Halwa Or Carrot Pudding
Preparation Time: Around 30 – 35 minutes (includes grating carrot) Cooking Time: Around 45 minutes (on low flame) Yield: Serves 4 bowls Equipments used: One grater, one pan and a turner
Ingredients:
- 7-8 medium sized carrot
- ½ litre milk
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ cup kaju/cashew pieces
- 1/8 cup raisins
- 10-12 pieces green cardamom (elaichi)
- Crushed almond for garnishing
Method:
- Peel the carrots and grate them after washing the carrots
- Condense the milk by boiling it in a pan on low flame
- When 20% of milk is reduced or evaporated, add grated carrot and let it boil in milk
- Keep stirring and add sugar when the milk is reduced to 20%
- Add cashew pieces and raisins when the milk almost evaporates
- Slit the green elichi and add the elaichi seeds when no traces of liquid is left and the milk dries up to become khoya
- Remove the pan from heat and add crushed almond for garnishing
Grate the carrots after washing and peeling them.
Boil half litre milk in a pan.
Add grated carrot once 20% of milk is reduced.
Add sugar when the milk is reduced to 20%
Add cashew nuts and raisins when the milk is almost evaporated followed by green cardamom seeds.
Add crushed almond pieces to garnish.
Tips:
- Grating would be made easy if the carrots are really fresh and juicy
- Wash the carrots first before peeling them. This way you will retain the nutrients of the vegetable
- Keep stirring continuously, from the time grated carrot is added to milk
- Cook on low flame to avoid charring
- I did not find the requirement to add ghee as the flavours were already so mesmerizing. However, you can add 2 teaspoons of ghee after removing the pan from heat
