Gajar Halwa Recipe (Carrot Halwa)
Gajar Halwa (Carrot Halwa) is one of the most sought-after traditional Indian desserts. It is made with red carrots, milk, khoya, and sugar. You would easily spot it on the dessert counters at popular festivals, weddings, or special occasions. Make the best gajar ka halwa at home using my easy recipe.
Servings: 6 people
Ingredients
- 500 grams red carrots
- 2 cups whole milk (full-fat milk)
- 60 grams ghee
- 120 grams sugar
- 120 grams khoya (mawa) grated
- 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
- 4 tablespoons slivered nuts I used almonds and pistachios
Instructions
- Wash the carrots with water and peel them using a vegetable peeler.
- Then, grate the peeled carrots using the medium-holed box grater. Discard the top, which is hard to grate. You can also use a food processor fitted with a grater attachment to do this.
- Add grated red carrots and milk to a heavy-bottomed pan and mix well.
- Cook the mixture on medium-low heat until all the milk is absorbed, stirring frequently. It will take about 20-25 minutes.
- Once the milk is absorbed and the carrot mixture looks thick, add ghee to the pan and cook for 10-12 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Next, add sugar to the pan and cook for an additional 4-5 minutes.
- Note – You can increase or decrease the amount of sugar as per your liking. I like very lightly sweet halwa and this measurement is perfect for that.
- Once the sugar has dissolved well in the halwa, add khoya to the pan and cook for an additional 25-30 minutes, until the ghee starts to separate from the sides of the pan. Continue to stir the mixture frequently throughout the cooking process.
- Add cardamom powder and slivered almonds and pistachios and mix well.
- Serve hot.
Video
Notes
You can replace the red carrots with black carrots, too. Black carrots are available in some parts of India during winter, and they lend a great taste to this halwa.
Use orange carrots to make this halwa only if red carrots are unavailable, as the taste of carrot halwa made using orange carrots is not the best.
If khoya is not available, then mix milk powder with some milk and make a thick dough. You can use it as a substitute for khoya.
Nutrition
Calories: 352kcal | Carbohydrates: 35g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 136mg | Potassium: 375mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 12855IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 261mg | Iron: 0.3mg
