Gajar ka Halwa or carrot halwa is a popular sweet dish from the Indian sub-continent, one that is usually prepared all year round. Whether it is homecooked and served for simple parties or even on regular days or commercially made and served at weddings and other such celebrations, it seems to be a favourite with everyone. While this halwa is prepared with milk, sugar & grated red oranges that make their appearance during the Indian winters, I have prepared them using regular orange carrots that are commonly available all year round using the pressure cooker method. Pressure cooking saves time & helps reduce the consumption of energy. The process took me about 40 minutes & easily served 4 adults. Again, it depends on the quantity you serve and what you serve it with. I like to serve piping hot carrot halwa with vanilla icecream, a combination that is deemed to be a match made in heaven. It is generally served in this fashion during most parties, weddings etc. However, if you do not like your desserts to be tooth tingling sweet, then skip the vanilla ice cream and serve this halwa plain, perhaps with an extra garnishing of roasted nuts.
Some of you may have seen this post a few months ago on social media. However, I first posted this recipe on March 4th, 2010, almost 10 years ago (you can see the first picture at the very bottom of this post). I decided to revive this recipe and re-post it as I feel that so many of my recipes are lost in my archives as people don’t search for them. I needed to breathe life into many of my old recipes that I had painstakingly created in the past. Every piece of content that I create takes a good number of hours , all the way from planning to execution to post production (social media marketing) and I believe that many of my recipes have not received the attention that they truly deserve. So this year I plan to revive some of my very old recipes with some new pictures and will hopefully repost them all. So do stay tuned and let me take you on a journey, to rekindle some old memories and rediscover some new flavours!
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Gajar Ka Halwa
Traditional Indian dessert made from carrots & milk that yields a rich & creamy texture when slow cooked to perfection. Usually made during the winters with special red carrots, this dessert can be made all year round with the regular orange ones too!
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Ingredients
- 500 grams carrots, preferably the red ones
- 500 ml milk, full fat
- 180-200 grams granulated white sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder (or 3-4 pods, husked & powdered)
- 1/4 cup cashew nuts, halved * see note
- 3-4 tablespoons ghee
Instructions
- Wash, peel & grate the carrots using a medium slotted grater for better texture.
- Transfer them to a pressure cooker, add the milk & pressure cook them for one whistle. Then reduce the heat completely, to a simmer and continue to cook for about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and once the pressure cooker cools down slightly, open the lid. The mixture will appear like it has curdled but that is okay.
- Heat the ghee in a heavy based wok/kadai and fry the cashew nuts till they turn golden brown. Remove and keep aside
- To the same wok add the carrot & milk mixture and the sugar. Reduce the heat and cook for about 30 minutes, stirring intermittently to prevent scorching. It will take a while for the extra moisture to evaporate.
- When the ghee begins to leaves the sides of the pan & the colour changes to deep orange your halwa is ready. You can add the cashew nuts and cook for another 2-3 minutes if you prefer them soft or add them as a garnish just before serving. Add the cardamom powder and stir it in.
- Serve hot with a dollop of vanilla ice cream.
Notes
- You may use cashew nuts or almonds, slivered, with or without skin
- If you plan to serve the halwa with vanilla ice cream you can use just 180 grams of sugar if you prefer a mildly sweet dessert. Do not be tempted to add more sugar when you taste the halwa when it is still hot as our tastebuds will not be able to judge the accuracy of the sweetness. Scoop out a teaspoonful, cool it, taste it and then adjust the sweetness
Disclaimer
The nutritional values are only indicative.
Tried this recipe?Please leave a comment & rate the recipe below or share a photo on Instagram and tag me @ruchikrandhap
This recipe and picture below were first published on March 4th, 2010.
Gajar ka halwa!! our favourite!! I didn't know there was a shorter method. I always make it the longer way, cooking on slow fire!!!
Me neither May!! Even i used to make it the usual way & it took ages…this method is faster & saves energy!
My best gajar ka halwa ever …i never was a fan of this indian desert but this time it was wiped off..
Thanks so much for the feedback! So glad you enjoyed it so much!
Of late I have been preparing gajar halwa in a small pressure cooker the same way you have described. The only difference is that I don’t measure quantities but do as per my ‘andaji’ (understanding). Saves a lot of time.
By the way, good writeup and beautifully clicked food pics!
Thanks a lot Pallavi!!