One of my personal favorites during winters has to be the Gajar ka Halwa Recipe | Carrot Halwa!! It is rich, indulgent, and absolutely melt in the mouth kinda good! I will be sharing my Mom’s traditional recipe without tricks or shortcuts, it tastes so good and is everyone’s favorite in our home!! 🙂
Gajar ka Halwa Recipe | Carrot Halwa is also known as Gajrela in North India 🙂 As winters are already here, there is an abundance of red carrots in the local markets, and this is the best time to make a batch or two of this halwa or Gajrela! It is a winter delicacy and it is a must-have in my home too! However, we prefer the traditional method to prepare it even though it is labor-intensive and takes a lot of time.
I do not use condensed milk to make my Gajar ka Halwa Recipe | Carrot Halwa. Neither do I make this halwa in the pressure cooker. Making it in the pressure cooker gives it a bland, mashed vegetable kind of a taste as opposed to the real North Indian Style Halwa which is slow-cooked for hours and has a rich flavor and aroma. 🙂 Although, using condensed milk gives a nice flavor but it is no match to the slow-cooked traditional version.
Let us make Gajar ka Halwa Recipe | Carrot Halwa just the way my Mom makes it, and she makes the world’s best Gajar ka Halwa 🙂
Peel, wash, and grate the red carrots. Use a medium-sized grater for the perfect texture of the halwa.
In a heavy-bottomed kadhai (wok), add the grated carrots and top with all the full-fat milk. Gently mix them together. Turn on the flame, keep it on low-medium heat.
The mixture will slowly come to a boil after 15 minutes. Keep stirring all this while so that the milk doesn’t stick at the bottom of the wok.
Keep stirring while the mixture bubbles away on low flame. The milk will further reduce in the next 30 minutes or so and the mixture will look like this.
Next, add the sugar. Mix well and keep stirring as the sugar melts completely. By this stage, the mixture has already cooked down for about 50 minutes.
The sugar will melt in the next 5-8 minutes and the mixture looks like this.
Keep stirring while the mixture thickens again. Add the ghee and cardamom powder at this point. Mix well.
The Halwa thickens after about 20 minutes.
Keep stirring and cook the halwa for another 30-40 minutes. Once it is done, this is what it looks likes. It took me a total of approximately 2 hours 10 minutes to make this Halwa. The texture is just perfect and the flavor is rich and decadent!
You can enjoy this Halwa hot or chilled, as you prefer. I loved it both ways. Garnish it with lots of pistachio and silver leaf (varq), just like we do in our North Indian weddings, and enjoy it! (This halwa keeps well in the refrigerator for 2 weeks easily).
Gajar ka Halwa Recipe | Carrot Halwa
Gajar ka Halwa Recipe | Carrot Halwa is a traditional North Indian preparation enjoyed in winters! I'm sharing my Mom's authentic recipe which tastes yum!!
Ingredients
- 12-13 nos. long, juicy red carrots
- 6+1/4 cups full-fat milk I used Amul red tetra pack
- 5 tbsp pure ghee
- 16 tbsp sugar adjust as per taste
- 3/4 tsp cardamom powder
- pistachios and silver leaf (varq) suggested garnish
Instructions
-
Peel, wash, and grate the red carrots. Use a medium-sized grater for the perfect texture of the halwa.
-
In a heavy-bottomed kadhai (wok), add the grated carrots and top with all the full-fat milk. Gently mix them together. Turn on the flame, keep it on low-medium heat.
-
The mixture will slowly come to a boil after 15 minutes. Keep stirring all this while so that the milk doesn't stick at the bottom of the wok.
-
Keep stirring while the mixture bubbles away on low flame. The milk will further reduce in the next 30 minutes or so and the mixture will look like this.
-
Next, add the sugar. Mix well and keep stirring as the sugar melts completely. By this stage, the mixture has already cooked down for about 50 minutes.
-
The sugar will melt in the next 5-8 minutes and the mixture looks like this. (refer to stepwise pictures above)
-
Keep stirring while the mixture thickens again. Add the ghee and cardamom powder at this point. Mix well.
-
The Halwa thickens after about 20 minutes.
-
Keep stirring and cook the halwa for another 30-40 minutes. Once it is done, this is what it looks likes. It took me a total of approximately 2 hours 10 minutes to make this Halwa. The texture is just perfect and the flavor is rich and decadent!
-
You can enjoy this Halwa hot or chilled, as you prefer. I loved it both ways. Garnish it with lots of pistachio and silver leaf (varq), just like we do in our North Indian weddings, and enjoy it! (This halwa keeps well in the refrigerator for 2 weeks easily).
Recipe Notes
You can add any dry fruits as per your liking.
Use only red carrots for this recipe for the authentic flavor and color.
Love,
Shreya
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