Gajar ka halwa is a popular Indian dessert made from grated carrots cooked in milk and sugar, laced with cardamom, and garnished with roasted nuts. Learn how to make authentic, rich, and creamy carrot halwa!
Have you seen the bright orange or red carrot pudding at Indian restaurants? This gajar ka halwa is a popular dessert you might have enjoyed at the buffet in Indian restaurants.
It is a healthy-ish dessert from North India. The winter months in North India are the season for beautiful red carrots, which are much sweeter than the orange carrots we get year-round. Typically, these red carrots are used to make carrot halwa. Unfortunately, I could never find these carrots here in the US until recently.
However, recently, I saw that at the Indian grocery store. And I had to make carrot halwa the authentic way on the stovetop like my mom does.
I could never completely enjoy the halwa made with orange carrots. Even my husband frowned, but being a sweet lover, he ate the halwa anyway.
There have been times I have gotten homemade carrot halwa on my way back from our India trip and frozen it. It is so good!
Now, I can make the perfect carrot halwa here in my own kitchen. And, of course, I have to share the recipe with you all.
If you want to try the quick version, here is a link to my instant pot carrot halwa recipe.
Table of Contents
- Watch How to Make Gajar ka Halwa
- What Is Gajar ka Halwa?
- Ingredients
- How To Make Gajar Halwa
- Instant Pot Carrot Halwa
- Vegan Carrot Halwa
- Gajar ka halwa with Khoya
- Gajar ka halwa with Milk powder
- Carrot Halwa with Condensed Milk
- Recipe Tips
- How to serve halwa, hot or cold?
- Common Questions
- More Indian Desserts
- Gajar ka Halwa (Carrot Halwa) Recipe
Watch How to Make Gajar ka Halwa
What Is Gajar ka Halwa?
Gajar ka Halwa, also called Gajrela, is an Indian carrot pudding that is rich, creamy, and delicious. It is made with cooking carrots with milk, sugar, and ghee. I also like to add some ground cardamom, which adds a wonderful aroma and flavor to the pudding.
Gajar ka Halwa can be enjoyed as is, or served warm with a scoop of ice cream topped with slivered pistachios. It is heavenly!
Ingredients
You won’t believe it, but carrot halwa needs just 5 basic ingredients, which are easily available.
Carrots: Use fresh carrots, red or orange, whichever are available. Traditionally made with red carrots, they definitely have the best authentic taste. But use whatever you can find. I am able to find red carrots at Indian grocery stores in December and January in the Bay Area.
Milk: Milk gives a rich, creamy texture to this halwa. I use whole milk in this carrot halwa recipe. It gives the best results.
Ghee: We will add ghee at the end to get the perfect nutty flavor in the halwa.
Sugar: I use sugar as a sweetener in this recipe. But you can use dates or jaggery too. I have included details in the recipe notes.
Cardamom: Add cardamom powder for the perfect aroma and flavor.
Nuts: You can use any nuts of your choice to garnish at the end. I used sliced pistachios. You can also add raisins.
How To Make Gajar Halwa
The steps to make gajar ka halwa are very simple. However, it needs some constant stirring and patience.
The best carrot halwa is made by cooking the carrots in milk until the milk evaporates. Then, some sugar, ghee, and cardamom create the magic to give the most flavorful carrot pudding.
Peel & Grate Carrots
Start with washing the carrots. Then, peel them using a peeler.
Then we have to grate the carrots. You can use a hand grater or a good processor. The main thing to note is to use the thicker grate.
The fine grate makes the halwa too mushy and does not result in the right texture.
It is the same if grating using a food processor. Use the large grating blade. if there is no option for large grating, then it may be best to grate by hand.
Saute & Cook Carrots
Add the grated carrots to a large pan and turn the heat to medium-high. Saute the carrots for 5 minutes so that some of the moisture is removed.
Now add the milk to the same pan and let the milk (with the carrots) come to a boil. Then, lower the heat to medium flame and let it cook.
Cook the carrots until all the liquid is evaporated. Stir frequently, as you don’t want the halwa to scorch the bottom of the pan. This will take about 35-45 minutes.
Now add the sugar to the halwa. The sugar will release water and make the halwa a little liquidy. Cook until the halwa becomes dry again.
Now add the cardamom powder, and remaining ghee and mix will the carrot halwa. This gives a great final touch and taste of ghee to the Halwa. Roast for a couple of minutes for the ghee to mix into the halwa.
Gajar ka halwa is ready to be enjoyed!
It is so good. Enjoy it at chai time or as a post-dinner dessert.
Instant Pot Carrot Halwa
I have a complete, detailed recipe to make carrot halwa in the instant pot.
Vegan Carrot Halwa
To make this recipe vegan, replace milk with almond milk or cashew milk. Replace ghee with unsalted vegan butter.
Gajar ka halwa with Khoya
Using khoya can reduce the amount of time needed to cook the halwa to half.
Reduce the amount of milk added to the carrots to half a liter. Add 1 cup khoya (grate it after measuring) along with sugar. Other than that, follow the recipe as is.
Gajar ka halwa with Milk powder
Many people like to add milk powder to the halwa for a richer taste. In this case, I would still add at least 1/2 liter of milk for 1 kilogram of carrots. Then add 1 cup milk powder along with sugar to the carrots.
Carrot Halwa with Condensed Milk
This is a shortcut version to make carrot halwa. For 1 kg of carrots, use one 14oz tin of sweetened condensed milk. In this case, skip adding any sugar.
Saute the carrots so their moisture dries out for 10 minutes. Then add the condensed milk and saute until the halwa gets the right consistency.
Recipe Tips
Carrots: Use red carrots if you can find them. You want fresh, tender, carrots which don’t have too much fiber. If the carrots are old, the halwa won’t be as delicious.
Milk: I highly recommend using full-fat whole milk. However, if you want to make it low-fat, you can use milk with 2% or 1% fat. You can also reduce the amount of ghee to make it lighter.
Grating carrots: Grate carrots using the thick grate of the food processor or a hand-held grater. If you grate them thin, the halwa gets too mushy.
Don’t forget to stir: Stir the halwa at regular intervals while it is cooking. You don’t want it to get stuck to the bottom of the pan. It is a handwork, but trust me, it is worth the effort.
How to serve halwa, hot or cold?
Enjoy this delicious Carrot Halwa as a healthy-ish post-dinner treat.
If you want to serve it at a party or when you have company, pair warm carrot halwa with vanilla ice cream. Top with some dried rose petals and slivered pistachios for the exotic look.
Common Questions
To make sugar-free halwa, you can use dates. Soak 1 cup of dates in water for 30 minutes, or boil them on the stovetop, then blend to a paste. Then, use in place of sugar in the recipe.
Sure, you can replace sugar with the same quantity of jaggery in this recipe. Remember that the color of the halwa might be a bit darker if you use jaggery.
Let the halwa cool down completely to room temperature before storing. You can store it in the refrigerator for up to 4 days in an airtight container. To store for longer, freeze for up to 3 months.
Reheat the amount needed in a small bowl in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute. Or you can reheat in a pan on the stovetop. I would recommend adding a teaspoon of ghee when reheating.
Yes, typically, you can eat carrot halwa during the Navratri fast.
More Indian Desserts
Gajar ka Halwa (Carrot Halwa)
Equipment
Video
Ingredients
- 1 kilogram Carrots , grated with thick grater, 10-12 medium carrots
- 1 litre Whole Milk
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon Cardamom powder (Elaichi)
- 3 tablespoon Ghee , divided
- 1 tablespoon Sliced Pistachios, or mixed nuts or raisins, to garnish
Instructions
- Wash, peel and grate carrots using the thick side of a hand grater or food processor.
- Add 1 tablespoon of ghee to a pan on medium heat. Add the chopped pistachios (and other nuts) and roast until they become lightly golden in color. If adding raisins, add them now. Roast for 15 seconds more, take out and set aside.
- Add the grated carrots to a large pan and turn heat to medium-high. Saute the carrots for 5 minutes so that some of the moisture is removed.
- Now add the milk to the same pan and let the milk (with the carrots) come to a boil. Then lower the heat to medium flame and let it cook. You want to cook the carrots until all the liquid is evaporated. Stir frequently as you dont want the halwa to scorch the bottom of the pan. This will take about 35-45 minutes.
- Now add the sugar to the halwa. The sugar will release water and make the halwa a little liquidy. Cook until the halwa becomes dry again.
- Now add the cardamom powder and remaining ghee and mix will the carrot halwa. Roast for a minute for the ghee to blend into the halwa.
- Garnish with the roasted nuts. Serve warm as is or topped with vanilla ice-cream!
This classic Indian dessert remains an all-time favorite, a comforting treat that never fails to bring joy to the palate. Absolutely divine
Hi Shaheen – So happy to hear that. Thank you for sharing it 🙂