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Home » Recipe Course » Desserts

Instant Pot Carrot Halwa / Gajar Halwa (with Stovetop option)

Published October 29, 2021 Updated February 17, 2022 By Meeta Arora 22 Comments | This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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Carrot Halwa or Gajar ka halwa, is a delicious dessert made with grated carrots, milk, sugar, cardamom and almonds. This is a healthy and light dessert from North India, which we will make in the Instant Pot | #recipe #carrothalwa #carrotpudding #indiandesserts #healthy #easy #carrots #milk #cardamom #instantpot #gajarhalwa #carrotkheer #halwa #pudding #vegetarian #glutenfree | pipingpotcurry.com

Carrot Halwa, also called Gajar ka halwa, is a delicious dessert made with grated carrots, milk, sugar and cardamom. This is a healthy and light dessert from North India, which we will make in the Instant Pot and stovetop. This is the bright orange carrot pudding, the popular dessert you might have enjoyed at the buffet in Indian restaurants.

Instant Pot Carrot Halwa. Gajar ka Halwa 2

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 we don't get these carrots here in the US at all, so we will just use orange carrots to make our halwa.

Jump to:
  • What is Gajar ka Halwa?
  • Why not pressure cook Carrot Halwa?
  • Ingredients
  • How to make Carrot Halwa? 
  • Common Questions
  • Instant Pot Carrot Halwa (Gajar Halwa)

What is Gajar ka Halwa?

Gajar ka Halwa, also called Gajrela, is an Indian carrot pudding, so rich and delicious. It is made with cooking carrots with milk, sugar and ghee.

Traditionally Carrot Halwa is made with cooking grated carrots with lots of milk, and cooking down the milk on the stovetop. This involved lots of stirring and monitoring. Here is my detailed gajar ka halwa recipe on the stovetop.

With our busy lives, it is hard to get the motivation to firstly grate the carrots and then actively monitor them for an hour or more on the stovetop. But this is such a delicious dessert! So let's see how we can harness the features of the Instant Pot to make Carrot Halwa.

Here are some more halwa recipes that you might enjoy:

  • Moong Dal Halwa
  • Coconut Pumpkin Halwa
  • Sooji/Semolina Halwa
  • Besan Halwa

Why not pressure cook Carrot Halwa?

I was seeing so many recipes where people have been pressure cooking carrots to make halwa, so I gave it a try. However my punjabi family (in particular my husband) would not approve of it. We felt that the carrots were overcooked and did not have the texture of the halwa we all loved (especially compared to my mom, she makes the best carrot halwa).

Here is my theory for why pressure cooking is not the ideal method for carrot halwa - For carrot halwa, we want to cook the carrots along with milk, however we also want to cook down all the liquid and make a dry halwa.

However when we pressure cook, the carrots cook quickly but all the liquid remains in the pressure cooker. Then we have to saute again for a longer time to cook down the excess liquid, which overcooks the carrots.

Ingredients

We will need very basic ingredients in this recipe:

Carrots: Use fresh carrots, red or orange whichever are available. Traditionally made with red carrots, however it is hard to find the red ones in the USA.

Milk: Milk is added to the carrots to cook it. I use whole milk in this carrot halwa recipe.

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.

Almond powder or Milk Powder: You can use milk powder or almond powder to get the dry grainy texture at the end. Use almond powder as a vegan substitute.

Cardamom: Add cardamom powder for the perfect aroma and flavor.

Nuts: You can use any nuts of choice to garnish at the end. I used sliced almonds.

How to make Carrot Halwa? 

Instant Pot Carrot Halwa. Gajar ka Halwa

So let's look at the alternatives. I explored the Sauté and Slow cook settings in the instant pot. Slow cook mode worked with first having to boil the grated carrots in milk and then slow cooking for 4 hours. However I don't always have the patience to wait that long.

This led me to try the Saute(Low) mode which defaults to 30 minutes. This time was perfect to get the carrots cooked along with the milk. I covered the pot with a glass lid and stirred the carrots just once in between. Carrots release a lot of their intrinsic water when cooked, so they did not stick much to the bottom or burn.

After that, I added sugar, cardamom, almond flour (or milk powder) and ghee. I like to add almond flour to make the halwa healthier, however you can choose to add milk powder or khoa/mava too. Now it will take just 2-3 minutes of stirring on Saute (Normal) to have perfectly cooked carrot halwa. Garnish with sliced almond or pistachios. Enjoy it warm!

steps to make carrot halwa in instant pot

Did you notice I add ghee at the very end? I believe this is typical of carrot halwa made in North India. This gives a great final touch and taste of ghee to the Halwa. Carrot Halwa can be refrigerated for up to a week. It will also freeze well. I do not recommend to cut this recipe in half. If you do, then keep for half the time on saute (low) mode initially.

You might ask - What is the advantage of make halwa in the Instant Pot?

  • It is a marginal advantage - I liked the controlled Saute(Low) temperature and that the instant pot defaults saute mode to 30 minutes. Due to which I hardly had to monitor for the first 30 minutes, and then the halwa for done in 2-4 minutes of active stirring.
  • With the instant pot, the clean up is so easy. As the pot is deep, there is no spillage which to me is a big plus.
Instant Pot Carrot Halwa. Gajar ka Halwa 1

Common Questions

How to make vegan carrot halwa?

To make this recipe vegan, replace milk with almond milk and replace ghee with unsalted vegan butter and use almond flour to make the halwa. 

How to store carrot halwa?

This carrot halwa will store well for up to a week in the refrigerator. You can also freeze it in an airtight container up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight, and microwave for 30 seconds to enjoy!

Enjoy this delicious Carrot Halwa as a healthy 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.

Tried this recipe?Give a rating by clicking the ★ below
Instant Pot Carrot Halwa. Gajar ka Halwa 1

Instant Pot Carrot Halwa (Gajar Halwa)

Meeta Arora
Carrot Halwa or Gajar ka halwa, is a delicious dessert made with grated carrots, milk, sugar, cardamom and almonds. This is a healthy and light dessert from North India, which we will make in the Instant Pot.
4.82 from 37 votes
Print Save Saved! Pin
Servings: 5
Calories: 300
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Indian
Diet: Gluten-free, Vegetarian
Method: Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker, Stovetop
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 35 mins
Total Time: 45 mins

Ingredients
 
 

  • 5 cups Grated Carrots packed, 10-12 medium carrots
  • 1 cup Whole Milk
  • ⅓ cup Sugar
  • ½ cup Almond flour or Milk powder
  • 1 teaspoon Cardamom powder (Elaichi)
  • 3 tablespoon Ghee
  • 2 tablespoon Sliced Almonds or mixed nuts, to garnish

Instructions
 

  • Add the grated carrots and milk to the instant pot. Stir them. 
  • Start the instant pot in Saute(Low) mode (Press Saute, then Adjust). Cover with a glass lid. The display will show HOT in 5-8 mins. Stir in about 20 minutes. 
  • The Saute mode defaults to 30 minutes. Instant Pot will shut off itself after 30 mins. The carrots will be well cooked and there would not be any liquid by this time. 
  • Add cardamom, sugar and almond flour. Mix well with the carrots. 
  • Turn on Saute (Normal) mode and let the carrots cook while stirring frequently for 2-3 minutes. 
  • Add ghee and mix with the carrot halwa. Turn off instant pot. 
  • Garnish with sliced almonds. Serve warm! 

Stovetop Variation:

  • The exact same recipe would work on stovetop, but would need more monitoring and stirring frequently so the carrots do not stick to the pan. Start with keeping on low flame until milk is completely soaked and carrots are cooked. Then add other ingredients and increase heat. 

Video

Notes

  • I added almond flour to make the halwa healthier, however you can choose to add milk powder or khoa/mava too. 
  • Garnish with your choice of chopped nuts and raisins.
  • Carrot Halwa can be refrigerated for up to a week. It also freezes well.  
  • Vegan Variation: Replace milk with almond milk and replace ghee with unsalted vegan butter and use almond flour to make the halwa. 

Note: Nutrition values are my best estimates. If you rely on them for your diet, use your preferred nutrition calculator.

Nutrition

Calories: 300kcalCarbohydrates: 31gProtein: 6gFat: 18gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 27mgSodium: 109mgPotassium: 502mgFiber: 5gSugar: 22gVitamin A: 21465IUVitamin C: 7.6mgCalcium: 131mgIron: 1mg
Keyword easy, instant pot, pressure cooker
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Check out the collection of 10 Instant Pot Indian Desserts from the best blogs.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Faris says

    March 19, 2022 at 8:26 am

    If I want to add the Ricotta cheese, when it the right time to add that in?

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      March 30, 2022 at 8:52 pm

      Hi Faris - I have not tried, but I would add it just before adding sugar. Initially the ricotta will also make the halwa consistency thinner, but then as you cook more, it will thicken and give a creamier texture.

      Reply
  2. Amishi Mody says

    March 08, 2022 at 5:15 pm

    Thanks Meeta for this recipe. Turned out delicious. I used a little bit more sugar but that could be because I used raw sugar. Going to be enjoying it with vanilla ice cream tonight.🤗

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      March 11, 2022 at 9:25 pm

      Hi Amishi - So happy to hear you enjoyed the halwa. Thank you for sharing back your review!

      Reply
  3. chandrani says

    March 31, 2021 at 8:56 pm

    my carrots tasted raw and the pot was burnt.i stirred well and a few extra times too. it was already burning before the final saute finished pre heating. i added some lightly carameled sugar to it to salvage it. my carrots were moist and fresh so i am not sure what happened.

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      April 11, 2021 at 6:02 am

      Hi Chandrani - Sorry to hear you had trouble making the carrot halwa. I wanted to check if you used the saute (low) function? I also wonder if this happened as the newer models of instant pot are more sensitive, due to which the carrots burnt. Did the instant pot shut off by itself? or you were able to saute for 30 minutes?

      Reply
  4. Nitika Sasan says

    June 17, 2020 at 1:19 am

    Turned out great. I cooked extra 30 mins on Low Saute mode after adding sugar, Almond Flour as it had a lil bit rawish taste. Stirred 2-3 times in between.

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      June 23, 2020 at 1:13 am

      Hi Nikita - Thanks for sharing your experience and the changes you made. Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe.

      Reply
  5. Poorvi Shah says

    September 21, 2019 at 2:57 pm

    Can I add ricotta to give it Mava like texture

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      September 24, 2019 at 12:09 pm

      Hi Poori - Yes, you can add ricotta cheese. I have not tried, but agree that it can add a good Mawa texture.

      Reply
  6. Archana says

    August 19, 2019 at 12:18 am

    Can I make Carrot ka Halwa as same as kheer? On porrige mode?

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      September 09, 2019 at 11:53 pm

      Hi Archana - There are recipes to pressure cook carrots, however my family did not enjoy the taste of pressure cooked carrot halwa. Porridge setting also pressure cooks but at a bit lower pressure.

      Reply
  7. Erika says

    November 04, 2018 at 3:04 pm

    This worked well, thanks!

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      November 05, 2018 at 11:49 am

      Hey Erika - Glad to hear the carrot halwa worked well. Thank you for sharing back your review!

      Reply
  8. Subi says

    October 26, 2018 at 9:20 pm

    Can we double this recipe in 6 quart instapot?

    Reply
    • Meeta Arora says

      October 27, 2018 at 11:10 am

      Hello Subi - Yes, doubling the recipe will work. However as I make it on sauté mode, the initial sautéing will take a bit longer. Hope you enjoy it!

      Reply
    • Ravi says

      December 24, 2020 at 12:44 pm

      Thanks Meeta for the recipe. The instant pot switched off after after 15 minutes showing "hot". I switched to slow cook for 3 hours. Keeping my fingers crossed. Hopefully it comes off well. I am waiting for the raw carrot smell to completely go away.

      Reply
      • Meeta Arora says

        December 28, 2020 at 11:08 pm

        Hi Ravi - The newer instant pots are more sensitive and hence some recipes are not working exactly as in the previous models. Sorry for the confusion. I hope the carrot halwa cooked well and you enjoyed it.

  9. Rhama Manohar says

    August 22, 2018 at 12:28 pm

    Looks good! Can I make this in a 3qt, IP.?

    Reply
    • Piping Pot Curry says

      August 22, 2018 at 1:48 pm

      Thanks Rhama. Yes, it should work in a 3qt instant pot too. Hope you enjoy it!

      Reply
  10. Chhavi says

    March 09, 2018 at 1:17 pm

    This looks gorgeous Meeta ! Can't wait to try it !!

    Reply
    • Piping Pot Curry says

      March 10, 2018 at 9:24 am

      Thanks Chhavi. I hope you enjoy it 🙂

      Reply

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