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.
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.
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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:
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?
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!
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.
Common Questions
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.
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.
Instant Pot Carrot Halwa (Gajar Halwa)
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
Check out the collection of 10 Instant Pot Indian Desserts from the best blogs.
Faris says
If I want to add the Ricotta cheese, when it the right time to add that in?
Meeta Arora says
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.
Amishi Mody says
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.🤗
Meeta Arora says
Hi Amishi - So happy to hear you enjoyed the halwa. Thank you for sharing back your review!
chandrani says
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.
Meeta Arora says
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?
Nitika Sasan says
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.
Meeta Arora says
Hi Nikita - Thanks for sharing your experience and the changes you made. Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe.
Poorvi Shah says
Can I add ricotta to give it Mava like texture
Meeta Arora says
Hi Poori - Yes, you can add ricotta cheese. I have not tried, but agree that it can add a good Mawa texture.
Archana says
Can I make Carrot ka Halwa as same as kheer? On porrige mode?
Meeta Arora says
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.
Erika says
This worked well, thanks!
Meeta Arora says
Hey Erika - Glad to hear the carrot halwa worked well. Thank you for sharing back your review!
Subi says
Can we double this recipe in 6 quart instapot?
Meeta Arora says
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!
Ravi says
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.
Meeta Arora says
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.
Rhama Manohar says
Looks good! Can I make this in a 3qt, IP.?
Piping Pot Curry says
Thanks Rhama. Yes, it should work in a 3qt instant pot too. Hope you enjoy it!
Chhavi says
This looks gorgeous Meeta ! Can't wait to try it !!
Piping Pot Curry says
Thanks Chhavi. I hope you enjoy it 🙂