Recipe of the month: Besan Laddu

With Sankranti/Pongal coming up soon, I'm starting the new year on a sweet note with a recipe for a traditional Indian dessert. My fervent hope is that despite whatever is/has been going on in the world, our lives will be filled with sweetness this year *fingers crossed*

If you know anything about me, you will know that I am not fond of Indian sweets (with a very few exceptions). Besan laddus (gram flour balls) do not figure in the limited spectrum of Indian sweets that I like. But I will admit that on the rare occasion that I have come across a well made, aromatic, melt-in-the-mouth besan laddu, I have been able to appreciate it. 

I realize that I have quite a few burfi recipes on my blog but hardly any laddu/laddoo recipes. I think I especially struggle with laddu recipes because I have had my fair share of disasters in the past. I have made besan laddus before but I've taken the microwave shortcut and the results were (unsurprisingly) underwhelming. 

Last year for Diwali I made besan laddus the traditional way on the stove-top and it finally dawned on me that good besan laddus are a labor of love and patience. It takes a lot of elbow grease but the effort is totally worth it. I ended up with a sore arm (and a small burn 😝) but I was mighty impressed with the laddus I had made. In the context of Indian sweets, believe me when I say that happens very rarely! 

These laddus have only 4 ingredients - gram flour (besan), ghee, sugar and cardamom. But when executed correctly, the combination of these 4 simple ingredients results in a divine aroma, texture and flavour. 

The key to making good besan laddus involves 3 important aspects,

1. The quality of the ingredients. Using good-quality fresh besan (coarse or fine is up to your personal preference) and preferably homemade or a premium brand of ghee will give you the best results 

2. Roasting the besan correctly. This step requires time and constant attention. Under roasting and over roasting the besan will result in raw and bitter laddus respectively, thereby compromising the taste so you need to know what you are doing 

3. Using the correct ratio of flour to ghee is critical for the binding. 

I am slowly getting better at making Indian sweets so I am enthusiastically kickstarting this year's traditional Indian sweet quota with these delicious besan laddus. You can make these for Sankranti, Krishna Janmashtami, Ganesh Chaturthi, Diwali or just like that as a treat for your family and friends. Please do not be intimidated by the procedure. Follow the recipe to the T and trust me, you will not be disappointed 😊

Besan Laddu

Preparation time: 5 min; Cook time: ~35 min

Total time: 45 min

Makes: 15-16 besan laddus

Recipe category: Dessert/North-Indian

Recipe level: Intermediate

Recipe source: Adapted from here

Ingredients:

2 cups (~210 grams) besan/gram flour

½ cup ghee (clarified butter), add more ghee if required

1 cup refined sugar 

5 to 6 green cardamoms

4 tablespoons cashews, coarsely chopped

Method:

1. Keep all your ingredients measured and ready before starting

2. Grind the sugar and cardamom together until it becomes a fine powder. Don't open the blender jar immediately otherwise it is likely you will find yourself in a white powdery cloud. 

3. From the half cup of ghee that you have measured, take out 2 tbsp ghee, heat it in a non-stick deep bottomed pan and roast the cashews until they are golden. Remove the cashews and place in a bowl.

4. Turn the flame to low. Now add the besan to the same pan and dry roast the besan by stirring continuously so that the besan is not burned and cooks evenly. There will be a few lumps but no need to worry about them. After about 5 minutes of roasting, you will notice the color begins to deepen and there will be a slight aroma.

5. Reduce the heat to very low and add the rest of the ghee. Keep stirring to incorporate the besan and the ghee together. You will have a lumpy mass at this stage. 

6. Gradually, the mixture turns into a mass. Keep roasting and stirring until the color deepens and you get a nice aroma. After the addition of the rest of the ghee, this will take around 18-20 minutes. Set a timer if you are not confident about how long you have to stir. 

7. Once you get an aroma, immediately take the pan off the heat and keep it aside. You will see that the mixture will start releasing ghee. Some ghee will shimmer on the surface and and you will see a molten lava kind of consistency where the ghee is floating. The mixture will also come together easily. These are the signs that the besan is fully cooked. Keep stirring for another 2-3 minutes as the mixture can still burn. Once the mixture becomes warm (it should NOT be hot), add the fried cashews and powdered sugar and mix well. 

Note: If you add powdered sugar to a very hot mixture, it will just melt and the whole thing will be ruined!

8. The mixture may appear dry but at this stage you need to mix it with your greased hands. The kneading will hands will bring the mixture together and help shape the laddus. Take small amounts of mixture and shape into balls. You will be able to make 15-16 laddus. If desired, serve besan laddus garnished with some nuts. I skipped the decoration. 

9. Store in an airtight jar for up to 3 weeks. 

Notes:

• Keep stirring when you are making these laddus. There can be no short-cuts. Roasting the besan correctly is the main aspect to making good besan laddus. But overdo it and the laddus can turn bitter
• Use good-quality fresh besan. Besan that has been sitting around may turn bitter. Taste the flour before using it
• Use good quality ghee. Homemade is obviously the best
• You can measure the ghee in solid or liquid form
• You can add raisins to the laddus as well
• Besan laddu keeps well at room temperature for a month. Keep in a clean covered jar or container in a cool dry place. You can use a steel jar
• You can refrigerate these laddus. But on refrigeration, the ghee in the laddu solidifies making them dense or hard. So before serving, let them come to room temperature

Cheers,

Megha