Gajar Halwa is a classic Indian dessert. This carrot halwa recipe is a family heirloom that requires under 30 minutes in a pressure cooker. Be sure to watch the video!
About Gajar Halwa
Carrot is called ‘gajar‘ in the Hindi language. Halwa in Indian cuisine refers to soft-textured pudding. Hence, carrot halwa is known as Gajar Ka Halwa or Gajar Halwa.
Some dishes never lose their glory, nor are they ever out of trend; one such classic dessert is carrot halwa.
The winter season in Northern India is incomplete without homemade gajar ka halwa or gajrela. Reason – Winter Special Red Carrots
The juicy, long, deep-red carrots are the soul of a deliciously perfect carrot halwa. These winter carrots have a different taste and texture than the regular small carrots, with a hint of natural sweetness.
The texture of the gajar halwa is a bit coarse. The carrots are grated manually (use the bigger holes of the grater) for the halwa to get that perfect texture, and not done in a food processor.
USP Of My Carrot Halwa Recipe
- Gluten-Free
- Only 5-Ingredients Recipe
- Instant Pot Friendly Recipe
- No Condensed Milk or Cream
- No Ghee (Clarified Butter) Required
Ingredients Required
Carrot – For making halwa, start with choosing tender and juicy carrots. Avoid making this sweet dish when carrots are not in season, like frozen carrots. The taste of seasonal carrots makes a lot of difference to the halwa.
Substitute: You can use orange carrots.
Khoya/Mawa – Khova is a popular form of evaporated milk in the Indian subcontinent.
Substitute: You can substitute khoya with unsweetened condensed milk, mithai mate, evaporated milk, or heavy cream.
White Sugar – Granulated, plain white sugar
Substitute: Feel free to use light brown sugar or jaggery, or if you are using sweetened condensed milk, skip adding sugar.
Green Cardamom Powder – It gives the halwa a sweet aroma and taste.
Substitute: If you do not have cardamom powder, crush green cardamoms using a mortar and pestle or a rolling pin and use the same.
Milk – Adding milk to the recipe is optional. One should always use full-fat milk or whole milk for this halwa recipe.
Substitute: You can use almond milk.
Red Carrot vs Orange Carrot
In the Indian subcontinent, during the winter season, from October – February, deep red, long carrots are available. These winter carrots have a sweet taste. Hence, they are perfect for making Indian desserts, including gajar halwa.
On the other hand, the orange carrot is available throughout the year. But it has a bland taste. Hence it is good for making soups, vegetable curries, or side dishes where its flavour is masked by spices/seasoning.
For Indian desserts like halwa or kheer, the long, juicy, tender red carrots are perfect.
Watch Gajar Halwa Video
Instant Pot Cooking Method
Carrot Halwa requires only 10 minutes in an instant pot; this includes sauteing and cooking time.
Step 1) Add grated carrot, sugar, and ¼ cup water to the inner pot (images 1 & 2). Seal the lid. Set the PRESSURE COOK mode for 5 minutes.
Release the steam by moving the pressure valve to the VENTING position. Next, set the SAUTE mode for 5 minutes.
Step 2) Add milk and saute the carrot halwa by continuously stirring to evaporate all the liquid (images 3 & 4).
Step 3) Once halwa is completely dry, add the cardamom powder and crumbled khoya. Mix nicely. Carrot Halwa is ready to serve.
FAQs Related To Carrot Halwa
You can store Carrot halwa for 15 – 20 days in the refrigerator. You can freeze it for 6 months. Freezing the halwa is not a good idea because it loses its texture and taste. Do not leave gajar halwa with dairy products at room temperature for more than 1 – 2 hours.
Frying the grated carrots in ghee for too long often changes the colour of the carrots to black. Cook carrots with milk until soft. Or if you store grated carrots in a plastic bag for too long, halwa might turn black.
Yes, gajar halwa is a gluten-free dessert made with carrots, milk, khoya, sugar, ghee, and nuts. There is no addition of gluten.
In India, authentic carrot halwa is made using the long, red carrots available only during the winter season (refer to video). However, you can use regular orange carrots to make a carrot halwa. Pick your carrots wisely; check if they are tender and less fibrous; this ensures your halwa tastes the best.
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Gajar Halwa Recipe
- Heavy Bottom Kadhai
Ingredients
- 1 kilogram carrot
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- ½ cup Water, at room temperature
- ½ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon cardamom powder
- 200 gram Khoya/Mawa
- 2 tablespoon sliced dry fruits (for garnish)
Instructions
- Wash, peel and grate the carrots. While grating carrot use the bigger holes of the grater than the smaller ones to have long strands.
- In a stovetop pressure cooker add grated carrots, water and sprinkle sugar on top do not mix. Close the lid and cook the carrots for one whistle over low heat. After one whistle, turn off the heat. And release the steam manually from the pressure cooker.
- Heat a heavy-duty pan. Transfer the carrots to the pan along with milk. Keep flame on low. Start roasting the carrots till all the moisture is evaporated/absorbed by the carrots and the halwa starts leaving the sides of the pan.
- Add cardamom powder and crumbled khoya. Mix nicely. Keep on cooking the halwa on low flame stirring frequently for the next 5 – 10 minutes or till khoya is nicely combined with the carrots. Turn off the heat.
- Garnish carrot halwa with sliced pistachio and almonds. If you prefer, fry sliced dry fruits in a tablespoon of ghee for garnishing the halwa.
- Serve Gajar Ka Halwa warm.
Recipe Notes:
- Make sure to use big holes of the grater to grate carrots for the halwa.
- Avoid keeping grated carrots in a plastic bag or openly for a longer duration. Halwa might turn black.
- One whistle over low heat is enough to cook carrots and release their juices.
- While frying the halwa make sure the gas flame is always between low – medium temperature range.
- Continuously, stir the halwa while frying else it might not get evenly cooked.
- Do not add khoya (mawa) until carrots are completely dry or start sticking to the base of the pan.
Nutrition
Rafeeda AR says
such sinful looking gajar halwa… drooling here…
Seeta says
Isn’t it a crime to post such sinful pics???? Drool Drool!
Tara nair says
Hina… I totally agree, I too have faced this issue of turning the halwa into kheer everytime. But the real happening moment is, I bought carrot today to make halwa for tomorrow and guess what, you posted exactly what I was looking for. Call it telepathy or anything else… it actually hit, bang on time. I am so very grateful to you and your blog. Thank you so very much Hina 🙂 Sweets on the card *
Prasanna Rao says
I love Carrot Halwa and the pics are absolutely drool worthy!
FunFoodand Frolic says
In the U.S., any grocery store will have “powdered milk” (dried milk) in cardboard boxes, but it’s usually non-fat milk rather than whole milk. You might have to look online for powdered milk made from whole milk if that’s what you really want, or there are many Indian and other ethnic groceries in California that may well carry mawa.Mawa is a kind of evaporated whole milk….which has had a lot of the water removed to make it thick.
wallflourgirl says
I love sweet flavors in Indian dishes–I have never heard of this one before, but I’m so excited to make it! Any recommendations on accessing mawa? Funny, I don’t think I’ve ever seen it here (but I will need to look for it–or Google it or something at least 😉 ). Thanks for sharing!
Shruthi says
Thanks for this easy recipe! I shall try it out soon
Hina Gujral says
Great to hear! Please click a pic and share it with us.
Shiju Sugunan says
Awesome video Hina!
Hina Gujral says
Thank you Shiiju. Welcome to the blog after a long time! Hina