Pumpkin Halwa (or Kaddu ka Halwa) is a rich Indian pudding dessert recipe made with yellow or red pumpkin, milk, and sugar with a generous amount of ghee in an Instant pot Pressure cooker or stovetop. This pumpkin halwa can be made vegan and keto-friendly.
I love making halwa with vegetables at home, whether it's carrot halwa, lauki halwa, or beetroot halwa. Today I am sharing another popular halwa recipe made with pumpkins.
This Pumpkin halwa is very light and delicious. You can make it richer by adding ¼ cup of khoya/mava or almond flour. Pumpkins are naturally sweet, so adjust the sugar accordingly. I used kabocha squash for this recipe. You can also use yellow or golden pumpkins, which are readily available in Indian grocery stores throughout the year.
I highly recommend avoiding jack-o'-lantern pumpkins used for carving during Halloween decorations to make this halwa. They are not ideal for cooking, as they are more watery and less tasty. However, you can use sugar or pie pumpkins which are smaller in size.
More Indian Pumpkin Recipes, you may like
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How to Make Pumpkin Halwa Recipe in Instant Pot
Firstly, clean the Instant pot thoroughly – the steel pot, lid, and sealing ring. If you have an extra sealing ring for sweet foods, use it else, milk may curdle.
Peel the pumpkin skin and dice it into 1-inch pieces.
Press SAUTE button on Instant Pot. Add 2 tablespoons ghee to the pot. Once hot, add 4 cups of diced pumpkin, and saute for 2-3 minutes until the raw smell disappears.
Then add ½ cup whole milk and mix well.
Set the pot to MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK (High Pressure) and set the timer to 5 minutes.
Once the pot beeps, Allow 5 minutes natural pressure release, then do a QUICK RELEASE.
Open the lid and Turn the pot to SAUTE (HIGH) again. Mash the pumpkin using a potato masher or fork.
Then add ½ cup sugar, and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring continuously.
Add remaining 2 tablespoons of ghee, ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder. Stir continuously for another 2-3 minutes till the halwa thickens.
Press Cancel. Yellow Pumpkin Halwa will thicken as it cools down.
Lastly, serve pumpkin pudding warm or at room temperature and garnish with slivered pistachios and almonds.
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Method
- Follow the same steps as Instant Pot. Give 2 whistles to cook pumpkin in milk and let the pressure release naturally. All the other steps remain the same.
Stovetop Pot Method
- Follow the process mentioned as Instant Pot. Cover the pot with a lid and cook until the pumpkin pieces have softened completely on a medium-low flame. Takes about 10-15 minutes. Do stir once or twice in between. All the other steps remain the same.
Variations & Tips
- If you dont have cardamom, replace it with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- To make the halwa richer, you can add condensed milk after the pressure cooking and adjust the sugar quantity accordingly.
- You can also add khoya or almond flour to thicken and enhance the flavor of this kaddu ka halwa recipe.
- You can also use grated pumpkins instead of diced pumpkins if you wish.
- Sanitize the Instant Pot steel insert, lid, and sealing ring before making sweet to avoid milk curdling. I always keep an extra sealing ring for sweets separately.
FAQs
Yes, Replace dairy milk with almond milk and ghee with coconut oil or neutral oil.
To make keto pumpkin recipe, use unsweetened almond milk or half and half instead of dairy milk. Also, be sure to use stevia or monk fruit sweetener instead of regular refined sugar.
If you are on a Keto or Low Carb Diet. Check out my Keto Indian Food Recipes Collection.
More Indian Dessert Recipes
Pumpkin Halwa Recipe (Pumpkin Pudding)
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons ghee divided
- 4 cups yellow pumpkin diced into 1 inch pieces
- ½ cup dairy milk (or almond milk)
- ½ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom powder
- 2-3 tablespoons nuts of your choice
Instructions
Instant Pot Method:
- Clean the Instant pot thoroughly – the steel pot, lid and sealing ring. If you have an extra sealing ring for sweet foods, use it else milk may curdle.
- Press SAUTE button. Add ghee into the pot, once hot add the diced pumpkin and saute for 2-3 minutes until the raw smell disappears.
- Add milk and mix well. Press CANCEL button on Instant Pot.
- Set the pot to MANUAL/PRESSURE COOK (High Pressure) and set timer to 5 minutes.
- Once the pot beeps, Allow 5 minutes natural pressure release, then do a QUICK RELEASE.
- Open the lid and Turn on the SAUTE (HIGH) again. Mash the pumpkin using potato masher or fork.
- Then add sugar, and cook for 2-3 minutes stirring continuously.
- Add remaining ghee, cardamom powder, stir continuously for another 2-3 minutes till the halwa thickens.
- Press Cancel. Pumkin Halwa will thicken as it cools down.
- Serve pumpkin pudding warm or at room temperature and garnish with slivered pistachios and almonds.
Stovetop Pressure Cooker Method:
- Follow the same steps as Instant Pot. Give 2 whistles to cook pumpkin in milk and let the pressure release naturally. All the other steps remain the same.
Stovetop Pot Method:
- Follow the process mentioned as Instant Pot. Cover the pot with a lid and cook until the pumpkin pieces have softened completely on a medium-low flame. Takes about 10-15 minutes. Do stir once or twice in between. All the other steps remain the same.
Notes
Variations:
- If you dont have cardamom ,replace with 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
- To make the halwa more rich you can add condensed milk after the pressure cooking and adjust sugar quantity accordingly.
- You can also add khoya or almond flour to thicken and enhance the flavor of the kaddu halwa.
- You can also use grated pumpkin instead of diced pumpkin if you wish.
- Sanitize the Instant Pot steel insert, lid, and sealing ring before making sweet to avoid curdling of milk. I always keep an extra sealing ring for sweets separately.
Nutrition
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