Besan Ladoo Recipe
Besan Ladoo or Besan Ke Laddu is one of the most popular Indian desserts made using besan (aka gram flour/chickpea flour), sugar, and ghee
Servings 16 ladoos
Calories 150kcal
Ingredients
- 2 cups besan sifted
- ½ cup ghee
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3-4 green cardamom
- 2 tablespoons pistachios chopped
- 2 tablespoons almonds chopped
Instructions
- Before you start making besan ladoo it's important to measure the quantity else ladoos may not bind and ruin.
- Add sugar and green cardamom into the blender or grinder and blend them to make a fine powder. Keep it aside.
- Heat ghee in a heavy bottom pan on a low flame, and once it melts add besan to it. Combine everything well and break the lumps. Ignore the small lumps.
- Keep stirring continuously with a spatula on low flame for 8-10 minutes or until besan slightly changes its color and is aromatic.
- After about 10 minutes, the besan mixture will start to loosen up (see the pic for reference) and turn light golden brown.
- Keep roasting continuously for another 15-20 minutes on low flame until the mixture turns golden color and by now the kitchen is filled with a sweet aroma.
- Once the besan starts to release ghee, besan ladoo mixture is ready.Note: It took about 25-30 minutes in total to roast the besan ghee mixture.
- Transfer the ladoo mixture to a bowl or a plate. This will help to avoid overcooking. Allow it to cool.
- Once besan and ghee mixture has completely cooled (in about 10-15 minutes), add powdered sugar, nuts, and cardamom powder to it. Don’t add the sugar to the hot besan mixture else it will melt and it will be difficult to bind the laddos.
- Mix everything together with your hands to incorporate sugar and nuts with the besan and ghee mixture.
- Grease your palm with some ghee. Then take some mixture in your hand and make round balls. You will get around 15-16 medium ladoos.
- You can garnish the ladoos with pistachios or slivered almonds.
Notes
Tips to Make Best Besan Laddu
- Use fresh besan: Use fresh and good quality besan (gram flour) to make the best laddos. The older gram flour tends to get bitter after a few months of milling. So taste it before making ladoos.
- Roasting the besan: Roasting the besan properly on low heat is the key to getting delicious besan laddoo. You need to stir continuously on low heat for about 20-25 minutes for uniform roasting. This helps to remove the raw taste of the besan and gives a nutty flavor. It's a lot of handwork, so be patient. If the heat is high, then besan will turn brown while still being raw and even may burn.
- Cool the mixture a bit: Always cool down the roasted besan mixture for at least 15 minutes before adding the sugar. If it's too hot, it's difficult to shape the laddoos.
- Dont skim on ghee: Use pure ghee for a rich and authentic flavor. Use the right amount of ghee to get the best besan laddoos.
- Using powdered sugar: use powdered sugar instead of granulated sugar for a melt-in-mouth texture.
- Shaping the ladoos: Always grease your hands with little ghee before shaping the laddus. It prevents the mixture from sticking to the hands and makes it easier.
Variations
- Adding Nuts: You can add any kind of chopped nuts like almonds, pistachios, cashews, and raisins to the ladoo mixture. If you are allergic to nuts, then skip them.
- Flavoring: You can add flavoring agents like cardamom powder, nutmeg powder, ground cinnamon, or saffron strands to make them delicious and aromatic.
- Coconut Besan Ladoo: Add desiccated coconut to the besan ladoo mixture to give it a nutty flavor and chewy texture.
- Chocolate Besan Ladoo: Add cocoa powder to the besan ladoo mixture to give a chocolatey twist. Your kids will love it.
- Besan Ladoo with Jaggery: You can substitute regular sugar with jaggery to make the besan ladoos.
Nutrition
Calories: 150kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 14mg | Sodium: 10mg | Potassium: 150mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 10IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 13mg | Iron: 1mg