Gajar ka Halwa (Carrot Halwa)
North India's winter dessert: grated carrots slow-cooked in milk until thick and fudgy, then sweetened and finished with ghee, cardamom and toasted nuts. Warm, rich and fragrant.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Cook carrots in milk
Put the grated carrots and milk in a wide, heavy pan or wok about 28-30cm (11-12 inch) across. Bring to a boil, then simmer on medium heat, stirring often, until most of the milk has cooked away and the mixture looks thick, not soupy.
- 1kg grated carrots
- 1L whole milk
✅ Done when: almost all the milk has evaporated and the carrots look thick, not soupy
Add sugar
Stir in the sugar - the mixture will loosen again. Keep cooking on medium heat, stirring often, until it thickens back up.
- 150g sugar
✅ Done when: the mixture has thickened back to a soft, moist texture
Fry in ghee
Add 3 tablespoons of the , keeping the rest for the nuts. Cook on medium heat, stirring, until the looks shiny and starts to pull away from the sides of the pan.
- 3 tbsp
✅ Done when: halwa looks shiny and pulls away from the pan sides
Finish
In a small pan, fry the cashews, almonds and raisins in the remaining 1 tablespoon of over medium heat until the nuts turn golden. Stir them into the with the ground cardamom, then serve warm, garnished with the pistachios.
- 1 tbsp
- 30g cashews
- 30g almonds
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 6 pods, ground cardamom seeds
- 2 tbsp pistachios
✅ Done when: nuts are golden
Cook carrots in milk
Put the grated carrots and milk in a wide, heavy pan or wok about 28-30cm (11-12 inch) across. Bring to a boil, then simmer on medium heat, stirring often, until most of the milk has cooked away and the mixture looks thick, not soupy.
- 1kg grated carrots
- 1L whole milk
✅ Done when: almost all the milk has evaporated and the carrots look thick, not soupy
Add sugar
Stir in the sugar - the mixture will loosen again. Keep cooking on medium heat, stirring often, until it thickens back up.
- 150g sugar
✅ Done when: the mixture has thickened back to a soft, moist texture
Fry in ghee
Add 3 tablespoons of the , keeping the rest for the nuts. Cook on medium heat, stirring, until the looks shiny and starts to pull away from the sides of the pan.
- 3 tbsp
✅ Done when: halwa looks shiny and pulls away from the pan sides
Finish
In a small pan, fry the cashews, almonds and raisins in the remaining 1 tablespoon of over medium heat until the nuts turn golden. Stir them into the with the ground cardamom, then serve warm, garnished with the pistachios.
- 1 tbsp
- 30g cashews
- 30g almonds
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 6 pods, ground cardamom seeds
- 2 tbsp pistachios
✅ Done when: nuts are golden
The Story Behind the Dish
Halwa — a sweet made by cooking grains, vegetables or lentils with sugar and fat — reached India from the Middle East and Persia. Carrots, which grow abundantly in Punjab's winter, became the base of its most famous Indian version.
Gajar halwa is the signature dessert of North Indian winters and of Diwali celebrations.
⭐ Why It's Famous
Warm, sweet and fragrant with cardamom and ghee, gajar halwa is the taste of an Indian winter.
💡 Fun Fact
Traditional gajar halwa uses the deep red 'Delhi carrots' that appear in North Indian markets only in winter.
Punjab, North India
30.90°N, 75.86°E
Related recipes
Comments (0)
No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts!