GULAB JAMUNS

Gulab Jamuns are prepared and relished all over India. Originally it used to be made from scratch - boiling milk carefully (it should not get burnt, you see)  - till it becomes thick. Then people started using milk powder or khova available in dairy / sweet shops. These days most opt for instant Gulab Jamun mix available in the stores. Whatever you use, they are yummy if they turn out fluffy and spongy. I have a few tips for that at the end of the recipe.

This recipe uses khova.

Makes 40 - 45

Ingredients

1. Khova (mawa) – 250 gms (available in dairy / sweet shops)
2. Maida – ½ cup
3. Baking soda – ¼ tsp (2 pinches)
4. Milk – 2 tsp
5. Sugar – 2 ¼ cups
6. Water – 2 ¼ cups
7. Cardamom powder – ½ tsp
8. Saffron – a few strands
9. Oil for frying

 Method

1. Grate the khova.
2. Mix the baking powder with the maida and sieve together a couple of times.
3. Add this maida to the grated khova and mix well with your fingers and knead well for 5-8 minutes, adding a little milk if required to make a soft dough.
4. Keep covered with a moist cloth for 25-30 minutes.
5. Meanwhile heat 2 ¼ cups of water and add sugar. Stir well and bring to a boil.
6. Boil the sugar syrup for 2 minutes. Add cardamom powder. Crush saffron strands between your fingers and add to the syrup.

While the syrup is being made, prepare the jamuns – apply 4-5 drops of oil on your palms. 

Take a tsp of sugar in a small dish. Take a little dough, dip a finger in the sugar and place 5-6 sugar crystals inside the dough and roll it gently into a marble, making sure there are no cracks. Make 8-10 gulab jamuns.

Heat oil in akadhai on medium heat.

When it is hot (it should not be overheated), drop 6-8 gulab jamuns into it and lower the heat further.

After a minute turn them gently.

Keep turning them gently so that they are uniformly brown.

Remove from the oil, drain and drop them into the hot syrup.

Prepare all the gulab jamuns in batches and drop them in the syrup.

At the end, heat the syrup with the gulab jamuns on low heat for 2-3 minutes and turn off the heat.

Keep aside for 4-5 hours allowing the gulab jamuns to absorb the sugar syrup.

Serve at room temperature / chilled / warm.

                                         
Tips

1. The dough should be soft. If there are cracks in the balls, dip a finger in water to moisten it and then roll it.
2. The sugar crystals in the center of each gulab jamun will melt during frying and make sure that the center portion doesn’t remain hard / uncooked. Do this even while you use instant Gulab Jamun mix from the market.
3. Don’t roll all the gulab jamuns at one go. They will become dry and cracked. Make each batch while the previous batch is being fried – initially have an assistant to roll the gulab jamuns. With experience you’ll be able to multi-task – roll the next set while carefully frying another!
4. The oil should be hot but should not smoke. Fry the gulab jamuns on low heat.
5. You can add rose water instead of saffron strands.
6. Warm gulab jamuns with ice cream is a tasty combination.

  © Copyright 2011. Brinda Balasubramonian.