India is a diverse country where you can see so many cultures, religions, languages & beliefs. So there are also many festivals in India because of its diversity. Sweets are indispensable part of those festivals. Almost in every festival of every religion, culture & location in India, people offer sweets dishes to theirs friends and relatives. Gulab jamun is most preferred sweet dish among many others popular sweet dishes.

Gulab jamun, its name & taste

Though each part of India has some specialities (like rasgulla in Bengal) but  still every one likes this gulab jamun because of its taste, softness and rose flavor. You may be surprised because of its name. Why is it named as gulab jamun?  Gulab means rose and jamun means berry. As here berry shaped sweet is placed in rose flavored syrup, so it is called as gulab jamun. If you are interested then read this Wikipedia post to know more about this sweet dish.

This is such a sweet dish what people like to have hot or even at normal temperature too. Hot gulab jamun has different taste than a this dish at normal temperature. You may have tried both. If not then you must try both. This is such a unique quality of this sweet what no other sweet dish has.

Hot gulab jamun with sour curd

Some people also like hot gulab jamun with sour curd (or dahi). I personally also like to have this with curd. Did you ever tried this with curd? If not then next time you must try this next time. Jalebi is also good with curd (or dahi). I tried gulab jamun with curd in a marriage ceremony (in Delhi) when one of my friends advised me to do so and it was simply awesome. After that I often do this and even at home when I made this sweet dish for first time.

Do you want to make gulab jamun at home?

Now coming to making process of this dish. You will be surprised to know that people make this dish in many ways. So you are free to do experiment. You can make this with milk powder, moisturized paneer, mewa, curd, maida (refined wheat flour), butter etc. There is a sweet dish similar to this dish what is made with sweet potato is also very popular and some people accept that too as gulab jamun. Though you may find little variation in taste of these similar dishes.

Here I will share a recipe what I made several times, you can try at home and can do some experiment once you made this for few number of times. Now let us make this dish.

How to make gulab jamun?

Gulab jamun recipe

 

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Tasty, soft and rose flavored sweet dish

Author: PM (FavCounter)

Recipe type: Dessert

Cuisine: Indian

Serves: 15

Ingredients

• For making jamun shaped balls to fry :
• Milk powder – 1 cup
• Home made paneer- ½ cup
• Curd – ½ cup
• Maida – 2 or 3 tsp
• Almonds – ¼ cup
• Cashew nuts – 10 pieces
• Oil – as needed
• For making syrup with rose flavor :
• Cardamom – 3
• Cinnamon – 2 or 3
• Sugar – 1 cup
• Rose water – 1 tsp
• Water – 4 cups

Instructions

1. Heat water in in a cooking pot, add sugar, cinnamon, cardamom and rose water and boil again. , Switch off flame when sugar is dissolved in water.
2. Cut both almonds & cashew nuts into small pieces for stuffing gulab jamun and keep aside
3. Now in a big bowl mix all ingredients (milk powder, home made paneer, curd and maida.) If mixing is not perfect then you can not make good gulab jamun. (note detailed description)
4. Now make small balls with this mixture and put small pieces of almonds & cashew nuts inside each ball and make a perfect ball shape.
5. Now fry those balls in oil till color turns brown.
6. Once you fried jamun shaped balls then wait for 2 minutes and
7. Now pour in rose flavored syrup and keep it for atleast 4-5 hours.
8. Now you have done. So serve it hot or at normal temperature.

3.5.3208

Gulab jamun recipe

Preparation time : 4-5 hours
Cooking time : 30 mins
Yield : 15 -16

Ingredients

For making jamun shaped balls :

• Milk powder – 1 cup
• Home made paneer /moisturized  paneer / chhena- 1/2 cup
• Curd / dahi – 1/2 cup
• Maida – 2 or 3 tsp
• Almonds – 1/4 cup
• Cashew nuts – 10 pieces
• Oil – as needed

For making syrup with rose flavor : 

• Cardamom / elaichi – 3
• Cinnamon / dalachini – 2 or 3
• Sugar – 1 cup
• Rose water – 1 tsp
• Water – 4 cups

Steps to follow

Rose flavored syrup preparation :

1. Heat water in a cooking pot, add sugar, cinnamon, cardamom and rose water and boil again. When sugar is dissolved in water and you can smell fantastic aroma of that syrup, then switch off flame and keep that syrup aside.

Gulab jamun making steps :

1. Cut almonds & cashew nuts into small pieces for stuffing and keep aside
2. Now in a bowl mix milk powder, home made paneer, curd and maida. Mix all these ingredients properly. You should take 10 to 12 minutes to mix these properly. If mixing is not perfect then you can not make good gulab jamun. So this is the most critical step to do. If your dough is too much dry then add little more curd and mix.

   

3. Now make small balls with this mixture and put some almonds & cashew nuts inside each ball and make a perfect ball shape.
4. Now fry those balls in 2 or 3 batches based on your pan size.
5. Once you fried jamun shaped balls then wait for 2 minutes and pour in rose flavored syrup and keep it for atleast 4-5 hours.
6. Now you have done with making of this sweet dish. So serve it hot or at normal temperature.

So is it not easy to make gulab jamun?

What do you say? Not only that most important thing is that you can do a lot of experiment by changing the ratio of ingredients of making jamun shaped balls. But never add too much maida rather keet that quantity same. If you mix too much maida (refined wheat flour). Then it will be more harder what is not good. A soft rose flavored gulab jamun is always preferred.

If you want to try some other sweet dishes then try rice kheer,pineapple chutney etc.