Festivals can never be complete without sweets and “Besan Ladoo” (बेसन लड्डू) has been one such sweet which has its own niche place in sweets. The roasted aroma of gram flour with ghee, tossed in coriander powder leaves a long lasting flavour in mouth. I simply love this ladoo and is mostly available in my kitchen cupboard round the year. This besan ladoo recipe is simple to follow and I have been using this for more than a decade now, so its full proof.
As much as people prefer cookies in snacks, I prefer this besan ladoo, and if its a festival like Diwali and Holi, rest assured that if you visiting me, you will be greeted by these absolutely mouth watering ladoos.
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What is Besan Ladoo
Besan is gram flour. Ladoo means round in shape. Besan ladoo means a round shaped sweet made out of gram flour. First roast gram flour in the ghee. Then add sugar, cardamom seeds powder and chopped / grounded nuts. Finally give a a round shape, like golf balls, to the mix. These balls are called besan ladoo.
You may also add semolina (sooji / rawa) to give crunch to the laddo. I prefer my ladoo with out sooji.
This besan ladoo does not ask for much ingredients and is not too costly to make either. One of the cheap to make sweet. Main ingredients are Gram Flour, Ghee (Clarified Butter), Sugar and that is it! Of course you can add pistachio, cashew and other nuts, along with saffron and cardamom powder for that adder flavour.
In case you love Ladoo, try these instant coconut ladoo too. You can try other sweets from this compilation of Diwali recipes.
Method
- Coarsely ground cashew and almonds.
- Take a heavy bottom Pan or kadai and put it on a medium heat. Slowly roast this on medium flame.
- Add Ghee to the kadai / big deep pan and wait till it gets little warm.
- Add turmeric powder to the warm ghee. Turmeric powder helps in giving a rich yellow colour to the ladoos. This is purely optional.
- Now add gram flour/ besan to the Kadai slowly with the help of a steel or wooden spatula. Slowly roast this on the medium flame. Keep stirring and feel the aroma. Once you get the roasted aroma of gram flour, check it with spreading one tablespoon of water on it (I call this water test). If water evaporates immediately leaving yellow bubbles on top, it means your Besan is fully roasted. Switch off the flame and keep stirring for few more minutes as heavy bottom pan takes time to cool down and we don’t want our Besan to get burnt smell. The whole process of roasting takes about 10-12 minutes.
- Allow this to cool to right temperature so that you can easily hold this roasted besan in your hand. It should be just lukewarm.
- Add Sugar, cardamom seeds powder and chopped / grounded nuts now.
- Mix this mixture with your hand thoroughly and start making round balls of it by taking one tablespoon of this mixture and shaping it like a ladoo in between both of your palms.
Pro tips for making best besan ladoo
Roast besan thoroughly
While making besan ladoo, it is absolutely necessary to ensure that the gram flour is thoroughly roasted. Hence proper care needs to be taken here, so roast this on low flame while tossing gram flour continuously. This process takes times, so have patience. Not properly roasted besan will give bitter and raw taste to ladoo. You will know if besan is roasted by its aroma. The color of besan will also change to goldenish.
Must not over-roast the besan.
Roast besan on low heat
Roast besan on low heat only. Do not rush by increasing heat. High heat will burn the besan and besan will still be raw.
Constantly stir besan when roasting
I must confess roasting besan is a bit of task. Its a good exercise to wrist and hand. Constant stirring is required, which means you can’t rest hand, else besan will be unevenly roasted.
Add sugar, nuts after besan has cooled down
Add sugar and other nuts only when the besan has cooled down for 15-20 mins. Adding sugar in hot besan will melt the sugar (and burn your hand too). Melted sugar will liquidate the besan and you won’t get ladoo to hold the shape.
Likewise, while mixing sugar, do exercise care so as to avoid formation of sugary lumps.
Storage instructions for besan ladoo
You can keep besan ladoo in an airtight container for good 2-3 weeks, as long as container is kept refrigerated.
This besan ladoo
- Is one of the most loved Indian sweet
- Does not cost a lot to make
- Is gluten-free
- Have a long shelf life
- Can be made for Holi or Diwali sweet
In case you have besan at home, you can try out these other besan based recipes.
I am hoping that using measurements in this detailed recipe along with tips, you will master the art of besan ladoo making.
Recipe Card
Besan Ladoo – Indian Sweet
Ingredients
- 500 Grams Gram flour / Besan
- 200-220 Grams Ghee / Clarified Butter
- 500 Grams Sugar Ground – Vary quantity as per your taste
- 1 Teaspoon Cardamom Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder Optional
- 15-20 Cashews
- 10 Almonds
- 7-8 Pistachio Optional
Instructions
- Coarsely ground Cashew and almonds (you can also chop them with knife if you do not have grinder)
- Take a heavy bottom Pan or kadai and put it on a medium heat. Slowly roast this on medium flame.
- Add Ghee to the kadai / big deep pan and wait till it gets little warm.
- Add turmeric powder to the warm ghee. Turmeric powder helps in giving a rich yellow colour to the ladoos. This is purely optional.
- Now add gram flour/ besan to the Kadai slowly with the help of a steel or wooden spatula. Slowly roast this on the medium flame. Keep stirring and feel the aroma. Once you get the roasted aroma of gram flour, check it with spreading one tablespoon of water on it (I call this water test). If water evaporates immediately leaving yellow bubbles on top, it means your Besan is fully roasted. Switch off the flame and keep stirring for few more minutes as heavy bottom pan takes time to cool down and we don’t want our Besan to get burnt smell. The whole process of roasting takes about 10-12 minutes.
- Allow this to cool to right temperature so that you can easily hold this roasted besan in your hand. It should be just lukewarm.
- Add Sugar, cardamom seeds powder and chopped / grounded nuts now.
- Mix this mixture with your hand thoroughly and start making round balls of it by taking one tablespoon of this mixture and shaping it like a ladoo in between both of your palms.
- Garnish these with Pistachio.
Video
Notes
- If you roast the nuts before chopping/grounding them, your ladoo would be more tastier.
- Please do make sure besan is fully roasted.
- Avoid using high flame / heat, this could leave burnt flavour. Keeping right temperature is important.
- In case you find your mixture is way too liquid, add more besan, and vice-versa. Note that when it hot, it will be lot more like liquid, and when it cools the mixture thickens.
Amazing tasting laddoos. Just loved them.
Thanks Deepak ji. Glad to hear that you 💕 these 😊
Wow…This is looking so delicious..awesome share !!