Gajar Halwa With Khoya (Indian Carrot Dessert)

Gajar halwa or Carrot halwa with khoya is a popular indian dessert made using fresh juicy carrots during the winter season. Carrot halwa is gluten free, has a rich taste and is easy to make. It is served on special occasions as well as a popular winter dessert made in homes in north india.

Also known as gajrela in states of Delhi & Haryana, you are going to need just 6-7 basic ingredients to make this slow cooked punjabi style gajar ka halwa recipe.  

When food connects to a memory, there is a sense of warmth that crosses the heart. For me, it is a classic dessert full of nostalgia. Whenever my grandmother used to make carrot halwa, she made a huge quantity with at least 5 to 6 kilograms of carrots. Everyone at home, including us, the kids roped in to help. We took turns to fine grate the seasonal red carrots (Delhi gajar) using a hand grater (there wasn’t any food processor in those days).

Soon enough, a large kadai (indian wok) was set on the stove and for the rest of the day, she would laboriously cooked the carrots and milk to make the best gajar ka halwa I have ever eaten.

A warm bowl of khoya gajar ka halwa on a cold winter evening like hug in a bowl. Right? I created these delicious gajar ladoos stuffed with mawa last year taking inspiration from halwa.

Jump to:

• About The Recipe  
• Why You Will Love this Gajar Ka Recipe
• Ingredients Needed
• How To Make Gajar Halwa  
• Different Methods To Make Gajar Halwa 
• Some Useful Tips
• Serving & Storing
• FAQs
• Gajar Halwa Recipe (With Khoya)

About The Recipe  

Gajar = Carrots in Hindi. The word halwa is used to describe indian pudding desserts (similar to sooji halwa) made with flours, vegetables, fruits or nut based desserts. It is also called indian carrot pudding in restaurants out here.

Khoya or Mawa is dried evaporated milk solids made by simmering whole milk for long hours so that the milk liquid evaporates and the milk solids remain behind. Khoya is used extensively in northern india to make numerous mithai(sweet treats).

Like most classic indian recipes, gajar halwa is made in different ways in across India. It is a popular indian dessert served at weddings and sweet shops during winter.

I remember we used to call it “shaadiyon vala halwa”.  I used to look forward to wintertime weddings to feast on this khoya carrot halwa. The richness of the khoya complements the sweetness of the carrots and combined with the nuts and ghee – I promise you this recipe will help you make perfect gajar ka halwa which is delicious and soul warming.  

Why You Will Love this Gajar Ka Recipe

• Makes a rich and delicious carrot halwa. When it comes to desserts, I do not like to cut corners. I make it using traditional method by slow cooking carrots with ghee, milk, cardamom powder and sugar.
• Full of Almond Goodness- Gajar halwa with badam(almonds) is next level delicious! I use almond meal and chopped almonds in this recipe. You will taste the nuttiness of almonds in every bite and, adding almonds makes this halwa so warming for the winter months. 
• Tweakable Recipe - You may adjust the recipe to your preference and what you have at home. Do not want to add almonds- simply skip them. Want to just use milk to make traditional style carrot halwa? Do not have khoya? Add milk powder instead. Want a quick carrot halwa recipe? Use Instant Pot or Pressure Cooker. Keep reading the article for the substitutions.
• You can double or triple this recipe and make a big batch and freeze for 2-3 months. How good does gajar halwa stash in the freezer sound?Yum!

Ingredients Needed

Below are the 6 ingredients(plus cardamom) you need to make gajar halwa with khoya. 

• Fresh Carrots (preferably organic) - We need shredded carrots . If you are lucky enough to get Delhi red carrots, then use those. Else sweet & juicy orange carrots are best to use.
• Ghee  or Unsalted Butter is fine to use too.
• Whole (Full Fat Milk) 
• Ground Almonds or Almond Meal- I use ready to use super fine blanched almond flour.  
• Khoya/Mawa - Is easily available in indian or pakistani stores. If you would like to make it at home, I shared an instant homemade khoya recipe here a while back. Make sure to buy the unsweetened khoya to use in this recipe.  Khoya is easily available at halwai (sweet) shops in India.
• Sugar – I like using raw cane sugar which I usually use at home. You can use granulated sugar or white sugar.

How To Make Gajar Halwa  

1. Wash, dry and peel the carrots. You can grate the carrots using a box grater or use food processor to grate the carrots. I use food processor.

2. Add a tablespoon of ghee to a heavy bottom kadai or any heavy bottom pot. Sauté the chopped nuts for a few minutes in ghee and take them out in a plate.

3. Add another tablespoon ghee and add the grated carrots. Sauté the carrots for just 2-3 minutes on low flame.

4. Next, add the warm milk. Stir around and set to cook on medium flame.

6. Once the milk has evaporated and the carrots are cooked through, add the sugar. Again, you will see that the carrots will become runny due to moisture from the sugar. Keep stirring at regular intervals and cooking till all the liquid has evaporated. At this point you will need to keep a close eye since due to caramelization of sugar, the chances of carrots burning are high.  

7. Once all the water has evaporated, add the ghee along with ground almonds and bhuno(sauté) the carrots in ghee for a good 10 to 15 minutes on medium low heat. The carrots will become shiny, and you will smell a very nice aroma. This is a super important step in the recipe. Slowly roasting the carrots brings out deep flavors in the halwa.Please don't rush this part.

8. Once the halwa has toasted nicely, you will see that tiny ghee bubbles on the sides and you will hear a faint crackling sound.  We are there!

9. Switch off the stove and mix in the cardamom, crumbled mawa and the chopped nuts. Mix in to combine. Halwa is ready. Read below for serving and storage suggestions.  

Different Methods To Make Gajar Halwa 

1. Carrot Halwa in Instant Pot/ Pressure Cooker. To make halwa in IP or presure cooker, saute the carrots in ghee on saute mode for 2-3 minutes. Add milk, close & seal the lid(with vent)of the Instant Pot and cook on manual high for 4 minutes. If using pressure cooker,cook on medium high for 4-5 whistles. Let the pressure release naturally. The carrots will be cooked, again turn to saute mode, add sugar and cook off the liquid fully. The remaining recipe remains same. 
2. Traditional Gajar Halwa With Milk - Skip khoya and grounds almonds in this recipe. Follow the recipe as it is. In that case, you can reduce the quantity of ghee to ⅓ cup if you wish.
3. Gajar (Carrot) Halwa With Evaporated Milk – Simply use ½ cup regular milk and one 12 fl oz can of evaporated milk in this recipe.  
4. Using Milk Maid(Condensed Milk) – To make Carrot Halwa With Condensed Milk, replace milk and sugar in this recipe with 14 oz(380g) sweetened condensed milk. 
5. Carrot Halwa With Ricotta Cheese – Instead of adding Khoya you can use a combination of ⅓ cup whole milk ricotta cheese + 3 tablespoons milk powder.  
6. Gajar Ka Halwa With Heavy Cream – For added richness, you can add 3-4 tablespoon heavy cream along with milk and proceed to cook the recipe as it is. I would add only ¼ cup ghee in that case. 
7. Gajar Halwa Using Milk Powder - Use ⅓ cup full fat milk powder instead of khoya in this recipe. Skip the khoya. I like using Nido brand milk powder.
8. Vegan Gajar Halwa- Use cream cashew or almond milk in place of regular milk. Use plant based butter instead of ghee. Skip the khoya.

Some Useful Tips

• Use a wide mouthed utensil. This helps in two ways. It makes sure that you can sauté and scrape the carrots properly while roasting them. Secondly, the liquid of milk and sugar evaporates quickly in a wide mouthed pot. I use a 10- or 12-inch kadai or 12-inch dutch pot to make gajar ka halwa.  
• Do not Skimp on Ghee. Ghee not only adds flavor but also helps in roasting the carrots. Ghee makes the carrot halwa moist. When the amount of ghee is right, the taste of bhuna hua halwa (perfectly roasted) comes through and the halwa does not taste dry.  
• Do not grate the carrots too fine else the halwa will not have any texture and it will be mushy. The right texture of delhi style gajar halwa is soft and melt in the mouth with a bit of chewiness at the end from grated carrots.
• Avoid sautéing the gajar ka halwa too much after adding the khoya else the fat from the mawa will separate and the halwa will become oily.  

Serving & Storing

Gajar ka Halwa is best served warm garnished with extra chopped nuts. You can crumble extra khoya on top. It tastes so good with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

I feel that Gajar halwa always tastes better the next day. Make the halwa and let it completely cool to room temperature and then store it in an air tight container with a lid.

Refrigerate and next day, reheat and serve it. You can store halwa in fridge for 4-5 days. To reheat, you can warm it up on stove or microwave.

Freezing

Carrot halwa can be easily frozen for 2-3 months. For freezing, portion out the halwa using a measuring cup(I usually do ⅓ cup portions) or ice cream scoop. Place the portions on a cookie sheet lined with wax or parchment paper.

First individually freeze the portions for at least 6 hours or till set. Place the frozen halwa portions in a ziplock back and keep in the freezer for when you want to use. You can thaw the quantity you like for at least an hour or so before reheating.

FAQs