Celebrations are often incomplete without food, aren’t they? Especially Indian festivals; they are often celebrated with a huge table elegantly laden with beautiful plates of food, including a gorgeous array of mouth-watering authentic desserts. I always wonder if I’ll ever be able to taste each and every delicacy of India, at least once in my lifetime. I doubt anyone ever can, as we have such wide varieties of cuisines all over India!
Ladoo is a roundly shaped sweet, from the subcontinent of India. It has been experimented with through incorporation of several different ingredients, which is why we’ve got endless flavors of ladoos nowadays! Boondi ladoo is one of the most traditional ladoos of India. Any celebration without a boondi ladoo is nearly impossible for an average Indian family. I have grown up eating this ladoo at various occasions at home and at family functions, and have always devoured this sweet. I remember in my childhood, my mom used to prepare this sweet with the help of her friends and neighbors before the festival. In those days, as everyone use to eat mostly homemade food, whatever special snacks or sweets were made were always prepared in huge quantities. Therefore, because it was so difficult to prepare such quantities all alone by themselves, they use to take the help of their family members or friends and share the food among themselves. When work is distributed between people, it doesn’t feel like it’s that hard of a job, plus you also get to bond and spend some quality time with family and friends during the process!
I prepared this boondi ladoo two weeks ago, when I visited my uncle and his family in Connecticut. I was very excited to meet them after almost a decade or so. Hence, I prepared these boondi ladoos as a token of love from me. It was so nice to meet my uncle and his family again and we had some good time together. I was happy that they liked the ladoos 😀
Also do check the recipes of Methi Chaman, Palak Paneer, Mushroom Tikka Masala, Lobia Rice, Gongura Rice, Penne Pasta and Ravioli with basil Pesto to prepare for Diwali pot luck dinners and get togethers!
Check out the recipes of Mango Kalakand, Kaju Kathli, Poha Ladoo, Madatha Kaja, Kaju Pista Roll and Mango Kulfi to prepare on this Diwali!
Boondi Ladoo Recipe:
Before you start preparing the boondi and sugar syrup, keep the dry fruits that you want to add in the ladoos ready. I roasted cashews and raisins in some ghee/clarified butter and set them aside to mix in the boondi later on. Also powder some cardamoms to add in the sugar syrup. You can also add a few drops of rosewater instead of cardamom powder. Keep a bowl of water by the side to dip your fingers in while making the ladoos. Strain the chickpea flour with the help of a sieve and proceed to prepare the batter.
Keep oil in a kadai/pan for deep frying the boondi. While the oil is heating, prepare the batter for boondi. Taking a bowl, mix chickpea flour with water to prepare the batter. Whisk it well to avoid any lumps and adjust the thickness of the batter, adding more water if required. The batter should be thinner than the pakoda or bajji batter. To check the right consistency of the batter, dip your finger in the batter, scooping some batter and gently drop a blob of the batter into the hot oil. If it forms the shape of a round pearl, then it’s the right consistency. And if it is shapeless or not round, then you probably need to add more flour to make it slightly thicker.
* To proceed further, you need to follow 2 steps together. While making the sugar syrup on one side of the stove, also start frying the boondi on the other side so that by the time you’re done with frying your boondi, your sugar syrup is also ready to mix the boondi in.
Taking a thick bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Place it over medium to low heat and let it boil till it comes to a one string consistency. Meanwhile, start making the boondi.
Once the oil is hot enough, drop the batter through a sieve. The temperature of the oil is very important in order to get the perfect boondi, so make sure the oil is not extremely hot; you don’t want the boondi to turn brown in color, and if the oil is under the temperature, then the boondi will come out very soft, which is also not good to get the perfect ladoos. Hence, check the temperature of the oil, by dropping a small sample through the sieve before you make the whole boondi.
If the oil is hot enough, the boondi will float on top as soon as you drop the batter. That’s the right temperature to fry your boondi. Once your oil is at the right temperature, drop some portion of your batter through the sieve. Holding the sieve in one hand about 2-3 inches high, carefully drop the batter through the sieve. I didn’t have sieve at home, so I used the colander and it ended up working perfectly. 😀
Without waiting for the boondi to turn golden in color, just take it out from the oil when is light in color. Over frying the boondi will give it a crispy texture which is not ideal for the ladoos. So, remove it from the oil at the right time and transfer it onto a paper towel. Wait for 2-3 minutes for the oil to heat before you make the second batch of the boondi and follow the same with the remaining batches of the boondi til’ you are done with the batter. Adjusting the temperature of the oil, fry your boondi just until it’s light in color and perfect in texture, that is neither too soft nor too crispy.
Check the consistency of your sugar syrup, with the help of a spoon. Drop a few drops of the sugar syrup in a plate with some water. If the syrup is formed into a soft ball without dissolving in the water, then it’s the right consistency.
Once the sugar syrup is thick and at right consistency turn the heat off and immediately add the powdered cardamom and your choice of dry fruits. Also do add a tablespoon of ghee into the sugar syrup.
Mix all of them evenly into the syrup and then add the fried boondi to it. Mix it well with a serving spoon and transfer this ladoo mix into a bowl. Start shaping the ladoos while the boondi is still is warm and before it starts crystalizing. Be careful, as the boondi is still hot. Wet your hands in the water before and in between, while shaping the ladoos.
Taking a small amount of the boondi mixture into one hand, press it with the other hand to bring the boondi together to form a shape. I’ll admit that this step was not as easy as I thought it’d be. I had to press really hard to squeeze in the boondi. Once the boondi come together as a lump, hold it with one hand and shape it into a round ball, approximating the size of a golf ball. Though my hands held a fair amount of the mixture, my pressure was not enough to hold a good amount of the boondi. So my ladoos were a bit smaller in size than the ones that are available in the sweet shops. Repeat the same with rest of the boondi till you’re done. Keep them in an airtight container or box and store. Well, if your ladoos turn really good, I’m sure there won’t be any left for long!
The perfect texture of the boondi, the delicious sweetness acquired through its immersion in the sugary syrup that is flavored with cardamom, with the soft and crunchy lil’ bits of raisins and cashews make for perfect Boondi ladoos. Moreover, they get gobbled up within no time, making you crave for more and more. While driving to my uncle’s place, my husband finished almost half of them 😉
I wish you all a very happy, safe, and delicious Diwali 😀
Check out the recipes of Mango Rice/Pulihora, Dahi poha, Mirchi bajji and Vada combo to prepare on your festive days!
| Prep Time | 10-15 minutes |
| Cook Time | 45-60 minutes |
| Servings |
ladoos
|
- 250 grams of chickpea flour
- 200 grams of sugar
- 6-8 pods of cardamom
- 1 tablespoon of raisins or as per your liking
- 2 tablespoons of cashews broken or halved
- 1 tablespoon of ghee/clarified butter
- Oil for deep frying
Ingredients
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- Batter should be of right consistency, if it's too watery it won't form a round pearl shape boondi. If the batter is too watery, then adjust the thickness of the batter by adding more flour as required. Use the right kind of utensil for the batter to drop through the holes into the hot oil. Drop the batter into the oil at a right temperature to get a perfect boondi, that is not too crispy nor too soft. Check the temperature of the oil, by dropping a sample amount of the batter into the oil. Boondi should be light in color so do not wait till it turns golden incolor or else it will become very crispy.
- To make the syrup, for 1 cup of sugar, add 1/2 cup of water . Bring it to boil up to one string consistency. Check the consistency of the sugar syrup by dropping a sample of the syrup in a plate with water. If the syrup forms into a soft ball then it's at the right consistency. If not, then boil the syrup till it reaches the right consistency. Don't overcook the syrup otherwise crystals will form and you won't be able to make the ladoos. Turn the heat off as soon as the sugar syrup reaches the right consistency.
- Before you start preparing the boondi and sugar syrup, keep the dry fruits that you want to add in the ladoos ready. Also powder some cardamoms to add in the sugar syrup. You can also add a few drops of rosewater instead of cardamom powder. Keep a bowl of water by the side to dip your fingers in while making the ladoos. Strain the chickpea flour with the help of a sieve and proceed to prepare the batter.
- Keep oil in a kadai/pan for deep frying the boondi. While the oil is heating, prepare the batter for boondi.
- Taking a bowl, mix chickpea flour with water to prepare the batter.
- Whisk it well to avoid any lumps and adjust the thickness of the batter, adding more water if required. The batter should be thinner than the pakoda or bajji batter.
- To proceed further, you need to follow 2 steps together.
1) Taking a thick bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar and water. Place it over medium to low heat and let it boil till it comes to a one string consistency.
2) Meanwhile, start making the boondi.
- Once the oil is hot enough, drop the batter through a sieve.
- Without waiting for the boondi to turn golden in color, just take it out from the oil when is light in color. Transfer it onto a paper towel.
- Wait for 2-3 minutes for the oil to heat before you make the second batch of the boondi and follow the same with the remaining batches of the boondi til' you are done with the batter.
- Check the consistency of your sugar syrup, with the help of a spoon.
- Once the sugar syrup is thick and at right consistency turn the heat off and immediately add the powdered cardamom and your choice of dry fruits.
- Also do add a tablespoon of ghee into the sugar syrup. Mix all of them evenly into the syrup and then add the fried boondi to it.
- Start shaping the ladoos while the boondi is still is warm and before it starts crystalizing. Be careful, as the boondi is still hot.
- Wet your hands in the water before and in between, while shaping the ladoos.
- Taking a small amount of the boondi mixture into one hand, press it with the other hand to bring the boondi together to form a shape.
- Once the boondi come together as a lump, hold it with one hand and shape it into a round ball, approximating the size of a golf ball.
- Repeat the same with rest of the boondi till you're done.
- Keep the ladoos in an airtight container or box and store. 😀
