Gulab Jamun

Gulab Jamun is a rich, melt-in-your-mouth delicacy of fried globules of milk solids that are dunked in a sweet syrup flavored with rose-water, cardamom, and saffron. It is one of my all-time favorite sweet indulgences. 

While there are several easy to prepare gulab jamun mixes that are available in the market, I decided to prepare this from scratch for Deepavali, and I am so glad I did, because it is extremely easy to prepare and is quite fail-proof. Usually, mawa or khova/koya is kneaded along with all-purpose flour to prepare the balls, which are then deep fried and soaked in sugar syrup. I wasn't too keen on spending time preparing khova, so my mom suggested that I use milk powder instead, and the jamuns turned out great - soft, luscious, and delectable in every way. 

Happy Deepavali to everyone!

Ingredients (makes 35 jamuns):

1.  2 cups milk powder - I used full fat (or 1.5 cups khova/khoya, prepared without the addition of sugar, cardamom, or saffron)
2. 1/2 cup maida / all purpose flour
3. 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
4.  6 cups water
5. 3 cups sugar (Add 4 cups of sugar for an authentically sweet version)
6. 1 teaspoon cardamom powder, freshly ground
7. 1 teaspoon rose water
8. vegetable oil for deep frying

Preparation: 

Do steps 1 and 2 in parallel

1.  In a saucepan, add 6 cups of water. Add sugar and begin to heat on medium-high heat by stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Let it come to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and continue to heat until the syrup thickens a little. Test for the right consistency by taking a little syrup and running it between your fingers. The syrup should feel a little sticky, but should not be so thick so as to form a stringy consistency. When the syrup reaches the right consistency, switch off the heat, and make sure it remains warm when the fried jamuns are dunked into it. So, by the time you finish preparing the syrup, the jamuns must be ready to be fried. Add rose water and cardamom to the prepared syrup and mix
2.  In the meanwhile, in a bowl, add milk powder, all purpose flour, and baking soda and mix evenly. Slowly add about 3/4 cup of water and knead to form a tight dough, so that you can roll out small balls (about 1/2 inch in radius). The jamuns will swell and increase in size when soaking in syrup, so keep that in mind while rolling out the balls.
3. Heat oil in a pot until hot. Reduce the heat to medium (or low-medium) and fry the prepared balls until maroonish brown in color. Make sure you fry the balls slowly so that the insides cook. Remove the fried jamuns and immediately immerse them in the warm sugar syrup.
4. Repeat frying all the jamuns. 
5. Let the jamuns soak for at least 4 hours and then serve them slightly warm or at room temperature. The jamuns are served in a liberal pool of the sugar syrup.

Gulab jamuns can be stored in the fridge for up to a week. They also go great with vanilla ice cream.

Variation: To make the jamuns extra decadent, stuff a raisin or cashew into the jamun while rolling out the balls.