Besan laddu is one such Indian sweet that is made in almost all households in India during festivals and celebrations. Besan is the Hindi word for chickpea/gram flour and Laddu refers in general to all round shaped Indian sweets. Besan laddu is an easy recipe that needs only 3-4 ingredients. Making it in the traditional way could be a bit tedious job, but let me tell you a recipe using which you can make it easily in less than 10 minutes.
To make these tasty besan laddus without hurting your arm (from continuous roasting besan in a pan) and within just few minutes, I make them in the Microwave! Trust me, you would not compromise the taste. Plus, it takes less than 10 minutes to make these delicious laddus.
I add suji (Semolina) in my recipe as I prefer the besan laddu a bit crunchy (and just melt in the mouth). I also always use my homemade ghee, which enhances the taste of every dish.
The cooking time for these laddus is about 8 minutes, but it can vary depending on the microwave. I have made these Besan Laddus in 2 different (power/watt) microwaves – a 800 watt microwave took 9 minutes and, a 900 watt microwave took 7 minutes. Hence after 7 minutes, keep checking if the besan is done; keep an eye on the besan colour and the aroma. If you see the besan colour has changed to golden brown and you can smell the roasted aroma, it means it is done!
Let’s make these delicious Besan Laddus in few minutes without hurting your arms😉
The ingredients for making Besan Laddu are:
- Chickpea flour/Gram flour (Besan): 2 cups
- Sugar: 1 ¼ cups
- Ghee (clarified butter): 1 cup
- Semolina (suji): ¼ cup
- Dry fruits (almonds, cashew nuts): 15-20 or as per your requirement
- Cardamom (elaichi): 5-6
Method:
Take ghee in a big microwavable bowl, put it in the microwave and melt it.
Now add chickpea flour (besan), semolina in it and mix well. Cook it in the microwave for 2 minutes, then take it out and mix well.
Now again put it in the microwave for another 2 minutes, take it out and mix again.
Another round of 1 minute cooking in the microwave, then take it out and mix it.
At this stage, we need to do 3 more rounds of microwave cooking (1 minute each), take out and mix well each time.
When you see that the besan is about to be done, then add 1 Tbsp milk – this will give your laddu the granular texture. (this is optional)
Check the colour of the besan – when it becomes golden brown in colour and smells fully roasted, it’s done!
If you feel it is not done, then you can put it in the microwave for another 2-3 minutes but one minute at a time so that it will not get burnt.
Now this besan mixture would be hot, so leave it on the kitchen platform for 2-3 minutes to cool down a little bit so that you can manage to make the laddus with your hands.
Then add powdered sugar, chopped dry fruits and cardamom powder in it and mix well.
Now take some mixture in your hands, and make round balls from it. And voila your Besan Laddu is ready!
You can garnish the laddu with dry fruits, I forgot to do that. 😦
Finer Points/Insider Tips:
- You can add more ghee (for more flavour) while binding the laddus if you like.
- You can add more sugar, as per your taste.
- Feel free to add your choice of dry fruits.
- Start making the laddus while the mixture is warm, as it helps in binding/shaping the laddus.
- The (laddu) making time will vary based on microwave power/wattage. So, keep checking the besan after 7 minutes of cooking – to see if it done or needs another 1-2 minutes of cooking.
- If you change the quantity of besan that will also impact the time to make the laddus; so be mindful while changing the quantity of the besan.
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