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    Home » Recipes » Dessert

    Carrot Halwa

    Published Sep 30, 2017, modified Oct 1, 2022 by Nicole Shroff / This site uses cookies. See the privacy policy linked in my footer. This site generates income via ads/ 4 Comments /

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    Pin image carrot halwa in bowl with text overlay

    Carrot halwa (Gajjar ka halwa), is a wonderful lightly spiced North Indian dessert, made with carrots, spices, milk and sugar.

    Carrot halwa in a glass bowl

    Impress your guests with this wonderfully rich and fragrant spiced carrot dessert which is popular throughout India.

    It is probably the most popular of all halwas. In winter it is served warm, or on warmer days with a scoop of ice cream.

    It is slow cooked over a low flame and takes roughly 40 minutes to make.

    The flavours come together beautifully creating an aromatic, rich and creamy dessert with a slightly chewy texture.

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    Jump to:
    • Helpful tips
    • To make it vegan
    • Serve
    • Storing
    • You may also like …
    • 📋 Recipe
    closeup of halwa in a glass bowl

    Helpful tips

    • For best results, use full cream (whole) milk, rather than semi-skimmed.
    • Heat the milk with crushed cardamoms, then strain the seeds away and set the milk aside. The aroma is wonderful – similar to that of kheer (Indian rice-pudding).
    • To make the halwa, use a large heavy iron skillet as it holds the heat well on a low flame.
    • The carrots are cooked in butter till softened, not browned. As they cook, they begin to caramelize, with a richer more intense flavour.
    • Adjust the amount of sugar according to the sweetness of the carrots and to taste.
    • Add half the cardamom flavoured milk, sugar, cinnamon, clove, saffron water and salt and simmer till the liquid has reduced by half. The salt helps accentuate the flavours.
    • Next, add the rest of the milk and reduce again till you have a rice pudding consistency (not too dry).
    • Stir in the crème fraîche and reduce again, till it is no longer runny.
    arial view of grated carrots in saucepan on hob

    To make it vegan

    Use a vegetable oil, and substitute milk with 3 cups of almond milk.

    Serve

    Reheat before serving or bring to room temperature and serve with a scoop of ice cream.

    Storing

    It will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

    Defrost in the fridge overnight, and warm before serving.

    Close up of Carrot Halwa showing texture

    You may also like …

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    • Green Moong Dal Halwa

    ⭐️ Are you making this Carrot Halwa recipe? I’d love to know how it turned out in the comments! And please give it a star rating below!

    Instagram – I love seeing your creations, so post a picture, tag @endofthefork and hashtag #endofthefork

    📋 Recipe

    halwa in decorative glass bowl alongside 2 carrots

    Carrot Halwa

    Nicole Shroff
    Carrot halwa, or Gajjar ka halwa, is a wonderful North Indian dessert made with carrots, spices, milk and sugar.
    5 from 1 vote
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    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 40 mins
    Total Time 50 mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine Indian
    Servings 4 people
    Calories 276 kcal

    Ingredients

    • a pinch saffron strands
    • 2 tablespoons water
    • 2 tablespoons ghee or butter
    • 3 cups carrots grated
    • 3 cups milk whole
    • 2 cardamoms crushed
    • ¼ cup sugar
    • a pinch cinnamon powder
    • 1 clove crushed
    • a pinch salt
    • ½ cup crème fraîche or cream

    Instructions
     

    • a pinch saffron strands, 2 tablespoons water
      Crush and soak the saffron in 2 tablespoons of water for 20 minutes.
    • 3 cups milk, 2 cardamoms
      In a small saucepan, heat the milk and cardamom pods. Once it comes to a boil, turn off the heat, remove the crushed cardamom pods and set aside.
    • 2 tablespoons ghee
      In a large skillet, melt the ghee/butter and add the carrots. Stir and cook over a low heat till softened (approx. 7 minutes).
    • ¼ cup sugar, a pinch cinnamon, 1 clove, a pinch salt
      Pour in half the milk, then add sugar, the saffron and its water, cinnamon, crushed clove and salt, stirring occasionally till the liquid has reduced by half.
    • Add the remaining milk and gently simmer till there is no liquid left.
    • ½ cup crème fraîche
      Stir in the crème fraîche and reduce till the halwa is no longer runny. Serve warm or cold.

    Notes

    For best results, use full cream (whole) milk, rather than semi-skimmed.
    Use a large heavy iron skillet as it holds the heat well on a low flame.
    The carrots are cooked in butter till softened, not browned.
    As they cook, they become sweeter as they caramelize, so adjust the amount of sugar accordingly to taste.
    Add half the cardamom flavoured milk, sugar and the salt (this helps to accentuate the flavours) and simmer till reduced.
    The consistency should be similar to that of rice pudding consistency (not dry).

    MEASUREMENT NOTES

    The ingredients here on EOTF are set out in grams & milliliters and in US cups & spoons.

    Equipment

    Skillet
    Ghee

    Nutrition

    Calories: 276kcalCarbohydrates: 20gProtein: 7gFat: 19gSaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 52mgSodium: 169mgPotassium: 600mgFiber: 3gSugar: 15gVitamin A: 16513IUVitamin C: 6mgCalcium: 274mgIron: 1mg
    Did you make this recipe? I’d love to know how it turned out! Let me know by leaving a review below, or snap a photo and share it on Instagram tagging me @Endofthefork.
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Gloria Duggan

      October 04, 2017 at 12:20 pm

      This sounds like a great fall dessert….almost like a carrot custard. I would even eat this for breakfast if I had this sitting in my fridge.

      Reply
    2. phoren

      October 03, 2017 at 10:26 pm

      I’m a huge fan of Indian desserts – Cardamom is one of my favorite spices. This sounds like the perfect dish as the weather gets colder.

      Reply
    3. Azlin Bloor

      October 03, 2017 at 1:47 pm

      Absolutely gorgeous! This is one of my favourite childhood desserts and I just love how yours looks – sooo beautifully creamy!

      Reply
      • Nicole

        October 25, 2017 at 9:23 pm

        Thanks so much Azlin

        Reply

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