Deconstructed Besan Laddu – the traditional sweet Besan Laddu, which rules the hearts and homes of millions, gets a modern look. Besan laddu is a humble Indian dessert, which is very easy to make and is nutritious as well. Ready in under 30 minutes, here is the recipe of deconstructed besan laddu with a couple of secret tricks/ingredients to give it that authentic taste, as well as the backstory of how I got the name Deconstructed Besan Laddu 🙂 You may skip the details and Jump to Recipe if you want.
This is a special recipe for me as it has story behind it, and also behind it’s name 🙂 In 2015, I had moved to Malaysia for work and it was the first time ever I was away from family during Diwali festival. Generally we celebrate Diwali with lots of friends and family, make lots of yummy desserts and snacks. So I thought why not make a dessert in my minimalist kitchen in Malaysia and bring it for my team at work. My kitchen had bare minimum utensils that I could count on my finger tips and so were the ingredients. I thought of making this simple desert, which I had never made before, as it seemed simple with very few ingredients. I always had this belief for years that I can never make a dessert. Whipping up an Indian dessert – I wouldn’t even dream about it that time. So thinking of making an Indian desert which I had never made, was a big deal for me 🙂
I researched recipes, bought a couple of ingredients and started making it. I made it within just 15-20 minutes in the morning, before going to work. And I felt it turned out very nice. Now all I had to do was shape it into laddus (round balls) and off I could go for work – easy peasy, right? right??? Well, the only problem was the mixture was still quite hot, I added sugar (which apparently I should have waited for mixture to cool down a bit) and the laddus won’t form easily!! I somehow made the laddus, decorated on a plate, and off I went to work thinking, great! It worked! Well, by the time I was half way to work, the laddus started getting lazy and instead of standing straight it all started integrating into one big mass on the plate at it was still warm 🙂 Well I didn’t have time to go back to wait for it to get cooler and re-do it. So, I reached work, mixed everything with spoon and put it flat on the plate. After some time it cooled down! I made it into crumbly version of it. Of course I couldn’t tell my team that i had made laddus as it didn’t resemeble anything like it, but I confidently said I have made Deconstructed Besan Laddus (oh, and it sounded sophisticated and all) 🙂 And everyone enjoyed it – a LOT! That’s how my friends, Deconstructed Besan Laddus were born. Since that time, it was my team’s favorite and made it over half a dozen times in few months.
I have come to admire that name. I also realize that instead of eating as whole laddu, when eaten that way, it also makes you appreciate the texture of the dessert. I added edible flower petals, pistachios etc. to garnish it.
It is generally a very forgiving recipe, as long as you make sure you stir it continuously and roast the gram flour just right – such that the raw flavor goes away and also it doesn’t get over-roasted. Over roasting is a no-no. Otherwise, it’s a very quick, simple, easy recipe where the sugar level, ghee level can be adjusted anytime, even after it is made.
Deconstructed Besan Laddu
the traditional sweet Besan Laddu, which rules the hearts and homes of millions, gets a modern look. Besan laddu is a humble Indian dessert, ready in under 30 minutes.
Print Pin RecipeServings (slide to adjust): 10 people
Ingredients
- 2 cups Besan / Gram flour Can use laddu besan as well, which has a bit thicker texture.
- ½ cup Ghee (clarified butter) (plus 1 table spoon)
- ¾ cup Tagar/boora or regular powdered sugar (¾ to 1 cup based on sweetness desired)
- ½ teaspoon Cardamom powder (freshly ground)
- 1 tablespoon Pistachios chopped
- 1 teaspoon Dried rose petals (optional)
- 1 tablespoon Water
Instructions
- Sift the besan (gram flour) and keep it ready.
- Heat Ghee. Add the sifted besan. Keep the heat on medium and stir continuously.
- After about 10-12 minutes, the besan would have been roasted. You can tell it by the nutty aroma and golden brown of it. If need be, add some additional ghee while stirring. I did add 1 tablespoon of ghee while stirring.
- Another secret to this recipe is - to give it a bit grainier texture is to sprinkle a tablespoon of water and continuously stir it for another 1-2 minutes.
- A key thing to remember in this recipe is not to undercook or overcook the besan. Either one won't taste good, and the overcooked one is the worst. So the key is to stir continuously. You will get a hang of it after making it a couple of times. But till then, you can use these timings I mentioned for the recipe.
- Once the mixture is ready, turn off the heat and remove it on a big plate. Do not keep it in the vessel that you made it in, as due to the heat of the vessel, the besan will continue to cook even after turning off the heat.
- Once the mixture cools down (not completely cool, but luke warm), add cardamom powder, ½ tablespoon of chopped pistachios, sugar/boora/tagar. Mix really well with both hands. If it looks too dry, you have the option to add bit more ghee.
- At this point, you have three options: 1) you can spread it on a tray or plate which has raised edge, let it completely cool down and cut into pieces, 2) you can make it into round laddus. 3) you can make it into a crumble. Or you can do all three of it 🙂 The crumble can also be used for plating desserts or plating the laddu itself. Whichever version you choose, garnish it with the remaining chopped nuts and dried edible flowers.
Enjoy!
Notes
1) Tagar or Boora (a special kind of sugar) is highly recommended for a certain texture typical of besan laddu, but I have made it innumerable times using normal powdered sugar, and that turned out good a well.
2) This is the first time I tried with Tagar and absolutely loved the texture and that little crunch of sugar in it. I actually didn't have that Tagar available, so made it at home. I have added the recipe at the bottom. I feel it's easier to just buy it from store if you have that option. It will save time.
3) These laddus can be stored for a long time. There is no need for refrigeration.
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Tagar (Boora sugar)
Tagar, also sometimes called Boora is a porous version of sugar which is made by melting sugar in water to reach a state of crystallization. It is used in making laddus and pedas.
Print Pin Recipe Ingredients
- 3 cups Sugar
- 1 cup Water
- ½ - 1 teaspoon Ghee (clarified butter)
Instructions
- In a container, add sugar and water. Turn the heat on to medium-high flame.
- Stir a few times until the sugar melts. Add ghee (optional). Ghee helps make the boora smooth and lump free, once it cools down. Continue to cook and stir in between until at least a 1 string consistency syrup is ready. It will take about 7-8 minutes after the sugar has melted.
- One of the ways to test it is by carefully getting a little drop of syrup from the ladle used for stirring the syrup and pressing that drop between the index finger and thumb. If you see a string or more forming when you open up the index finger and thumb, the syrup is ready.
- Once one string syrup is ready, turn off the heat and let the syrup cool down, stirring every few minutes. The syrup will gradually turn white and become drier - salt kind of texture. The key is to keep breaking the lumps so that the final product is smooth and lump free.Boora is ready for making laddus or pedas.
Notes
- This was the first time I made it. The texture to me didn't feel completely dry. I had to pamper it quite a bit to make it into a drier version. But the end result in Laddus was totally worth it 🙂
- This will make a bigger batch of tagar than needed for the besan laddu recipe above. But you can store it in a container for future use.
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This is a very forgiving recipe. You can always add more/less sugar after it’s made, you can add more ghee or if it’s bit on the runny side, you can put it in refrigerator for sometime. You can add / adjust all other ingredients. Only important part is to saute the besan at the right temperature, for the right period of time, and stir continuously. The laddus stay fresh for many weeks and there is no need for refrigeration.
This Fathers’ Day, give the gift of Nostalgia by making these quick, easy, and yummy humble dessert – Besan Laddus. Ready in under 30 minutes using minimal ingredients. Crumble it, dress it up in flowers and nuts, and you have the modern looking Deconstructed Besan Laddu 🙂
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