Coconut Ladoo Recipe | Nariyal ke Laddu Made In 3 Unique Ways

There are many ways Coconut Ladoo (also known as Nariyal ke Laddu in Hindi) can be made. I share three delicious recipes. Prepare these tasty melt-in-the-mouth sweets, serve them as a sweet snack and watch them disappear in seconds.

What is Coconut Ladoo

Coconut ladoo is a bite-size sweet ball made from coconut. Ladoo is an Indian sweet-shaped ball with many variations. Some popular ladoo recipes include Besan Ladoo and Rava Laddu.

Also called as “Laddu”, these decadent treats are often made during Hindu festivals and also offered to the deities in temples.

Coconut laddu can be made in many ways. Here I share three recipes for making them.

These recipe methods are different and uses unique ingredients besides coconut. So the taste and texture of the ladoo vary and do not taste same.

I have also shared a rustic and earthy recipe of coconut laddu made with jaggery popularly called as Narkel Naru in Bengal.

Coconut Ladoo with Milkmaid

This coconut ladoo is a sweet delicious crowd pleaser and is made with just 3 ingredients!

This method involves making the ladoo using fresh coconut, condensed milk (milkmaid) and cardamom powder. An advantage of this method is that it is quick, easy and great for beginners.

Prep and keep aside all the ingredients before you begin cooking. For best taste and texture, I suggest to add freshly grated coconut. Though in a pinch you can opt to use frozen grated coconut or desiccated coconut.

To make laddu with desiccated coconut, I have included instructions in the steps below.

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups of tightly packed fresh grated coconut
• 1 teaspoon ghee
• ½ teaspoon green cardamom powder
• ½ can of sweetened condensed milk – 220 grams
• ⅓ cup fresh grated coconut or unsweetened desiccated coconut
• preferred chopped nuts or dry fruits – optional

Sauté Coconut

1. Heat 1 teaspoon of ghee in a frying pan or kadai. You can also use coconut oil instead of ghee.

2. Add 1.5 cups of tightly packed grated coconut.

3. Stir and sauté the coconut on low heat for 3 to 4 minutes but make sure they don’t brown. Roasting gets rid of the excess moisture.

Tip 1: If you are using desiccated coconut then there is no need to roast it in ghee. Simply mix the desiccated coconut with condensed milk (milkmaid) and heat the mixture.

Tip 2: On the other hand, if you are using frozen coconut then let it come to room temperature before you start to roast it.

Make Ladoo Mixture

4. Now add ¾ cup of sweetened condensed milk.

5. Add ½ teaspoon of green cardamom powder.

6. Mix well and cook the mixture on a low heat.

7. The mixture should begin to thicken. Keep stirring regularly.

8. Once the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and you see some coconut fat at the sides, turn off the heat.

9. Pour the coconut ladoo mixture in another bowl or pan and allow it to cool.

10. Once the mixture has cooled completely, pinch medium balls from the mixture and form ladoo.

Rub ghee on the palm of your hands and shape the coconut ladoo. If the mixture is loose then you won’t be able to make the ladoo.

Tip: If the mixture is loose then put it back in the pan and heat it for a few more minutes.

11. Roll the ladoo in to the desiccated coconut or in fresh coconut until it is evenly coated.

12. You can also make all of the coconut ladoo at the same time and roll in them in desiccated coconut.

13. Place the coconut laddu in small muffin liners and place them in a tray. 14. Serve coconut ladoo straight away or refrigerate for later.

Coconut ladoo can be refrigerated for 2 to 3 days. Keep them covered in an air-tight container in the fridge.

Desiccated Coconut Ladoo

These are 2 Ingredient coconut ladoo made with an easy recipe. These delish ladoo are pretty quick to make. The 2 main ingredients are desiccated coconut and milkmaid (sweetened condensed milk).

The recipe is ridiculously easy to put together and even a beginner can make this easily. The method is good for students or folks who are studying or working outside India and thus can celebrate Indian festivals by making quick and easy sweets like this ladoo recipe. Ingredients like desiccated coconut and condensed milk are easily available everywhere.

You will Need

• 2.5 cups desiccated coconut powder
• 1 cup sweetened condensed milk or milkmaid
• ½ teaspoon cardamom powder
• 1 tablespoon Ghee
• 3 tablespoons desiccated coconut, for coating on ladoo

How to make

1. Keep a heavy bottomed pan or kadai on stove top. Add 1 tablespoon ghee and let it melt.

2. Keep the flame to a low and then add 2.5 cups desiccated coconut powder.

3. On a low heat sauté the coconut for 1 minute.

4. Then add 1 cup condensed milk.

5. Mix the condensed milk very well with the coconut.

6. On a low to medium-low heat with nonstop stirring sauté the mixture till it starts to leave sides of the pan.

7. Switch off the heat when the mixture has thickened and leaves the sides of pan. Add ½ teaspoon cardamom powder. Mix very well.

9. Let the mixture become warm or cool at room temperature. Then with a spoon, scoop out the ladoo mixture.

10. Shape into neat ladoo.

11. Make a round ladoo.

12. On a plate take 3 tablespoons desiccated coconut. Roll the ladoo in desiccated coconut.

13. Make all ladoo this way with the remaining mixture. Scrape off all the mixture from the pan with a spoon and use them too to make ladoo.

Serve the ladoo as a sweet. The remaining ladoo you can refrigerate and these stay good for about 8 to 10 days in the refrigerator.

Nariyal ke Laddu with Sugar Syrup

For this method, you will need desiccated coconut, cardamom and sugar. This is my go-to recipe when I offer ladoo to Bhagwan Ganesha or any other deity or for a religious occasion.

This nariyal ladoo is easy to make as long as you get 1 thread or an “ek taar” consistency in the sugar syrup. If you overcook the sugar syrup beyond the 1 thread consistency, then the nariyal ke laddu will harden.

You can also choose to flavor nariyal ke laddu with cardamom powder, saffron or skip them altogether.

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups desiccated coconut powder (unsweetened)
• ⅔ cup regular sugar or raw sugar
• ½ cup water
• ½ teaspoon cardamom powder or 3 to 4 green cardamoms – husked and powdered in a mortar-pestle, optional

Method

1. Mix ⅔ cup sugar with ½ cup water and dissolve it with a spoon. If there are impurities than strain the sugar solution. Keep the sugar solution on stove-top and on a low heat simmer the solution.

2. The solution will start to thicken and continue to cook till you get the one thread consistency in the sugar syrup. This takes some minutes.

This is a very hot syrup, so when checking for one thread consistency, cool the syrup in a spoon and then check.

3. After you get the one thread consistency in the syrup, switch off the heat. Add 1.5 cups unsweetened desiccated coconut powder. Also add ½ teaspoon of cardamom powder.

4. Be quick enough to stir the whole mixture well.

5. Make small balls from the mixture. You can spread some coconut oil or ghee in your palms before making these ladoo.

If the heat is too much too handle, wait for a few seconds till you are comfortable making the nariyal ke laddu.

The mixture should be hot or warm while shaping. If the mixture becomes cold, then making the coconut ladoo is impossible.

If this happens then return the pan or bowl on the the stove-top and slightly warm the mixture and continue to make the coconut ladoo. Sprinkle some drops of water or milk if the mixture looks too dry.

6. Use up the entire coconut mixture in making neat round balls. Serve the nariyal ke laddu to your family or as naivedyam or bhog if made for your deity.

Expert Tips

1. Coconut: I like to use fresh coconut for the first recipe but you can easily substitute fresh coconuts for desiccated coconut powder and achieve the same results. For the best results use good quality desiccated coconut and make sure it is not rancid.
2. Batch: If you need to feed a large crowd then feel free to double or triple these recipe. You can also half it if you are serving less people.
3. Storage: Fresh coconut ladoo made with milkmaid can be refrigerated for 2 to 3 days. Desiccated coconut ladoo made with condensed milk keeps well for 8 to 10 days in the refrigerator. While nariyal ke ladoo made with sugar can be refrigerated for more than a week.
4. Offering: If you are planning to offer coconut ladoo to a deity, then it is best to make the third ladoo recipe made with desiccated coconut powder and sugar.

Variations

• I have added cardamom powder in all the three recipes for a nice aroma. Feel free to skip it if you prefer.
• Also, I have not added nuts or dry fruits in any of the recipe. But you can add any nuts or dry fruits that you like.
• In the recipes using milkmaid or sweetened condensed milk, there is no need to add any sugar as condensed milk gives enough sweetness. Though for a less sweet taste, you can reduce the quantity of sweetened condensed milk.
• The desiccated coconut used is not the grated or shredded dry coconut, but one in a powder form. Its also called as desiccated coconut powder.
• In the second recipe, ghee is optional to use and so is cardamom powder. If not using ghee, then just roast the desiccated coconut in the skillet or pan on a low heat for a minute.
• Rolling the ladoo in desiccated coconut is optional and can be skipped.

FAQs

This Coconut Ladoo recipe from the archives first published on March 2015 has been updated and republished on May 2022.