khoya kaju recipe with step by step pics – restaurant style delicious kaju khoya gravy recipe.
kaju (cashews) in a rich gravy base of khoya (evaporated milk solids), onion and yogurt. this rich curry has delicate notes and flavors with just a bit of heat from the green chilies.
i had got some requests to post kaju khoya. a friend had shared kaju khoya recipe with me earlier. so i tried her recipe with some variations. this version is like some gravies you get in restaurants. but the gravy is not thick or creamy. the kaju khoya curry is subtly flavored and spiced.
since this is a rich curry, its good to make on special occasions, festivals or celebrations. few more similar delicious recipes are:
khoya kaju gravy goes best with tandoori rotis, naans or chapatis. this khoya kaju gravy also goes with steamed rice, jeera rice or vegetable pulao.
if you are looking for more curry recipes then do check:
khoya kaju recipe

INGREDIENTS FOR khoya kaju recipe (1 CUP = 250 ML)
for the ground paste
- 1 medium onion Or ½ cup chopped onion Or 75 grams onion
- 1 inch ginger, chopped Or 2 teaspoon chopped ginger (adrak)
- 6 to 7 small to medium garlic, chopped Or 2 teaspoon chopped garlic (lahsun)
- 1 or 2 green chilies Or 1 teaspoon chopped green chili (hari mirch)
- 3 tablespoon full fat fresh curd (dahi or yogurt)
other ingredients for khoya kaju recipe
- ¾ cup cashews or 100 grams cashews (kaju)
- 125 grams khoya - about ¾ cup crumbled khoya (mawa or dried evaporated milk solids)
- 1 tejpatta (indian bay leaf)
- 2 cloves (lavang)
- ½ inch cinnamon (dalchini)
- 2 green cardamoms (chotti elachi)
- 2 strands of mace (javitri) - optional
- ½ teaspoon shah jeera (caraway seeds) - optional
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder (haldi)
- ½ teaspoon red chilli powder (lal mirch powder)
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder (dhania powder)
- ¼ to ½ teaspoon garam masala, add as required
- 2 tablespoon low fat cream
- ¾ cup water or add as per the consistency you want
- 1 to 2 tablespoon chopped coriander leaves for garnish (dhania patta)
- 2 tablespoon ghee
- salt as required
HOW TO MAKE khoya kaju recipe
preparation for khoya kaju recipe
- chop 1 medium onion, 1 inch ginger, 6 to 7 garlic and 1 or 2 green chilies. keep aside.
- take the chopped onion, ginger, garlic, green chilies in chutney jar or grinder jar. add 3 tbsp curd/yogurt.
- grind everything to a smooth paste without adding any water. keep this ground paste aside.
sauteing kaju
- measure cashews and take 3/4 cup or 100 grams cashews. if you prefer you can rinse the cashews and then pat dry them with a kitchen cotton napkin.
- heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pan.
- add the cashews and begin to saute the.
- continue to saute them till they become golden.
- remove the golden cashews and keep them aside on a plate.
making kaju khoya gravy
- in the same pan, add the whole spices - 1 tejpatta, 2 cloves, 1/2 inch cinnamon, 2 green cardamoms, 2 strands of mace (optional), 1/2 tsp shah jeera/caraway seeds (optional). saute till the spices become aromatic. takes just a few seconds.
- then add the ground onion paste. stir well.
- the onion paste needs to be sauteed or bhunaoed till it starts turning light brown. so this step takes some time.
- ensure that you stir often while sauteing and do so on a low flame.
- the past will start clumping together and reduce a lot. continue to saute till the paste becomes light golden.
- then add the spice powders - 1/4 tsp turmeric powder, 1/2 tsp red chilli powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, 1/4 tsp to 1/2 tsp garam masala. for a semi white gravy, don't add turmeric and red chili powder. instead you can add about ¼ tsp white pepper powder along with the coriander and garam masala powder.
- stir well so that the spice powder or masala mixes evenly with the rest of the mixture. keep the flame low as you don't want the spices to get burnt. you can also switch off the flame, while adding the spices powders, so that they don't get burnt.
- add 3/4 cup grated khoya or crumbled khoya (about 125 grams of khoya)
- stir and saute till you see fat releasing the sides of the masala mixture. about 2 minutes on a low flame.
- add 3/4 cup water and stir very well. you can also add water as per the consistency you want. for a thicker consistency, add less water. i kept a medium consistency gravy.
- then add salt as required.
- bring the khoya kaju curry to a simmer on low to medium flame for 5 to 6 minutes or till you see the some specks of fat floating on top.
- add 2 tbsp low fat cream. stir well and then switch off the flame.
- lastly add the cashews. keep some cashews for garnish. stir the kaju khoya curry again.
- garnish with coriander leaves and serve kaju curry with tandoori rotis, naan, chapatis or jeera rice or veg pulao.
how to make khoya kaju recipe
1. chop 1 medium onion, 1 inch ginger, 6 to 7 garlic and 1 or 2 green chilies. keep aside.
2. take the chopped onion, ginger, garlic, green chilies in chutney jar or grinder jar.
3. add 3 tbsp curd/yogurt.
4. grind everything to a smooth paste without adding any water. keep this ground paste aside.
5. measure cashews and take ¾ cup or 100 grams cashews. if you prefer you can rinse the cashews and then pat dry them with a kitchen cotton napkin.
sauteing kaju
6. heat 2 tbsp ghee in a pan.
7. add the cashews and begin to saute them.
8. continue to saute them till they become golden.
9. remove the golden cashews and keep them aside on a plate.
making kaju khoya gravy
10. in the same pan, add the whole spices – 1 tejpatta, 2 cloves, ½ inch cinnamon, 2 green cardamoms, 2 strands of mace (optional), ½ tsp shah jeera/caraway seeds (optional). saute till the spices become aromatic. takes just a few seconds.
11. then add the ground onion paste.
12. stir well.
13. the onion paste needs to be sauteed or bhunaoed till it starts turning light brown. so this step takes some time.
14. ensure that you stir often while sauteing and do so on a low flame.
15. here the paste has started clumping together and reduced a lot. there is no watery consistency now.
16. continue to saute till the paste becomes light golden.
17. then add the spice powders – ½ tsp turmeric powder, ½ tsp red chilli powder, 1 tsp coriander powder, ¼ tsp to ½ garam masala. for a semi white gravy, don’t add turmeric and red chili powder. instead you can add about ¼ tsp white pepper powder along with the coriander and garam masala powder.
18. stir well so that the spice powder or masala mixes evenly with the rest of the mixture. keep the flame low as you don’t want the spices to get burnt. you can also switch off the flame, while adding the spices powders, so that they don’t get burnt.
19. add ¾ cup grated khoya or crumbled khoya (about 125 grams of khoya).
20. stir and saute till you see fat releasing the sides of the masala mixture. about 2 minutes on a low flame.
21. add ¾ cup water and stir very well. you can also add water as per the consistency you want. for a thicker consistency, add less water. i kept a medium consistency gravy.
22. then add salt as required.
23. bring the khoya kaju gravy to a simmer on low to medium flame for 5 to 6 minutes or till you see the some specks of fat floating on top.
24. add 2 tbsp low fat cream.
25. stir well and then switch off the flame.
26. lastly add the cashews. keep some cashews for garnish too.
27. stir the khoya kaju gravy again.
28. garnish with coriander leaves and serve kaju khoya with tandoori roti, naan, rotis or khasta roti or jeera rice or vegetable pulao.
Prepared first time turned out good
thankyou madhu 🙂
Amazing recipe!! Came out really well!!
Thank you!!
welcome and thankyou so much Ramesh 🙂
This is da first recipe I tried from this site, n it was simply awesome. My entire family loved it and I was so proud…… Hehe…. 🙂 thank you
welcome ashwini. glad to know this.
Hi,
This is Vicki again, do you have any idea for Khoya. How to make instant khoya that I can use in your Khoya Kaju recipe. Indian store so far from here. Please help me. Thanks in advance.
Vicki
welcome vicki. i never made instant khoya. i always made it in traditional way. you can have a look at the recipe here – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/khoya-mawa-recipe-homemade-khoya-mawa/
Hi,
Which other paneer subzi go with khoya kaju curry. I have to make dinner for 12 people tomorrow. Do yoo have punjabi pakora kadhi? Please reply Asap.Thanks
welcome vicki. you can make paneer tikka, dry kadai paneer, paneer bhurji, paneer tawa masala, paneer capsicum. recipe for punjabi kadhi pakora – https://www.vegrecipesofindia.com/punjabi-kadhi-recipe-punjabi-kadhi-pakora/